Terminal Island, CA - 29 JUL 2011

The day started out by trying to tour a battleship; there were three in port, as part of Fleet Week in Los Angeles. They opened at 9:00; we got there at 9:30; by 12:30 we realized it would be two more hours of standing in line before reaching the deck. Our bodies were racked in pain and hunger was setting in, so we decided to leave.

We (Todd, Rob and I) headed over to Terminal Island…which allowed us to get a glance of the the ships from the Vincent Thomas bridge.

There is only one restaurant left on the island.

It is very funky and has a limited menu.

But the Chinese food is fresh and the price is right, if you don’t mind the primary ingredient being celery.

Just 100 feet away is the pier:

Some times this dock is loaded with seal lions, sunning themselves:

Seems I’m never very far from the Army…I turned around and saw this sign:

As this was Rob’s first trip to Terminal Island, we headed over to the Japanese Memorial.

Along the side of the wall are smoked glass panels depicting the Japanese Fishermen Village that once dominated the island along with their fishing boats and the fish canneries.

On Todd's blog, check out 03 April 1942, where he talks about their forced evacuation. (Link to: War Relocation)

Looks like he caught more than fish:

Below is a photo from my brother's website 
(Link to: MySanPedro.blogspot.com):

In the background is the now empty pier we were standing on. Here's another link that tells the story of this once thriving community: (Link to: terminal Island Memorial)

Next door is Fire Station. While I was moving the car, Rob asked if we could have a look inside...what we got was a private tour:  

They use the old tub to clean their dive equipment.

This station has a very small staff and they mainly work with the police on dive sites.

Just another serendipitous adventure!