I was really looking forward to this day because we were going to Pearl Harbor. Kris and I love visiting historical sites and this was a place that I had always wanted to go to at some point in life. This was also our last day in Oahu before we flew to Maui for the remainder of our trip. We got our rental car out of the insanely expensive hotel valet service at a relatively early hour shortly before 9 a.m. and headed to breakfast at a hole in the wall placed called “Eggs and Things.” I came across it in one of my books and even though it was on the outskirts of Waikiki it was well worth it and was one of our better meals in Oahu.
We had to park in a residential area and walk a few blocks over, but we saw a police car along the way and figured our car was safe. When we arrived there was a really long wait since the restaurant area is pretty small. I read that if you asked for a counter seat you could get seated quicker, so we opted to go this route and still ended up waiting about 30 minutes but was much less than the hour we had expected from what I had read. You have to wait outside for a seat.
Inside the little restaurant:
The food was fantastic here. I ordered pineapple pancakes with pineapple syrup. It was a little overkill on the pineapple, but still so yummy. I will remember next time to just get regular syrup. I don’t even remember what Kris had because I was concentrating on my food.
We sat next to a nice man who is a pilot that is in Hawaii a lot. He says that his family lived there for a short time, but the costs were so outrageous and the schools horrible so they moved back to the mainland. He said he loves that restaurant and tries to visit on most of his extended trips.
After our meal we cleared out right away and were on our way to downtown Honolulu. Seriously, I couldn’t believe how small this place was in relation to each other. I know it’s an island, but you don’t really truly understand its size until you’re there. To get to Pearl Harbor you get off the freeway in a kind of sketchy part of town and all the tour books say not to leave anything in your car including in the trunk! This made me a little nervous and since you can’t take bags on the ferries over to the memorial we decided to pay for the bag holding service that is ran by volunteers.
Basically, you go into the welcome center and then sign up for the ferry that takes you out to the memorial. This is inside (or I guess you’re still outside since its open air) the center.
Right inside is this huge mural and they have the bell from the USS Arizona.
There is a video that you watch before going over on the ferry. The memorial is free, but you can pay $5 for the audio tour that goes along on the boat ride and memorial. This is definitely worth the little extra cost; we both did it and really enjoyed the added effect. Since you can’t speak when you’re at the memorial it’s a good way to get a sense of the scene. They also have interviews of actual survivors which makes the experience all the more surreal. We only had a short wait before it was our turn to watch the film, so we had a bathroom break then started the audio tour.
After we were called into the theater and watched the film we headed out to the docks where we were taken across to the memorial. Both of my grandfathers fought in World War II, so it was emotional to think that this is where it all began for our country. We also have a cousin on my mom’s side that died at Pearl Harbor, but my mom didn’t know the name off hand, so I couldn’t look them up on the memorial.
Arriving at the memorial:
Looking back at Honolulu:
They also have these large cement blocks which show where all the other ships were that were docked in the Harbor.
There are ships across the bay that are docked.
:
. Then I would have gloated when I got my way in the end 
Did I say that?
My lips are sealed. It wasn't a serious fight or anything, but Kris knows that when I have my mind made up he better just let me get my way 
I'll let ya know how that one turns out...but until then I will be looking forward to seeing more of your honeymoon!
I know what you mean about the poverty on the Islands; I was in Hawaii in 2004 and was kind of shocked at the derelict areas near Waikiki Beach. 
