As we got up bright and early for our trip to Poland this Saturday morning, we were all still so blind in terms of how impactful and emotional this day was going to be.
Throughout the bus ride to Poland, the memories of my first Holocaust class came to mind. I vividly remember my fifth grade self being very distraught at the end of class that very day. It's undoubtedly an extremely shocking subject, to say the least. It is unfathomable and confusing as to why/how something like this could have not only actually happened in the first place- but very few generations ago.
Upon arrival, the atmosphere was hushed and the cliques in our group had vanished as each of us were directed by our tour guide to our first stop - Auschwitz 1. Our tour guide's name was JoAnna - she was intelligent, had terrific English and has been giving tours around the concentration camp for years, yet the distress in her voice while explaining the horrific events that had occured in the very place we were standing, less than 100 years ago, seemed the utmost sincere. The day was gloomy - clouds and light rain accompanied us for the afternoon as we walked with our headsets listening to JoAnna's descriptions of the sites we were seeing.
AUSCHWITZ 1:
As we entered Auschwitz 1., the place where the first prisoners were sent when founded in 1940, we walked right under the entrance sign that read "Arbeit Macht Frei" - Work Will Set You Free. The feeling was eerie as we step foot on the very boarders of the camp that separated the innocent prisoners from a life of discomfort or a life of absolute freedom. It was hard to imagine, as us students have grown up in a generation of people who encourage acceptance. Our day was just getting started.
As we walked through the camp, our guide explained to us that the Nazi's would force the musician prisoners to for an orchestra and play music while the rest of the prisoners marched in a specific fashion to make it easier to count - because they wanted to make sure they had the exact same number of prisoners. She emphasized how the victims in the camps were so weak and starved - yet they still had to find the strength to march to their barracks so the Nazis could make sure not even one prison escaped. The first 5 minutes was already the most eye-opening experience of my life.
We made our way through each building, the first with photos and tables of documents written by the Nazi's. The first photos we had seen were of the Hungarian Jews. These photos were taken of the victims as they got off the train rides, as they hugged their families before being separated, etc. The worst part about witnessing these blown up pictures on the walls of the buildings was that these families actually thought they were being sent to work for a better life. They had no clue they were entering camps where their death were already planned long before arrival.
General description of the inmates. 1.1 million were murdered in this camp alone.
There were many table of documents written by the Nazis. It shows how intentional each and every death was. It shows how the individuals that died were real people and suddenly dehumanized and it was all recorded on purpose. Its repulsive.
Birkenau 1944 - Jews Brought From Hungary
Arrival of the Jews from Hungary.
The next part of the day was certainly the most haunting and powerful part of the day: The Belongings.
We were told the next room we entered we could not take any photos. Not knowing why, we followed anyway - expecting another room of photographs. Our tour guide had guiding us into a room which we saw, behind glass, the two tons of hair the Nazis shaved from the heads of women and little girls before entering the gas chambers. I became very emotional, I looked around to see every girl in our group with the same reaction. Our heads hung low and tears fell from our faces as we held our hair, mourning the loss of the innocent lives that were taken and the dehumanization the prisoners had to face before execution. The deaths were slow and each life was innocent - it really started to kick in after seeing the hair, and the braids, and the realness of it all. (photos can be found on auschwitz.org)
We followed the guide through numerous rooms which we were allowed to photograph containing the belongings of the prisoners. I will never forget stepping foot in these rooms, seeing for myself what many of the victims of this atrocity would recognize if they were here with us, today.
These photos are displayed in random order of the sequence we saw the glass displays -
Spectalces of the prisoners before as they were confiscated of their belongings before becoming prisoners.
This was also very heartbreaking, a shoes is the first thing someone notices about your appearance and they usually express a persons personality in some way. This display of shoes was filled on both sides of the room we were walking through. It was truly heartbreaking..
Artificial legs and crutches of the elderly and disable, soon sent to the chambers upon arrival.
To see things like these breaks my heart. It carries the history of the lives the prisoners once had before Auschwitz.
Children's belongings. There is no other way to describe it than sickening.
Excuse the glare of the window, but this was also one of the most devastating displays. These people were told to pack their suitcases, write their names on them and that the journey for them to work to have better lives was being organized by authorities. They were excited while packing these suitcases. Seeing the names on them was traumatic.
Our trip through Auschwitz 1 included seeing a few of the barracks, the living conditions, and the cells where many victims starved to had starved to death, and lastly through some gas chambers. This part was obviously tough to see for everyone.
The rocks were what was used for the gas chambers. They were cheap and effective. The first picture is the glass display of the cans used to kill thousands of people.
Indescribably excruciating to see.
AUSCHWITZ 2. - BIRKENAU
We took a bus to Birkenau, about 6 kilometers outside of Auschwitz 1. Birkenau is the largest section of Auschwitz, where the majority of the prisoners were killed. This was where the trains took the families and split them up. They were put the men in one line, to take straight to work. The women, children, disabled, and elderly were int he other line - and were immediately sent straight to the gas chambers to be killed - as they were useless to the Nazis.
Men who were sentenced to be shot were to strip their clothes because it made them more vulnerable and easier to kill is masses.
The rail road tracks the prisoners came in on.
The trains the prisoners came in on. One hundred + people in on little box with no food or water for days.
The camp.
The barracks. These were filled with straw. They didn't have enough for everyone, They brought in double what the barracks held and (the women mostly) had to sleep on lice infested straw. One survivor said they could smell the women coming from a long ways away, literally, because the living conditions were so poor, while another said they would see the women come out of the barracks with coats of lice. They were shoulder to shoulder in these barracks, starving to death with a diet of soup, bread made of flour and saw dust to save ingredients, and herbal drinks while working 10+ hours a day.
The stories our guide taught us were disturbing yet, so real. It was an unforgettable day and I will hold a place in my heart for the victims of the Holocaust forever. The experience was eye-opening and showed that realness of how much worse life could really be. As the Honeylocust may be an extreme, it was one that lasted for years and 1.1 million individuals with years of life ahead of them had to be robbed of their human rights and I will always remember the agony I felt walking through Auschwitz - and the incomparable events the victims had to face.
To my family: We will be leaving for Vienna and Venice tomorrow morning and following our trips will be spring break. It will be a couple of weeks before I post next. I love you!
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