Auschwitz

"Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."
-George Santayana

Auschwitz I was the first camp, initially holding Soviet POWs, gypsies, and some Jews. The barracks of this camp have been transformed into exhibitions, each dedicated to a specific area. It was heartbreaking to realize that the rooms that I was walking through, looking at photographs and reading personal stories, once housed hundreds of people at a time. It was quite confusing for my mind to process the terrible quotes of the Nazi party on the wall right next to stories of bravery and will of the Polish people, women, Jews, etc. Some stories stuck out in my head: the Polish brothers who escaped capture, only to be executed for helping reassemble the Polish army. The female doctor who tried to hide a fellow prisoner from Dr. Mandel.

The toughest part of Auschwitz I was walking through "the yard." It was between blocks 10 and 11 that thousands were killed against the wall. I think you could have known the evil that had happened there without the descriptive sign. Chills crept down my back as I walked to the wall that now has tons of flowers and memorial candles with inscriptions in all different languages. I walked again through the saying "Arbeit macht frei" to continue to Auschwitz II-Birkenau.

The bus was quiet as we approached the gates. The railroad tracks, the walls, the barbed wire - it was all eerily how I had imagined. I could practically see the trains coming in with hundreds of passengers at a time from all over Europe. I could see exactly where they were separated into men & women. And where some were randomly selected to be killed immediately.

We walked along the train tracks to where the gas chamber once was. It is only a pile of rubble now since the Nazis tried to destroy any evidence that it was an extermination camp. We learned of a bunch of Hungarian women who revolted right outside of it, refusing to be herded like cattle. I cannot describe to you the feeling of standing where thousands have before me.

Visiting the inside of the Barracks was terrible. Before we entered the small building we learned that about 1000 people lived in each. I entered, but hesitated. Flat, triple bunk beds lined the walls. I don't know if I can really describe the feeling of the room - again I saw the people that had once inhabited the building. To see the inside of one, realize the gravity of the living conditions, and exit to see hundreds more just like it was absolutely chilling.

Many signs throughout both camps reminded visitors to be silent and remain respectful, but they weren't needed. Even after boarding the bus and heading back "home," all of us were quiet as we reflected. My mind wandered to the "what if and why not and who's to say?" I certainly left Auschwitz with more questions than answers, but the experience is not something that I will soon forget.