Czech Republic Trip 2014

Like so many others before me, I must give testament to what I have seen. I have decided that I must post this yet today, for, if I were to fail, I would be unable to do it the meager justice that I am striving to accomplish. Let me just say, first and foremost, that my recalling of today's events will, in no way, shape, or form, accurately capture the true essence of Auschwitz. All I can hope to accomplish is to testify about what I saw, what I experienced, and what I felt while in Auschwitz. I am not trying to create suspense; I am saying that I cannot capture the place in its entirety. Auschwitz is tough to walk through, I will be honest. Some people had a hard time with it, and some people broke down all together (I saw this in other groups we passed along the way). I am not going to encourage you to go and see it, for that may not be something you can handle. For me, it was tough, and so, without further delay, let me describe the events of today. We met at 1:30, as planned, and we hoped on the bus, hoping to make it to Auschwitz by 3:00, our designated appointment time. It took about an hour to arrive, but we, actually, arrived a few minutes late. No big deal. We were given an audio device and some headphones, and we were told to wait outside for our tour-guide. The audio device allowed our tour-guide to speak into a microphone she had attached to her jacket, and we could listen to her without being right next to her. This was very convenient for me, as I like to stray away to snag some good photos. We walked around a grassy bend, some buildings populating the side. A wide expanse of greenery would deceive even the most trained eye. What was, actually, a place of death, seemed, at the moment, to be serene and peaceful. We arrived at the gate, the infamous gate that read "Arbeit Macht Frei," which means, "Work makes Free." Standing guard nearby was a watch tower, a place that housed the murderous men. To the right of the gate ran two wired fences, one right in front of the other, with a gap in between. This was called the "Neutral Zone." Ironically, it was far from neutral as any prisoner who found themselves inside this zone would, easily, be shot by the guard in the watch tower, who had ample view of this strip of land. As we continued on, we saw more and more buildings, each made of brick and looking more and more menacing. We saw an orchestra house among the buildings along that line. The streets running inside this camp were filled with tourists, and that was what the naked eye could see. However, if such things exist, I am sure what the naked eye couldn't see was a packed street with spirits. If any place was to be haunted, this would be it. For every person, I could see hundreds of spirits roaming the same streets, walking the same paths, tracing the same footprints. As we were rounding one barrack, I noticed a bush with purple flowers. I had to stop and admire this, the fact that something so beautiful could take root amongst so much death and destruction. Our first stop, within the camp, was Block 4. This was where we were educated about the exterminations in this camp. Jews, Poles, Gypsies, POWs, and other prisoners were all sent to Auschwitz from neighboring areas, and 1,100,000 people died in Auschwitz, and, of that number, about 90% were Jews. As if the numbers weren't staggering enough, we, then, saw a case that held the ashes of human beings. For me, that was a bit crude. I understand the point is to honor the fallen victims, but I wouldn't want my ashes put on display, even if the ashes were taken from a mass pit of some sort. I just don't find that very dignifying for the victims. There was, in addition, a plaque that gave the approximate number of Jews from each area that were sent to Auschwitz. To clarify, while many did die in Auschwitz I, where we went first, many, many more died in Auschwitz II, or Birkenau. Birkenau was where the Crematorium were, or the ovens. But, more on that later. We exited that barrack and headed into another, where we were told about the selection process. We saw pictures of doctors deciding the fates of many; we saw pictures of children on their way to the gas chambers/crematorium. The children had such innocent faces, almost playful, and they had to meet such an immature, tragic end. That may have been the hardest to face. In the next room, there was an entire window compartment filled with canisters of Cyclon B, the Cyanide-Based Pesticide that was used to gas the prisoners. One canister could kill 700-1,000 people. I do not exaggerate when I say an entire compartment was filled with canisters. Try figuring out how many people died from that many cans. There were, also, some pictures of the Nazis burning corpses. The chimneys, from the Crematorium were always belching the smoke and ash in the air and, after a while, the Nazis were ordered to dig up the graves and burn the bodies. They couldn't even be buried properly. Finally, there were some pictures of the Nazis burning the warehouses, or Canada, as they called it. This was done in a last minute effort to hide evidence from the advancing Soviet Army. The next rooms held the belongings of the victims that were excavated. Among these items were glasses, prostetic limbs, kitchen utensils, suitcases, brushes, and shoes, both from adults and children. We left that barrack and continued on to Barrack 10, where experimentations were done. Dr. Mengele was known as "The Angel of Death." He experimented on 1500 sets of twins, and only 200 survived. Experiments, such as Head injuries, poison, malaria, freezing, altitude, bombs, and other heinous crimes, took place in this barrack. The windows were always boarded shut, so as to prevent the subjects from looking out, and any witnesses from looking in. Right next door was Barrack 11, the prison within a prison. This barrack held the prisoners, and we saw bunks, sinks, and other housing accommodations. At the end of the building, and to the left, was the exit, and it led straight into the alley between Barrack 10 and 11. This alley was where death and torture occurred. "The Wall of Death" is at the far end of this alley, and the middle portion is covered with concrete, so the bullets would not damage the brick wall. There are, also, posts with hooks. The purpose was to tie the prisoners' hands behind their backs, and then hang them from their hands. This dislocated shoulders and caused permanent damage. Thus, as a rule, those who couldn't work were sent to their death. Barrack 11 also housed the torture cells. There were the starvation cells, which are self-explanatory. There were the dark cells, or the suffocation cells. Prisoners would be locked in a dark room with no access to the outside, except through a small window in the door. The Nazis would, also, stick a candle inside so as to speed up the process of burning oxygen. This, in turn, suffocated the prisoners. There were the standing