Once in awhile-now and again-this is us

the guide of the tour knew exactly where the hotel was that my father had his picture taken in 1938. and low and behold it was right next door to the hotel we were staying at. we walked there.

the royal Hawaiian is a gorgeous hotel. it has always been pink since it opened in 1927. at one time is was open to military for rest and relaxation. maybe that’s why my father was there.

there was a beautiful wedding going on when we were walking into the lobby to get more information. (we saw several others having glamour shots taken all over town),

we talked to the director of  guest relations. she was very nice and took us to a display of a few photographs of the period.  they don’t emphasize their part in the war. she gave us a book called ‘the pink palace of the pacific’ which has some great photos in it. she welcomed us back anytime.

this is the picture I have seen all my life and never knew much about it. I occasionally heard Waikiki mentioned, but don’t remember anything about it.       I wish I could have made the pictures larger.

he looks so happy

jerry took my picture at the most accurate spot we could find. it was so amazing to be there. my father had his problems but he gave me life. maybe not always the best life, but I know it was the best he knew how to do. he had a rough childhood from what little I know about it.

“hi daddy” i’m happy too

this is one of the other pictures I mentioned. the barrack buildings are very similar. it’s not the same building I took a picture of, the guide thought the one in the picture was by the pool.  we didn’t pass by that one. plus the buildings have been updated and renovated. both the guide and the archive director said it  was at schofield.

the barracks

one more precious picture

my mother gave me daddy’s medals. I don’t remember when. the round one is his dog tag. the other one says rifle on it. I didn’t know my father at all. he died when I was only 21. I missed him terribly for a long time. it feels so good having come to Hawaii and saw these places he was at. it’s a dream come true i didn’t even know i was dreaming.

the couple were married by the time we came out.

ALOHA

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then we went to wheeler field, where the schofield barracks are located. at this base we got to go in their museum. by chance where the archive office is located. we didn’t find any information about my father other than one of the  pictures I have of him was definitely taken there. you can see the same barracks in the background.  another memorable moment. (I didn’t take a picture of the original yet)

the barracks

we ate a buffet lunch at the cafeteria with all the military around us. you have to admire a man in a uniform. I wonder if my father ate there too?

we stopped to take a picture.

a plane used in the war. notice the bullet holes

next was the punchbowl. a very famous cemetery located in a volcanic crater. we couldn’t get out of the van here.  the guide drove very slowly so we could take pictures. they don’t have headstones because the ground shifts too much and was causing havoc keeping them up.

driving in

driving out

we drove by the capitol next and even though it wasn’t a scheduled stop, the guide did stop and let us get off and he took our picture. we had explained our story and he obliged because we didn’t know if we would make it back, but we took a trolley back and got to go inside and take pictures then.

I didn’t get a good picture of the iolani palace

we saw so many other sights that were impossible to take pictures from a moving van. we drove through a lot of the surrounding cities of Honolulu. we ended the tour at the home of the brave museum. actually years of artifacts collected by the family, they wanted to share them with everyone.so they put them all in one place and opened it to the public last year. they’ve been in the business 15 years I think he said. a lot of military take the tour and end up giving them so much stuff. incredible stuff.  fascinating stuff.

one of the artifacts

the guide we had was one of three children. who left to go to college in Colorado. he was so impressed with all the breweries, when he came home he talked his father into a venture of having one of their own. so they sell their ‘home of the brave’ beer upstairs. delicious. a great way to end the tour.

“ahhhhh”

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we had to get up early for this tour at 5:45 am. but it was a great tour and worth it. the guide was so nice and grew up on the island. he knew great tidbits of interesting facts.

we first went to fort shafter army base. we saw the raising of the flag for the day. it was very ceremonial with a cannon salute. we got to go in one of the original buildings.  it is being saved as a historical site, while a new one is being built.

a metal of valor

next we went to the Arizona memorial. it was a short  and quiet ride. everyone contemplating what the park  ranger had just briefed us about. it is a cemetery. hollowed ground. be very respectful.

the ship still leaks oil to this day

the Missouri sits nearby

they say this radar station can pick up a baseball hit in yankee staidum

how the Arizona sits in the water

the only exposed part of the ship

then we……… to be continued

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of course we had to see the capitol in Honolulu. there was a protest rally going on for the right to same sex marriages.

the capitol

inside the capitol

it had an open ceiling

jerry found another brick for my collection

across the street from the capitol

a view of Honolulu

we didn’t especially like Honolulu that much. it’s just like any big city, with even worse traffic. they have a big homeless population and crime has increased drastically.  Waikiki was better, but still like a lot of coastal cities we’ve been to. we enjoyed the tour we took and the trolley ride. i’ll tell you about that tomorrow.

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I know all of you have been anxiously awaiting a blog of our first encounter with Hawaii. but, we forgot our camera card converter, and couldn’t find anywhere in Waikiki to buy one or transfer the pictures to a cd.  we are on kaua’i  now and found a Wal-Mart.

we left Wednesday morning at 6:00am with our neighbor and friend, kara, driving us to the airport.  no hassles with our pre boarding pass. we didn’t even have to take our shoes off.  the plane ride was pleasant with a fun stewardess giving us free champagne and earphones to hear the movie. we showed her our tattoos and won her heart.

cheers

as the trip to las vegas was all desert, this trip was all water and beautiful clouds. I actually like flying now. what an adventure it is. I don’t plan on doing it again, but I’ve liked it so far. if necessary, I will do it willingly now.

one of the more interesting formations

our hotel on Waikiki beach was beautiful. we had a great view. the restaurant ‘dukes’ was right on the beach below us. the food was great and a lot of fun. we ate there three times.

we could almost see diamond head.

from the beach we could

we got our feet wet

sitting outside at dukes for the sunset

we discovered Halloween is a very celebrated holiday in Waikiki, by adults.  the street of our hotel is famous for people walking in full costume trying to outdo each other. and they go to great lengths to dress up. it was crazy. almost mayhem.  we watched for awhile as people kept walking by in every conceivable costume you could think of.  even king Kamehameha.

I didn’t get a good picture though

the statue of the king

we did a tour of the Arizona memorial that also included several military bases, the punchbowl cemetery, and a lot of landmarks. I finally discovered where my father was stationed at, and where a picture was taken in Waikiki. I don’t remember him talking much about it or if he even did. but it was a good feeling to find these things out.  that will be another blog.

a puzzle I did before we left

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