Our class
trip to Krakow, Poland was very impactful.
In the two days we were there we visited a salt mine, Schindler’s
Factory, Auschwitz, and Auschwitz II (Birkenau). I have learned a lot over the years in school
and also during our time here in the Czech about World War II, and seeing these
places in real life put the knowledge I have learned into perspective and made
it so much more real.
We stopped
at a salt mine on our way to Krakow. I
was completely blown away by the size of the mine. We went through quite a bit of the mine and
the tour guide said it was only one percent of the mine, which is really hard
to even comprehend. As we walked through
the tunnels and rooms, I just thought of how hard the miners worked and the way
that they did things was so innovative.
They didn’t have computers or even electricity when they began working
on the mine and yet they managed to create a mine big enough to contain chapels
and offices. It just seems crazy to me
that all of this is underground. Mines
has always fascinated me because we think nothing of building things above
ground but the concept of constructing things underground is backwards and
seems much more difficult to me. It was
very impressive and I loved learning how they accomplished retrieving the salt.
Before
visiting Schindler’s Factory, I watched the movie Schindler’s List because I
had never seen it before. I am glad that
I watched the movie beforehand because it helped me understand the background
of the factory and the history of it.
The Schindler’s Factory exhibit was not what I had expected,
however. I had expected the whole thing
to be about Schindler and his life and sort of tell the story like the movie
did. However, I was pleasantly surprised
that it was much more than that. I
really appreciated how the exhibit took us through different rooms and phases
of the War. It showed how things
progressed and the Germanization of places before the War fully broke out. I also thought it was extremely interesting
to see all the artifacts and displays they had of actual letters written by
children and people as they went through these processes.
I think
when a lot of people learn about World War II and what all took place,
especially in the United States, we learn about it as if it just occurred
overnight. Touring places like
Schindler’s Factory shows that there were so many events and things that took
place leading up to the War. In my head,
I always knew there were things that led up to and caused the World War II, but
yet I still thought of it as sort of just all of the sudden Hitler was in
charge and people were being forced into Ghettos and camps. I found it interesting that they had one
whole room dedicated to professors and teachers that were arrested. At first, I couldn’t understand why, but then
the realization that they did not want people to be educated and be able to
make their own decisions hit me. The
same concept applied when the Nazi Party took away all the radios and took over
the radio stations. They only wanted the
people to hear what they chose for them to hear, instead of letting them form
their own opinions.
I found it
very interesting and unique the way the museum was laid out and I appreciated
the story that the layout took me through.
I feel like this gave me an even better understanding of the events and
environment that was in the ghetto and even outside of the ghetto. It is hard to comprehend the lifestyle and
atmosphere that people were forced into.
On one of the signs in the museum, it spoke about how they were so
grateful to work in his factory because he gave them soup with meat during the
day for lunch. That just hit me hard
because I feel like we complain about food and waste so much of it and these
people were so thankful just to get some soup.
It just highlighted for me so many things we do daily that were changed
for these people and they did not even have a say in it.
On Monday
we got up early and went to Auschwitz I and Birkenau. It is extremely hard to put into words how I
feel about visiting these two places, but I will try. I believe every person, if possible, should
visit Auschwitz or a camp similar in their lifetime. It is important to me, especially after
visiting, that people realize what actually took place and the human beings
were capable of treating other human beings in such a way in such large
volumes. Reading about the camps and
watching movies is a great source of learning about them, but something about
standing on the exact floors and in the same chambers that the victims did, is
just indescribable and so much more impactful.
I wish I would have been able to take more time and read each picture to
gain the full experience, but our tour guide did a great job of relaying a lot
of information.
I took
notes on many different facts because it is so hard to soak in all the data
while you are touring and witnessing such horrific scenes and details about
what took place. Even after re-reading
my notes, it is still hard to wrap my brain around the amount of people killed
and the things that took place. I did
take some pictures, but in some areas, I just didn’t feel right about taking
picture. It almost felt as though an
invasion of privacy to the people who have passed away or that even survived
this horrible place.
Many
different aspects of the tour made an impact, but there were a few things that
just really hit me hard. For example,
walking through rooms filled with human hair, shoes, glasses, clothes, etc.,
just makes it so much more impactful and real in my opinion. Another thing that really made me think, is
the fact that the Nazis told the people coming to the camps to write their
names on their luggage to reclaim it later, knowing full well they were sending
the people to their deaths and only saying it to keep them calm. The same situation with the gas chambers, the
prisoners were told to remember where they laid their clothes so that they
could collect them after their “shower,” just to keep the people from
panicking. This is just so hard to think
about, because they literally just filled them with hope and then murdered
them. I know that everyone says that the
Nazis working in the camps were just doing what they were told, but I honestly don’t
know how you can murder thousands of people day in and day out. How can you line people up against a wall and
shoot them every single day? I am one to
follow the rules and do what I am told, but some part of me knows that I just
wouldn’t be able to do that. Also, it is
hard for me to comprehend how this many people were made to think that it was
okay to murder these people and that it was for a greater good.
Seeing the
pictures was hard as well because the people looked so worn down and
sickly. It is hard to imagine a 45 pound
woman doing 12 hours of work each day, but yet they had to in order to
survive. When the guide talked about how
the camps purposely only food them so many calories a day so that they would
starve within the first six months or so, I realized just how much thought and
effort went into the hatred these people had and the effort they made to murder
the millions of people that they did. However,
I think the thing that really got me was standing in the gas chamber were so
many people were murdered. It was so sad
and eerie to be in that room and know that so many people when in there and
never left alive. The amount of pain
suffered in that room is incomprehensible and being in the exact room gave me
the chills. Like I said, I think that is
something that everyone should experience to know and really understand what
actually took place and how horrific of a time it really was.
When we
walked around Birkenau, we saw many destroyed building and crematoriums that
were burned. It should be a sign that if
you have to cover your tracks to that extent, then what you are doing is very,
very wrong and inhumane. Also, seeing
the living conditions and places where the prisoners lived is so heartbreaking,
because they lived in conditions worse than the animals. They were truly treated as though they were
not humans and meant nothing to the World.
Even before the prisoners arrived, they were shoved onto railway carts
and hauled like animals. I am not sure
how someone can just decide that other have no value like that.
Overall, I
am very thankful to have had the opportunity to visit Auschwitz, but it
definitely was a humbling and heavily impactful experience. There is no way for me to truly ever
understand what took place at these camps and I am thankful that I have never
had to experience such evil. I do feel
like I have more of a grasp on the camps and living conditions now,
though. It is incredibly sad that these
practices because the normal for people living in the camps, and it just makes
me appreciate my life and the lifestyle I am able to lead so much more. I cannot fathom the strength it took to work
everyday and the fear that people lived in is just overwhelming. Never knowing if you are about to suddenly be
murdered or die of starvation would tear a body down just as fast as the labor
in my opinion. I know it will take me a
little while longer to fully digest what I saw and heard on this tour, but I am
so thankful I was able to visit and I am glad to have gained even more perspective
on World War II.
Chapel in the salt mine
Pans created in Schindler's Factory
Entrance into Auschwitz I
Fences in Auschwitz I
Entrance to Birkenau
No comments:
Post a Comment