Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
MissionHousesMuseum
This museum tells the dramatic story of cultural change in 19th-cen-
tury Hawaii, when missionaries who landed on the island set about trying to convert the nat-
ives. American Protestant missionaries established their headquarters here in 1820. Included
in the complex are a visitor center and three historic mission buildings, which have been re-
stored and refurnished to reflect the daily life and work of the missionaries.
553 S. King St. (at Kawaiahao St.).
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808/531-0481.
www.missionhouses.org
.
Admission $10 adults, $8 military per-
sonnel and seniors, $6 students (age 6-college), free for children 5 and under. Tues-Sat 10am-4pm. Bus: 2.
National Cemetery of the Pacific
The National Cemetery of the Pacific (also known as “the
Punchbowl”) is an ash-and-lava tuff cone that exploded about 150,000 years ago—like Dia-
mond Head, only smaller. Early Hawaiians called it Puowaina, or “hill of sacrifice.” The old
crater is a burial ground for 35,000 victims of three American wars in Asia and the Pacific:
World War II, Korea, and Vietnam. Among the graves, you'll find many unmarked ones with
the date December 7, 1941, carved in stone. Some will be unknown forever; others are fam-
ous, like that of war correspondent Ernie Pyle, killed by a Japanese sniper in April 1945 on
Okinawa; still others buried here are remembered only by family and surviving buddies. The
white stone tablets, known as the Courts of the Missing, bear the names of 28,788 Americans
missing in action in World War II.
Survivors come here often to reflect on the meaning of war and to remember those, like
themselves, who stood in harm's way to win peace a half-century ago. Some fight back tears,
remembering lost comrades, lost missions, and the sacrifices of those who died.
Punchbowl Crater, 2177 Puowaina Dr. (at the end of the road).
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808/532-3720.
Free admission. Daily 8am-5:30pm
(Mar-Sept to 6:30pm). Bus: 15.
