Nearing the End...

The National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific (aka Punchbowl National Cemetery) is located near Waikiki and Honolulu, and is the burial place of over 34,000 men and women who served in the US Armed Forces.  At the top of the staircase in the Court of Honor is the statue of Lady Columbia, also known as Lady Liberty. She stands on the bow of a ship holding a laurel branch. The inscription below the statue, taken from Abraham Lincoln's letter to the mother of five fallen Union soldiers in the Civil War, reads: "THE SOLEMN PRIDE THAT MUST BE YOURS, TO HAVE LAID SO COSTLY A SACRIFICE UPON THE ALTAR OF FREEDOM".  Despite the fact that this has been the most visitied tourist destination in Hawaii, we were literally the only ones (besides the groundskeepers) there on November 1, 2011.

The commanding view of Diamond Head, Waikiki, Honolulu and the blue Pacific Ocean as seen from the lookout at the summit of the Punchbowl Crater.  We endured one of the most intense five-minute rainstorms I have ever seen, causing us to huddle under trees (or in public bathrooms with the groundskeepers in the case of some) until it passed.  Once the five minutes of fury were unleashed, the skies cleared and golden sunshine and blue skies returned!

And so, with the return of blue skies and sunshine, we moved over the Ko'olau Range via the Pali Highway back to Kailua Beach for the morning and afternoon.  Again, I was amazed at the expanse of golden sand and blue and green waters, all there for our enjoyment and with only minimal people in view!  Other than the shark sighting (that a local surfer quickly pointed out was a turtle), all went well and we enjoyed some truly fun bodysurfing, followed by a delicious lunch at Teddy's Bigger Burgers in Kailua, and then a drive back to Waikiki via H3 through the Tetsuo Haruno tunnel.