I felt similar today at Pearl Harbor as I did when visiting The Alamo in San Antonio. You’ve heard of the place, but it’s not really your history so you only know partial details.

It’s full name is Pearl Harbor National Memorial and the area is a US National Park. The area is free to get into however, if you wish to go to the USS Arizona Memorial that will cost you. The tour I did gave me about three hours at the site, but that is nowhere near long enough, even for non Americans!

What I found really interesting was that, before we got on the boat to take us out to the memorial, the park ranger spoke to the group as a whole and basically said, this isn’t a tourist attraction, it’s a war grave, act appropriately and keep quiet. He said this all through two screaming kids. I have no idea why you would take kids here. None. Over 10s sure, under 10, that’s just a waste of time and disrespectful. I thought that, given what the ranger said, the families would decide someone would wait with the children and everyone else could go across to the memorial – silly me! While I’m on disrespect, I have no idea why people go to these places dressed the way they do. I get it, Hawai’i is hot, you don’t want to be but if I was in charge, it would be like religious sites – shoulders covered. The rules do say shirts and shoes, and they shouldn’t have to say, shirts that cover your shoulders and your stomach, but maybe they should!

Some of you who know me well know how I feel about taking photographs in certain places, cemeteries being one. The USS Arizona was not able to be raised and still sits under the water with around 900 men who could not be found. Therefore it is a cemetery. The only photograph I took at the Memorial is below. Those who were saved from the water can chose to have their ashes returned to the water when they die, to be with their ship and comrades again.

No matter your nationality and knowledge of history, war is indeed sombre and being in the actual place where thousands lost their lives is always difficult for me. Part of the design of the memorial includes a cut out below where you can look down and see parts of the ship. I spent quite a few minutes looking down and watching the fish swimming about with absolutely no knowledge of what had happened in that very spot.