Blogs from Auschwitz, Lesser Poland, Poland, Europe - page 5

Poland to the Czech Republic Auschwitz and Birkenau Day 19 This was a morning that was not one I could prepare myself for. All I can say is that it was a moving moment at we walked around the concentration camps. The sheer size of them blew me away and the history was shocking to say the least. We were taken on a guided tour of the sight which took around two hours. I think that pictures speak louder than words in this instance so I’d prefer to show you the pictures Alex took rather than try to explain in words what it was like. ... read more

Finally, we reach the most important day of the holiday, and the reason for the whole trek around Europe ever happening: Auschwitz. As a history graduate, Auschwitz has always been an important place to me and one that I've always felt a strong inclination to visit. I didn't ever believe it would actually happen, until one day my brain woke up and just said "Why not?". Cue a two week trip across Europe, with one final destination in mind: Krakow, and within that, Auschwitz. Waking up on this morning though was not the same as waking up the morning we went to Salzburg (another big dream come true). This day felt heavy from the very start. We were up at 7:30am for breakfast, which in fitting with everything else at the Hotel Kazimierz, was very nice. ... read more

First things first. We decided to stay at this hostel another night instead of taking a night train to Prague. It just rocks too much, and we will leave for Prague, Czech Republic, in the morning. Now onto more serious, less logistical writing. Today we visited Auschwitz concentration camp. It's Kate here, by the way, Ian will post too. We both want to type our own experiences because something like this is extremely moving, and no two people will feel the exact same way. Upon arriving, I felt a mixture of conflicting emotions. I was nervous, excited, scared, curious, and awkward. The area outside of the camp was actually quite beautiful with tall green trees. The day was beautiful too, bright blue skies with patches of fluffy white clouds. I couldn't help but think that it ... read more

6/14/08 Auschwitz It was hard to imagine that I was at the actual Auschwitz. You hear all these stories about how horrid a place it was and about the lives lost and the short supply of survivors and to actually be there is an out of body experience. First, I want to start with the facts of Auschwitz. It was started as a camp for Polish political prisoners. It was made by the prisoners themselves. Auschwitz is actually made up of three separate camps, Auschwitz I, Auschwitz II which included Birkenau, and Auschwitz III which was where Primo Levi was held. Auschwitz III was completely destroyed, so we did not visit it. There was nothing to see. Seventy to 75% of those arriving at Auschwitz were immediately sent to their death. There were 28 blocks in ... read more

　　今天大半日到了Auschwitz-Birkenau集中營，說實話，震撼感沒有想像般強烈，也許“Schindler’s List”來得更徹底。 　　今早打開窗看見白色物體在飄，懷疑是否下雪，但見天朗氣清，以為自己估錯；但坐巴士到火車站一下車，見到真的是下雪啊，那是我第一次遇到下雪。雪下得不大，只是散落著，間中有幾顆打在臉上，只覺微微濕潤，不算冷，因為氣溫本來已經夠低了…… 　　未有想過3月仍會下雪，可算是額外收穫。 　　一直渴望在波蘭靜下來留自己一個思考的空間，結果真的給我分到一間單人房，但往往每晚收拾完畢已屆十時多，別說看書了，連寫日記亦未必夠力。 　　初進波蘭時，覺得很簡陋，還擔心自己接受不了；但只消半晚便安頓了下來，始終人們比起德國大城市的純樸一點（德國始終太多類似邊青的物體），這裡物資不算貧乏，但不會有太多，這應該就是今次我來想過的生活了。無論文字、語音、人們的模樣、基建等，都令我想起克羅地亞／Split。 video: 第一次見到下雪 ... read more