GPOYW - Pearl Harbor Edition

I visited Pearl Harbor over Thanksgiving and by coincidence, it was pretty close to the 70th anniversary of the attack by the Japanese which led us into World War II.

Some interesting facts I learned about the area were:

1. The USS Arizona Memorial was funded in part by a benefit concert from Elvis Presley
2. The Arizona still leaks fuel oil at a rate of a few pints a day and is called “the tears of The Arizona”
3. The memorial wall with the names of the 1,177 crewmen who died also includes wall space for the remaining survivors names to be chisled-in once they pass.
4. There are spaces next to the parking lot’s handicapped spaces reserved only for survivors who return to visit.
5. The USS Arizona tour is free, but tickets are limited. You can also visit the USS Missouri, a decommissioned battleship used not only during WWI, but also the first Gulf War. That costs a few bucks but its worth being able to walk through a full-on “city in the sea.”
6. The USS Missouri is the site of Japan’s surrender to the Allied Forces thus ending World War II. The ceremony for the signing was conducted by General Douglas A. MacArthur.
7. After The USS Arizona settled post-destruction, its remaining metal that was salvageable was immediately removed and used to repair other damaged ships in Pearl harbor to bring them back to full functioning order. Some of those ships later were used in significant battles at Iwo Jima and Okinawa

Now I want to visit Hiroshima or Nagasaki in the near future. I saw many Japanese tourists in Pearl harbor giving respect for our fallen US soldiers and feel it should be the same consideration of US citizens should they be able to afford it.