Hawaii - day 5

Wednesday, Dec 15: Here's the view from our hotel:

Yesterday we promised SC no more meals at McDonald's, but today we still end up eating breakfast at the McDondald's across the street from our hotel.

Today we went to Pearl Harbor.

I know it's a war memorial and all, and an important part of U.S. history, but I wouldn't put it on my Hawaii must-see list. There's nothing you can see or learn here that isn't extensively documented by other sources.

This is the main area just past the visitor center. It looks very recently renovated. In the background is the USS Bowfin submarine, and behind it, the bridge to Ford Island.

A couple interesting bits of information:

The USS Arizona is still leaking oil (2 liters/day)! And there's a ton more (millions of gallons) left inside. 2 liters/day isn't much, but I wonder what the ecological impact is.

We took a self-guided tour through the USS Bowfin submarine. Inside the engine room was a lathe. The audio guide didn't have anything to say about it, but I guess you had to be pretty resourceful on a submarine. I can't imagine what kind of field repairs sailors would have had to make with this. Can you imagine turning a part that you and your friends' lives may have depended on?

I saw this truck going over the bridge into Ford Island carrying what looks like an anti-aircraft gun. I guess you gotta move them around somehow...

After Pearl Harbor, we went to Walmart and Costco to buy food and other supplies. SC's brother had a Kodak digital camera that burned through AA's like nobody's business, and my 35mm N65's 10-year-old CR2's died suddenly and without warning. I think autofocusing the telephoto zoom is especially taxing.

We got back to Waikiki at sunset and checked out the beach:

Hotels and high-rises in Waikiki, as viewed from a groin.

We had Costco foodstuffs for dinner, and afterwards I worked on grad school apps while SC and her family checked out Waikiki at night. I'm told the street performers and vendors are pretty cool.