Friday, August 27, 2010 - Hospital Point, Norfolk, VA

Mid-morning we lowered the dinghy and motored across the small bay to Norfolk where we toured the battleship Wisconsin and the Nauticus Museum. We were a bit disappointed to learn that we could not go inside the ship and could only wander around on the outside decks.  
 
Evidently, the EPA will not allow the public inside until the air quality is up to their standard and the volunteer hosts were uncertain when that might happen. We visited with one of the volunteers who had been on the USS New Jersey during WWII, one of the sister ships in the Iowa class of battleships. There were four boats in this class: Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan and New Jersey. The classes were always designated by the first boat of its kind commissioned. The gentleman was eager to share his experiences and knowledge of the ship and we very much enjoyed talking to him.
 
 
The Nauticus facility included a Naval History Museum and other interactive-type exhibits geared more for kids. Gale especially enjoyed the Naval History exhibits. After grabbing a bite at the snack bar, we found the I-Max theatre just in time for the 2 pm showing of “The Tidal Seas,” part of the BBC’s Blue Planet series. It was breathtaking!

After leaving the museum, we walked around the city and the waterfront for awhile before returning to the boat for the evening.