The Contemporary Museum in Honolulu

I like to expose Crumpet to new cultural experiences every once in a while, so we decided to check out the Contemporary Art Museum in Honolulu. Contemporary art is not usually my thing, but this museum had a few things going for it when I was choosing a location for our field trip. First, I'll be honest, was the awesome review of the flourless chocolate cake in their cafe! Second, they have beautiful gardens, and third, the museum is free to the military. So off we went to explore, and I am so glad we did.
Photography was not allowed in the galleries, which is unfortunate. Some of the art was just weird, but some was really neat, and I found one exhibit truly beautiful. Crumpet enjoyed a lot of the art because it was so odd, and it certainly gave us something to talk about!
The gardens were lovely, and there were many pieces of art incorporated into the landscape. The black and white painting below, and the reflecting pool in front of it, were my favorite.

There were nice stone trails through the gardens, and we saw a few pretty birds.


Some of the art was useful:
Some of the plants were weirder than the art - I LOVE Hawaii plants...

This is an old tennis court that has been painted...
Bird and cat resting:
The chocolate cake was absolutely worth the drive, even if we hadn't enjoyed the museum so much! There were multiple layers, filled with delicious cream. Crumpet inhaled most of it within seconds. The boy likes his chocolate! We also shared a lemonade, which was quite good. This is one of those places where a slice of cake and a glass of lemonade cost $10, but every once in a while, it's fun to splurge. And this cake was so worth it...
I hope to go to the Contemporary Museum again when they change exhibits. For more field trip posts, visit Live the Adventure!

Field Trip Friday - USS Missouri

Several months ago, we visited the USS Missouri, or as Crumpet says "The Mississary". This is an old World War II ship which is now a museum here in Pearl Harbor. We can see it every day from Crumpet's bedroom window.
The USS Missouri was commissioned in 1944 and it was used in battles in World War II. It was on this ship that the Japanese signed the official instrument of surrender, thereby ending the war. The ship was used again in the Korean War before it was decommissioned. The Missouri was reactivated in 1984 and used once again during Operation Desert Storm in the 90's, before being retired once and for all. In 1998, it became a museum.
Crumpet's dad has done some volunteer work refinishing the decks of this ship, and he was given a few pieces of the old decking as a souvenir, which is pretty neat.

Big guns:


Crumpet signaling other ships using the lamp:

Below deck:
In the mail room, stamping packages for sailors:
Typing up important messages, on a typewriter... Remember those?
My husband told me what this was, and I'm ashamed to say I've forgotten, exactly. I think it has to do with deflecting incoming missiles, but don't quote me.
View of the USS Arizona Memorial from the top of the ship:
View of Ford Island, where we live:
Crumpet enjoyed sitting here and 'shooting' the guns. He spent a lot of time shooting guns on this ship:
I'm thinking about taking Crumpet back to visit this ship while Daddy is deployed. He wasn't very interested in things like the kitchen and dining areas, or the sleeping areas. There are no guns in those areas, so who cares about that boring old stuff?? Now, I'd like to have him look around again, so he has a better feel of where Dad is living right now. If we go back, I'll add more pictures to the blog.
For more field trip posts, visit Live the Adventure.