Dream Vacation: Part One-the Arizona Memorial

In the summer of 2002, my husband and I flew to Oahu, Hawaii.  It was my dream come true!  We enjoyed every thing we did and every place we visited.  When we arrived home, we were exhausted, but certainly not disappointed.  Oahu is lush and lovely beyond any imaginings I had about this Paradise on Earth.  Because I have so many photos of this vacation, I've decided to present it in sections.

This is Charles, my late husband on the deck of the Arizona Memorial.  

Although the line wound around very long sidewalks, the crowd was patient and polite.  We were across from the line shown here, but it didn't take as long to get to the Memorial itself as one would expect.

the people in the line immediately in front of us

The wall has every Arizona sailor's name listed.
It's rather overwhelming to see that this many service men died in one place.
Although I had three uncles who served during WWII, they naturally didn't share
with a six-year old about their time in the service.
Two uncles served in the Navy; one was attached to the Marines.  So that means
that he and the Marines were often in the first group landing on a battleground.  My uncle who was attached to the Marines was a medic.  Another uncle was in the Army.  They served proudly and came home safely at the war's end.
 

a section of the ship; oil still leaks from the ship

I'm showing these other photos to clarify just how long the line was that day.  Neither my
hubby or I complained about the wait, nor did we hear any.  I think this behavior shows how much we all wanted to show our respect to those men.