Auschwitz was the largest of the German Nazi concentration camps and extermination centers. Over 1.1 million men, women and children lost their lives there.
That statement is on the homepage of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum website and there’s almost nothing further to say. That image of the vast number of humans who were wiped from the earth is nearly impossible to truly comprehend. In fact, I think, at least for me (Steven), it’s part of the problem with statistics. They can be used to explain away a monumental event in such a way that we can’t fully digest it because the reality is so staggering.
We left the beautiful city of Gdańsk in Poland and, although the original plan called for us to bypass Auschwitz and nearby Kraków completely, we felt compelled to go there. It was almost a duty for me. It’s all well and good learning about the history of countries we visit and snapping photographs of beautiful architecture but the reality is that many of these cities, particularly in Poland, have been totally reconstructed as a result of complete annihilation during World War II.
As a student, Linda had visited Dachau in Germany on more than one occasion. She remembers one of those times, just having fun on the bus with fellow students as they drove to the site, but then the mood was quite somber on the ride back to the hotel. It is impossible to visit one of these concentration camps and not be indelibly marked by the experience.
I had never been to anything like this before and in my naivety, concentration camps were horrible places, yes, but I digested it in the numbers. So many numbers, I simply couldn’t comprehend it and so it fit neatly into another category of unfortunate historical events in my life education.
A couple of years ago, I decided to read the Diary of Anne Frank. Despite the horrors of what was going on outside of the four walls in which she and her family hid, they learned to live together in harmony and some days even approximated something akin to normalcy. Anne’s upbeat writing style and positive demeanor was endearing. She was smart as a whip but was insulated from the persecution and mass murders going on outside. It was easy to read the book because she was a compelling little human, full of generosity and kindness. But then suddenly the book ended, like pages had been ripped from a last chapter that never existed. That was the day the Nazis discovered the Frank family and the last day of their humanity. Only her father ultimately survived the ordeal.
Even a vague knowledge on my part of what happened after her last written words gave me chills. Researching it further gave me a bigger picture of the cruelty of those camps. People were reduced to skin and bones, stripped not only of their clothes but of their very identities.
When we reached the Auschwitz Museum, we spent the night at the parking lot in Bijou in anticipation of our 10:30 tour the next morning. The lot was advertised as having full services for RVers but it looked more like Life After People. Grass was overgrown and there was no sign of electric pedestals or water services of any kind. We had to drive around a few times to try to figure it out. Finally, I looked at a photograph on one of our phone apps that showed where people had stayed before. I figured out the location and then began poking through the weeds to find some hookups. I found two plugs on the bottom of a pole and tried one of them. Miraculously, it worked and we at least had electricity for the night. I guess the neglect was as a result of COVID closures and limited visitor hours. It certainly set us up for the grim atmosphere to come.
The next morning it was raining although there was some sun in the forecast. After getting lost following the GPS coordinates that came with our e-tickets, we finally arrived at the proper entrance for the tour. We were surprised to find quite a few people there but, because we had our tickets in advance, we were able to get through pretty quickly.
The first part of the tour was a documentary film, one of the best of its kind, in my opinion. It gave a lot of information about what the camps were like at the time and juxtaposed photos of modern Auschwitz with old photos taken while prisoners were arriving. One of the most alarming images showed two groups of people. One was chosen because of their strength and ability to work while the other group was heading off in a different direction. They were told they were going to take hot showers, but of course that was a lie. They were going to be exterminated.
The tour guide delivered a sobering narrative as we went from one building to another. The remains of peoples’ possessions was particularly jarring but most disturbing of all was a photograph of children with their mothers smiling for the camera completely oblivious to the fact that they were about to be murdered.
We walked through many other buildings, all named and set up to deceive the prisoners. The intent was to normalize the experience, to make it seem as though everything was going to be alright. In reality, they were being selected on a daily basis for work or death. The Nazis managed to hide the truth for a good long time until the sheer number of prisoners made that deception impossible to continue. The smoking chimneys and daily stench from the crematoriums became commonplace. We walked through the remnants of the actual gas chambers, we heard the stories of horror and they were crippling to hear, particularly standing there in the very spot where it all occurred.
