Traveling the Pacific

Iwo Jima-   In relation to the Battle of Iwo Jima, we will be visiting Mt. Surbachi located on the island of Iwo Jima, Japan. The island now serves as a military base for Japan and since it's a bit farther from the mainland, it can be difficult to visit. On the peak, an iconic photograph of the second raising of the American flag was taken.  Here's the photograph (aka my profile photo):  This battle lasted from February 19,1945 to March 26,1945. It was another major battle during the Pacific War that allowed allied troops to gain control for airlines. They were becoming closer and closer to Japan's mainland.  An account of the battle:  (Continuing..)

Guadalcanal-      Our next stop is the Guadalcanal Memorial that is located in Guadalcanal on the Solomon Islands standing on the Skyline Ridge overlooking Honiara. This memorial is to honor the American and Allied soldiers that died during the Guadalcanal Campaign that lasted from August 7, 1942 to February 9, 1943. There are 4 directional walls pointing towards the major battle sites and inscribed are descriptions of the battles.  There's also a central pylon that rises to 24ft from its base.  The memorial was built on August 7, 1992 commissioned to fulfill General John J. Perishing's vision fully operated by the U.S. government. This campaign was important because it was the beginning of the U.S taking the offensive. They were able to eventually take Guadalcanal and the Japanese withdrew their men after a long and hard battle. Some well known battles that took place here are the battles of Coral Sea and Midway. The allies were able to gain control of the Solomon islands and

  Bataan Death March-     For this visit, we are going to Capas, Philippines in the Tarlac province. The Capas National Shrine can be found here. This is where Camp O'Donnell is located and was the destination for the Bataan Death March. After Pearl Harbor, the Japanese invaded Luzon, Philippines in January 1942. The U.S. can in to help. However, due to the shortage of supplies, around 75,000 Filipino and American soldiers surrendered. There were simply no reinforcements. Japanese soldiers forced the prisoners of war (POW) to march about 65 or 66 miles without any water, food, and medical supplies in the tropical conditions. These prisoners were starved, beaten, and even beheaded. Those who survived the march later died at camp due to starvation and disease. Some of the most horrific war crimes committed by the Japanese happened throughout the march; an absolute tragedy. Only 54,000 prisoners reached camp and had to further endure the Japanese's treatment. After the war, Liete

Pearl Harbor-       I chose to adventure off to Pearl Harbor for our first stop as it was the beginning of the United States entering the Second World War and declaring war against Japan. Pearl Harbor is located on the island of Hawaii west off Honolulu. Today, there is the Pearl Harbor National Memorial that is composed of various ship memorials that were destroyed during the attack and commemorates to the lives that were lost on that faithful day. Here are some photo graphs of the memorials present day:   (USS Arizona) (USS Oklahoma) (USS Utah)   All photos may be found on the Pearl Harbor National Park Service website:  https://www.nps.gov/perl/index.htm The National Memorial first constructed the first memorial known as the USS Arizona, which was completed in 1962. Along with the USS Arizona, the USS West Virginia, USS Oklahoma, and USS Utah were just a few of the numerous ships that were part of the tragedy that took place.  Well, what happened? On December 7, 1941, the Japanese