Hawaiian Vacation Part 7-Oahu (One of my most favorite days)

Today was SO MUCH FUN! It was probably one of the most fun days when it comes to activities. Well, at least for me. Since, I gave the crew a day to rest, we were running out to time to climb Diamond Head. TJ agreed to wake up bright and early with me and climb it first thing in the morning. Surprisingly, mom agreed too! We left the hotel at 5:30 am. The park opened at 6 am and since we already had a full day planned we had to get there and get it done. All of the guides said it would take 1.5-2 hours to complete. TJ wanted to build in 3 hours since he was essentially climbing with one good leg. The hike was amazing. Mom was a powerhouse and went up ahead of us and I hung back to walk it with TJ. The sunrise over the ocean and the Diamond Head crater were beautiful. I am so glad we did it in the morning. We made it to the top and down in under 2 hours. TJ rocked it and so did mom. We started the day with a bang and it was only going to get better!

Diamond Head was an old military base!

In a bunker!

Yeah we climbed that!

TJ helping mom over come her fear of tiny spaces!

After Diamond Head we headed to Pearl Harbor. TJ and I share a love of history, so this was very interesting to both of us. Before we started our tour, we met a little boy named Jacob who was there with Make-a-Wish. He was very sweet and very chatty. His family was with him and he told us all about the exciting things they were doing in Hawai'i. It was really sweet! Anyways, the tour opens with a video about the attack of Pearl Harbor. It walked us through the days leading up to the attack and the night before. The video had footage from both the Japanese and US. It was so very sad and so very humbling. It served as a great reminder as to why we must never forget the lives lost and honor those who continue to fight for us today. The USS Arizona Memorial was beautiful. It was quiet and peaceful. I think my favorite part about it was that for those few that survived the attack that day on the USS Arizona, they could choose to be laid to rest with their shipmates on the Arizona. There were a list of 35 names added to the memorial wall. I am so thankful I was able to see this memorial and be reminded of its importance.

Oil from the USS Arizona

After our visit to the USS Arizona we went over and toured the USS Bowfin, the Pearl Harbor Avenger submarine. It was really cool! I had never been on a submarine before and honestly, I don't know how those sailors did it! Those spaces were incredibly TINY!

Finally the last activity of the day was a luau!! We went to one at Paradise Cove. It was very touristy, but so much fun! They had all types of activities. TJ threw a "spear", mom and I made flower bracelets, they showed us how to fish with nets and they even cooked the pig in the ground. It was such a fun evening. They even had a moment when all those in love danced to the Hawaiian Wedding song. So of course we danced on the beach. It was a great luau!

Tomorrow is our last day. It should be lots of fun with a visit to North Shore and an airplane tour! I am sad to see it end but at the same time I do miss Elizabeth Taylor and my bed! :)

Aloha,
Leigha