After a much needed break, we took a shuttle to Auschwitz II, otherwise known as Birkenau. Also known as a concentration camp and a death camp. The scale of this place compared to the first part of the tour was again, staggering. Barbed wire fences abounded as did lookout towers. We were led into large wooden buildings that were used for sleeping or others that were used for toilets. The toilet building consisted of a giant concrete slab that stretched the entire length of the interior. There were large holes about a foot apart in the slabs that were used as toilets. The guide told us that the prisoners who had to clean these felt it was a privileged job because they got to stay out of the unforgiving sun. Without the constant watch from the guards, it was here that prisoners could pass notes, photos and information to others and eventually to the outside to get word to the world about what was happening inside the barbed fences.
Following the railway all the way to the end of Birkenau led to what remained of the gas chambers and crematorium. I definitely felt like I had to hold back tears as we walked in the same footsteps as those prisoners unknowingly on the path to a horrible end. Other prisoners behind what appeared to us to be an electric fence would look on as they probably knew that would be their own fate at any given time.
The one thought I do remember having was that this is why it’s important to memorialize this kind of monstrous and evil human behavior. This is why it is so very important for me to visit and hear the unthinkable and understand it, if only a fraction more than before I arrived. It was horrible, it was devastating, it was heart-breaking but, most of all, it was worth it for us to spend this day remembering, not only those who perished but the generations of people who were also lost.
The tour ended in Birkenau at a memorial commemorating all of those who lost their lives. Linda and I were numb. It was hard to find any words to share at that moment, but we were quite moved by the inscription at the memorial. It read:
For ever let this place be
A cry of despair
and a warning to humanity,
where the Nazis murdered
about one and a half
million
men, women and children,
Mainly Jews
from various countries
of Europe.
Auschwitz – Birkenau
1940 – 1945
NEXT UP: Warsaw and beyond.
…
I still recall films in school, showing the piles of items, segregated. A pile of shoes, then a pile of teeth, a piles of jewelry and so forth. It still gives me chills. As ghastly as it was, I realized how important it was for children and generations to come to be aware of what happened. It seems that showing the films no longer happens. I’m not sure it it’s to rewrite history or prevent today’s children from having to see those horrors. I think it’s important to not allow that to be forgotten.
I agree and maybe those films are not shown anymore for fear of someone being offended or a school being sued. Such is our modern life. Either way, places like this are critical for the future. If we don’t have history and the lessons it yields, we have nothing. ~ Steven
Thank you for your post. “Never forget” is not just a call to remember the horrors of Nazi control – we MUST never forget and we must act to ensure history does not repeat itself. “Never forget” is a call to action.
Yes it is. Unfortunately there are still atrocities being committed around the world and people are still powerless to stop it. However, it starts with knowledge. Ignorance will never move us forward. Thanks for your comment. ~ Steven
I remember that bus ride to Dachau. Very sobering
As do I, Kathy. Thank you, Steven, for sharing your journey.
How old were we then, fifteen? Seventeen? I remember feeling devastated on that bus ride back to the hotel and, at the time, we were just over thirty years away from the actual event. It’s an experience I have never forgotten.
I have done extensive reading on this subject, but nothing really prepared me for my visit to the Holocaust Museum in D.C. just the scope and actually SEEING the devastation….
Very good pics in black n white… Never Forget
Yes Dolores, the sheer scale of the camps and then the horrific realization of being in the same place as those who suffered terribly is so much more powerful than words alone. I appreciate your comment. ~ Steven
I appreciate you two going to these horrible “killing” camps and telling us about it, because — truly — I wouldn’t be able to withstand going myself. I teared up just reading your text. Man’s inhumanity can be staggering. Yes, never forget.
Maybe one day you’ll be able to visit a memorial associated with theses events, maybe not. It just can’t ever be forgotten, like you said. Thank you. ~ Steven
I don’t know what to say, except truly, we must never forget. Thank you for sharing your heartfelt thoughts and images.
Laurel, words are so limited when talking about something like this. It is true. Being there was so much more poignant and moving. It’s something I will never forget. ~ Steven
Thank you for sharing your visits to the horrors of the concentration camps. These photos and your words set a solemn tone. I saw Dachau as a 19 year old and have never forgotten the feelings for 50+ years. I agree that those horrors should be taught in school and never forgotten.
