The Punchbowl Cemetery

It is impossible to not be moved by a visit to the Punchbowl National Cemetery.

They are currently about to lay sod in the middle, so this view
is not as green as is typical for the site.

It is situated in the middle of a crater formed ~100,000 years ago from volcanic activity and provides a great vantage point of Honolulu, Waikiki and the coastline.  It's Hawaiian name, 'Puowaina' means 'Hill of Sacrifice'- which explains that it was once an alter where Hawaiians offered human sacrifices to pagan gods and killed violators of the many 'taboos.'  After WWII, there was a huge need for a place of burial for the many soldiers who lost their lives in WWII, so the Punchbowl was then established as a new national cemetary.




At the center top of the staircase in the Court of Honor is a statue of Lady Columbia (also known as Lady Liberty or Justice) holding a laurel branch (signifying victory I suppose?).  She is supposedly representing all grieving mothers, standing on a bow of a naval ship.  Below her is an inscription from a letter written by Abraham Lincoln to a mother who lost five sons in the Civil War:

"The solemn pride that must be yours to have laid so costly a sacrifice on the altar of freedom."    Very moving!

More than 45,000 men and women are interred here.  On multiple marble walls to the left and right of the memorial are over carved 28,000 names of those whose bodies were unrecoverable or unable to be found.  

This is an 'all spice tree'- they were numerous on the grounds, and I found them to be so fascinating- all of the tops have I assume been pruned to form a perfect ring of branches/leaves!  It seemed to me to echo the laurel branch crown held by Columbia.... 

There is a really interesting series of displays detailing the battles fought in the Pacific throughout WWII, as well as some beyond that time.  Spencer's grandfather fought in the Philippines, so it was interesting to personalize the war from that standpoint.  I also have an uncle who served in the Pacific years later.  It was interesting to realize how recent that war really was, as well as take in the significance of it all.  It made both of us really anxious to visit Pearl Harbor in a couple of weeks.