cells. Four people would be crammed into a small room, and they were not allowed to sit or lie down. So, after an entire day of forced labor, they had to come back to a room where they could not sit and rest. If they did, they were shot immediately. We got out of there quick enough, and we walked through more of the camp. We saw a place where 3 poles were hung because they retained their communications with the outside world, beyond the camp. We got to the edge of the camp, and we made an escape of our own. Just outside the camp, there was a special gallows area. This was where the Commandant, Rudolf Hoss was executed after the war, in 1947 I believe. He tried to make an escape, but he was recognized and turned in. Our last stop in Auschwitz I was the gas chamber/crematorium. It was just an open room, not too big, but not small. However, it would have seemed small with about 2,000 people crammed inside at once. Above our heads were the vents through which the Cyclon B was released. In the connecting room was the oven. It was sight of pure terror. A place where many have come to die, and a place which will haunt the lives of many to this day. We went back to our bus, and we went to Birkenau. This camp is about two miles away from Auschwitz I. Auschwitz I was just a lot of buildings crammed within the walls of barbed wire. However, Birkenau was a vast expanse of grass. No, it is not the sight for a lovely picnic-far from it. The building that so many had looked upon with dread now stood before our eyes. It was the entrance through which the trains would enter the camp and deliver its cargo. This is where the ramp was utilized. People would step out of the cattle cars, and their fate would be decided. Many, in fact most, were sent to the gas chambers immediately upon arrival. Only those fit for labor were allowed to remain alive. The Commandant even said that the only exit was through the chimney. He said that certain people had a certain amount of time to live, depending upon if you were male, female, Jewish, polish, etc. However, I believe he set the maximum amount of time to stay alive was about three months. As we stepped through and walked along the railroad, to my right and left were more barbed fences. Inside, building after building lined up in rows. Most were wooden, and only a few were brick. Auschwitz I had more brick buildings, and Birkenau had more wooden ones. We walked the same trail that the prisoners did on their way to the chambers. It was a long walk, nearly a quarter of a mile. It had to be. Or, perhaps it was the depressing nature of the stroll that made it seem so long. There were so many of us walking, it almost seemed like we came off the train ourselves. At the very end, we found the end of the railroad, and we found memorials to the victims. To the right and left were the remains of the crematorium, which had been destroyed a few days before the camp had been liberated by the Soviet Army. Crematorium 2, 3, 4, and 5 were once on site, and the fourth one was destroyed by an uprising of prisoners. The other three were destroyed later to hide evidence. All around us was the forest, the forest where pits were dug, a tactic utilized by the Einsatzgruppen, Hitler's action force that hunted people, shot them, and put them in mass graves. The forest left a mark on me for a few reasons. So much life lay within a few feet from so much death. It also seemed to be a symbol of freedom, a symbol that every prisoner didn't utilize, or rather, couldn't utilize. We went to the remains of one of the crematorium, and we were told what the building would have looked like. At the far end was a set of steps, the entrance. A bit further was the gas chamber. Once they were gassed, they were brought upstairs, their hair was cut, their gold removed (if applicable to the victim), and then they were thrown in the oven. There were four or five ovens working simultaneously, and they, each, fed up into one chimney. We got away from there quickly, and we went to investigate what the barracks looked like, the living conditions for the prisoners. The first one was brick with a concrete floor. Not very many had the luxury of a concrete floor, but it was still horrid. Bunks lined the walls, all in three levels. They were lined with straw, which carried insects and diseases. It was cold in the winter and hot in the summer, and the conditions resembled this horridness. People were crammed into these bunks, in three levels. There were insects in the hay. Lice and Typhus were abundant. Rats were found aplenty as well. The clothing was changed very infrequently, and this led to many deaths, without the direct assistance of a Nazi guard. After this, we went to visit a wooden barrack, and it was much, much worse. This wooden barrack was a sanitation room, but don't let the name mislead you. One half was used for washing, but the prisoners only got a few minutes. The other half was the toilets, and they were extremely public. It was a solid structure with holes in it running the length of the room. Needless to say, the conditions were terrible. The bathrooms were closed during the night, and the prisoners had to use pales in the barracks. Most barracks were built right upon the marshy ground without any solid infrastructure. Thus, the barracks were poorly designed, and this stimulated even more bad health and such. Upon our departure from this barrack, the tour of the hellhole known as Auschwitz had come to a close. She ended by saying that the victims, the people, need to be remembered. The Holocaust needs to be forever remembered, so as history will not repeat itself. So, have I made you tear up yet? Have I made you question what you thought was fantasy and what was real? Have I made you upset, disgusted, infuriated, confused, distraught, quizzical, skeptical? Try and imagine how it was for us going through it, and experiencing it first hand. While some may think it is an honor to visit this place, I can't agree entirely. It is a burden. For me, I now share in what the victims experienced. While I will never come close to experiencing what they did, I now know their story, their truth, their reality, and their lives. I can, now, relate to them on a much deeper level, while my accounts, to you, are only secondary. I have a burden to carry, and I have a story to share. Like Plato's allegory describes, the enlightened have an obligation to help those who live in ignorance of the truth. Thus, my accounts. I, sincerely, hope I haven't upset you too much, but I hope you have taken interest in my works. It is getting really late, and I am afraid I must leave you for now. It will be some time before I blog again, as I will be residing in Olomouc for a while now. Our next trip isn't until a few weeks from now, and we are going to Bohemia. I will try and touch base with you all a few times before then, but this is goodbye, for now. Take care. "May The Odds Be Ever In Your Favor!"
-Anthony-