I’m sure Dachau has changed since we were there as young women, probably the presentations are a bit more up-to-date. But when we saw it, you and me, it was as raw as can be. There was little curation, as I remember and I think that’s the way it should be. We purposely have not gone to visit Dachau, but we may have to rethink that. I’d like to share it with Steven. It’s a different experience than Auschwitz-Birkenau and one worth the time and effort. Thanks for commenting, Mary.
Excellent but sad post. It’s unbelievable how inhumane humans can be to one another…even to this day.
Safe travels!
“Even to this day” being the key phrase. There are still human rights violations occurring on a daily basis. Talking about it is the first step towards change I think. Thanks for commenting. ~ Steven
Such horrors. I want to visit there. We took our kids to the DC Holocaust museum and it was so sobering. This is why it’s important to not tear everything horrible down. Horrible history but so important to remember those who were killed and why and honor them.
Very true, Debbie. It’s so easy to avoid unpleasant experiences like this but so important to learn from history and recognize those same patterns before they happen again. Thanks for your comment. ~ Steven
Visiting Auschwtiz was one of the most moving experiences (and not in a good way), particularly after being told Auschwitz is considered a cemetery. Not all the bodies have been excavated. There are ponds the other side of the camp and the authorities tell us they know there are people in them. In advance of the camp being opened, the Nazis were desperately searching for more sites to hide bodies. The ponds were some of those sites. For me that was almost too much to take in:…that there were victims left in place. It was all too real the heart can only take so much.
It’s just hard to comprehend all of it, to be honest. As well as what you mentioned, I’m sure there are many more stories like it, all unimaginable. Thank you for your comment ~ Steven
Dear Chouters, I have not been to Auschwitz but do appreciate your photos and blog post. Not sure if you have been to Berlin to the Holocaust Museum but I do recommend it. Thanks for your posts. Always interesting to read and to see the photos. Love to all, xo HH
Good to hear from you, Heidi. No, we did not go to the one in Berlin. I think Auschwitz is going to be it for now, specific to this chapter of history. I’m still trying to process it all ~ Steven
My daughter, at16yrs, went on a school trip there from Scotland, with the aim of them becoming ambassadors to further educate people about the atrocities that happened there. An established organisation still operating. It had a profound effect on her that she will never forget. Mx
It’s good to hear stories like this, of people willing to ensure that this is never forgotten. Good for your daughter. We need more people like her in the world. ~ Steven
The Holocaust Museum in LA was sobering when I was much younger so I can only imagine the reality of visiting the actual camps. Your black and white photos capture the feel of your poignant narrative. Thank you for sharing what I’m sure wasn’t a pleasant experience. But an important one. That the horrible cruelty and murders is the lesson here, rather than statues honoring those who perpetrated them, is so relevant today.
Great point about the statues, Jodee. I think the difference between just hearing about these events and then realizing you’re standing right where it happened had the biggest impact on me. Thanks, as always, for your thoughts. ~ Steven
Humans are one of the cruelest species on this earth. They kill their fellow humans i.e. Africans who were enslaved, the genocide of Native Americans and much more. Folks visit the holocaust site and come out feeling somber and forget the other atrocities that have taken place. It’s still going on today…I hear it in the news…senseless shoots, bombings i.e. the world trade centers in NYC, etc. It’s a sad, sad, sad species we are and heartless to our fellow humans, animals, plants, and our environment. This has gone on for centuries…it will never stop. NEVER.
Rita, your post says it all. Humans actually are the most cruel species on the planet because we are so cognizant of our own behavior and decisions. In many ways it’s even worse these days. As consumers, we are so inundated with information that goes through multiple filters before it reaches an audience, it’s hard to know how much of a story is really reaching us. It’s so easy to turn away from all these horrific events still going on today, as you say. We are being programmed to ignore most of it because our smart phones have plenty of other distractions for us to be concerned with. That is deplorable when you really think about it. It fosters an uncaring world. Thanks for your comments. ~ Steven
So very sad