Auschwitz & Birkenau, Poland
Daaaaamn, today was a heavy day. I’m glad I went, but it wasn’t a happy day. BUT, I kinda figured if millions of people could suffer through it, the least I could do was bear witness. So, I went.
It’s not a happy place, you can feel the somber mood in the air when you arrive, you don’t have to even say anything, you just feel it. A respect for those who suffered and most likely died. Heavy stuff.
So, from Krakow, you take a bus. When you reach the town where Auschwitz was located, I could’nt help notice the train tracks along the way. I kept thinking about those millions of innocent people who traveled along those same tracks. Not knowing what terrible atrocities await.
I took a guided tour. I had to. At this time of year there are too many visitors. But, it was good. My guide was informed, compassionate, and respectful to the ninth degree. I toured Auschwitz I and Auschwitz II / Birkenau. I did take some pics, but honestly, I was so caught up in the tour, at times, I forgot. Other times, no pics were allowed out of respect for those that suffered. And, I gotta say, for those parts of the tour, I completely agreed.
I have to say, for those few screwballs that believe the holocaust didn’t happen - go there, see for yourself and tell me you can still think that. Impossible.
The first camp was Auschwitz I, the original camp. This camp had a museum, like nothing I’ve ever seen before. The infamous entrance, Arbeit macht frei translated to "labor makes you free".
Right inside this entrance was a platform, upon which a band played marching tunes as the 'workers' left the camp each day to work. Apparently, it kept everyone in step and was easier to do a head count. That had to be absurd, to the workers, can you imagine?
I saw the barb wire that was everywhere, sometimes three rows deep, to keep the inmates (cause really, they were not voluntary, so why not just call them inmates) inside. And if that wasn’t enough of a threat, then then realization that they would round up your relatives and bring them to this hell on earth, if you escaped, would make anyone think twice.
If I took a pic of all the suitcases, in order to get all of them in the shot, I would have had to be so far back that you couldn't tell what they were. That is the case with the other pics, there was so so so much of it all. So, this is just a close-up of a few. Suitcases of people that thought they would leave one day, who had hope, who had no idea the vast majority of them would be murdered.
Thousands upon thousand of shoes of children. Little tiny children.
Insane amounts of glasses.
Again, mass quantities of prosthetics and braces. Apparently, these people were gas immediately upon being sorted at the train. Only the fit and able to work were saved, for the time being.
Toiletries - from people who believed they would be treated as humans and allowed to maintain some personal dignity, personal grooming.
I saw hundreds of pounds of hair. Hair that belong to men and women and children who had done nothing wrong. Hair that was taken from them as a way to dehumanize them, and then put to use. Woven into rugs and fabric. No pics for this. They did not allow that.
I walked through the ‘hospitals’ where no one was made better. Rather, experimented on like animals, like non-humans. I saw pictures that made my skin crawl of these ‘patients’. So horrific, I couldn’t bring myself to take pictures.
The wall where people were lined up and shot. Next to the prison, where people were given a minute long trial, then convicted, tortured, and made to stand for twelve hours after doing a day of hard labor and then either died or were shot at the wall.
I walked through the gas chambers, where people were rounded up like cattle and murdered. Men, women, and children.
The ovens were also inside, again no pics allowed. But, it was horrible.
At Birkenau. I was shocked at the size of it. If I took a long range view of it, it is so huge, then you would not be able to tell what the chimneys were. This camp was massive. Many of the wood frame structures had long ago been destroyed or deteriorated, with only the chimneys left behind. Unfortunately, those chimneys provided little comfort and warmth, with resources during the war being so scarce, and the inmates being at the bottom of the priority ladder.
One of the railway cars used to transport people here. It was covered with stones, a jewish tradition.
I saw the beds, that would sleep 5 - 8 inmates each platform, three rows high. Cramped quarters in horrific conditions. People starving, commonly having chronic diarrhea from such ill treatment and unsanitary conditions, unable to use the bathroom at will or control their bowels and leaking on their fellow inmates. The horror of this indignity, adding to the despair of dying and fear of brutal killings for no reason, and being worked to death on very little food, its a wonder how anyone managed to survive at all. Which explains why the majority did not survive.
In each group, a inmate was assigned as the boss or 'kapo', these kapos received special treatment and extra food. Some times these kapos were just as harsh and brutal as the german guards. I just couldn't wrap my head around it, how could people treat other humans this way. How did they lose their humanity? Civility? Kindness? What happens to people to make them do such cruel things? My head had been swirling with these thoughts the entire time, and this took a long time, visiting both camps took about 4 1/2 hours.
THEN, I go along with the others back to the bus to take us back to Krakow. There was already a large crowd, so I was unable to get on and had to wait till the next bus. Since there were so many of us waiting for the next bus, I stood along with a dozen other people in line where the bus would pull up. The rest wandered off, went to lay down in the grass, went and got food etc. Standing on the pavement for 1 1/2, not moving, is not so enjoyable, by the way. Anyway, when the bus arrived all these other people squished in and cut the line, they did NOT go to the back of the line. So, people started yelling at each other. All nationalities, calling each other swear words, using very hostile tones, accusing each other. IT GOT UGLY! I was shocked at the things people were saying to each other, especially at what we had all just witnessed that day, you'd think people would have things in perspective. Yeah, it sucks to wait for a bus for that long and not get on, but is that a reason to lose our civility to one another? It just kept accelerating as the crowded squeezed in tighter and tighter, and then someone came after me. The woman behind me accused me of cutting the line. Of which I had done no such thing, and was actually allowing other people to go in front of people if they were families in order that they should be assured to get on the same bus together and not be separated. Still, she loudly accused me of an action I had not done, and the hostility in me sparked immediately. I too resorted to some ugly language to a total stranger. I told her to "F*$% off, I've been standing at the front for an hour and a half, you're full of shit!" Do not accuse of something I haven't done!!!! Sure way to piss me off! Still, I was surprised at how quickly I acted in that way.
Then, it immediately hits me. Wow, we were turning on each other after an HOUR of mild discomfort! And while I think the treatment of the inmates is a severe stretch of this, I could imagine that when faced with extremely harsh living conditions of the people, I could see (not condone) that some people would also resort to unsavory conduct.
So, maybe that is the lesson for the trip. That is why everyone should go and see these camps, as a harsh reminder of what happens when people blindly follow a crazy man out of fear or delusion and completely lose their humanity, civility, and kindness to each other. This is a path that no one should follow, ever again.
Take care, be good, & XXOO
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