Thursday 12 June 2014
Generally our blog describes the happy incidents, the scenery, the food and most things great about travel.
Not today.
We travelled by minibus to Oswiecim to visit the Auschwitz concentration camp. It turns out that Auschwitz is the German name for the town of Oswiecim.
When we arrived, we discovered that people entering the camp between 10am & 3pm must take a guided tour around the camp. We were not happy about this, but it was the best possible thing we could have done. Not only did we have a guide who could explain what happened at various sites around the camp, the sheer size of the complex, including Auschwitz-Birkenau, was too big for us to get around and understand what we were looking at.
I will not bore you with descriptions of what we saw, with a couple of exceptions.
There were not any graphic photos of deceased people. There didn't need to be.
There were displays of people's personal belongings, such as hairbrushes and combs. Suitcases with names and addresses painted on them, left as people undressed to have 'showers' which they never had.
Shoes and boots, and most tellingly and difficult to deal with, childrens and toddlers shoes.
These animals even executed little children and babies.
The lsraeli army was there for some sort of a commemoration, l'm not sure what. We saw them march into Auschwitz-Birkenau with both a steely determination and sadness in their eyes. It must have been difficult for them, but also cathartic.
It's a sad and emotional place and l found myself shaking my head in disbelief several times.
We are never going back there, but it was one hell of an experience.
