|
Close your eyes and you
will see what we have seen at night – endless
nocturnal processions are converging here at night
and here it is always night. Close your eyes and you
will see that here heaven and earth are on fire.
Close your eyes, my friends, and listen, listen to
the silent screams of terrified mothers, listen to
the prayers of anguished old men and women, listen
to the tears of children, Jewish children, beautiful
looking girls among them, with golden hair, whose
vulnerable tenderness never left me. Look and listen
as the victims quietly walk towards dark flames so
gigantic that the planet itself seemed in danger-Elie
Wiesel
Auschwitz is actually
the German name for the Polish town of Oswiecim
(during the German occupation many Polish towns were
"Germani-ised in this way).
Auschwitz comprises
of two main camps (although there were other
sub-camps). Auschwitz I was the earlier of the two
and was established on the grounds of pre-war Polish
barracks. Today, it is a museum and serves as an
emotional memorial to those who lost their lives
here.
The entrance gate
still carries the sardonic sign the Nazis erected "Arbeit
Macht Frei" which means "work makes you free".
Many of the exhibits
are upsetting and poignant such as the mountain of
suitcases, rooms full of shoes, children's clothes
and a tangled pile of spectacles.
Birkenau (or in
Polish Brzezinka) is the larger of the two and
unlike the main camp at Auschwitz, is more or less
in the same state it was found was when it was
liberated in 1945.
It is at the Birkenau
camp where you can still sense the enormous scale of
these killing fields. The remains of the crematoria
can still be seen even though the Nazis blew them up
in a desperate "cover-up" attempt. The surviving
barracks, the communal & primitive toilets, the
absurdly cramped sleeping quarters, the rail track
all convey a sense of how the Nazis' killing process
had evolved into an industrial process. Instead of
mass production the Nazis had created an assembly
line for mass destruction.
The name "Auschwitz"
was, and still is, an extremely emotive word. Even
today it invokes memories of arguably humanity's
darkest crimes against one another.
Approximately 1.5
million people died here and although history
revisionists will argue about the exact numbers who
perished the unassailable fact is every death at the
camp was one death too many.
The Jews suffered the
heaviest losses but large numbers of Poles,
Hungarians, Romany gipsies and more were also
victims.
The legacy of
Auschwitz still haunts many families both in Poland
and around the world. Even today many Polish
survivors and historians regularly confront
newspaper editors whose papers refer to Auschwitz as
a "Polish" concentration camp. What may seem as an
insignificant description to many is seen by Poles
as an insult as the implication is that the Poles
were somehow responsible for the existence of such
camps. With today's youth having less and less
interest in this period in history Poles feel it is
essential that they do not grow up believing Poland
had any part to play in the construction and running
of these death camps.
When looking for
things to do in Krakow Auschwitz often appears on
the list. A visit to the concentration camps is an
uncomfortable experience and some people who have
visited would not recommend the trip to their
friends and colleagues. However, for that very
reason I would recommend visiting Auschwitz-Birkenau.
It serves to remind us what humanity can do to
itself when racism and evil are allowed to flourish.
Even though it is uncomfortable viewing at times a
trip to Auschwitz-Birkenau will linger in the memory
longer than any other part of your holiday.
The Auschwitz
Birkenau Museum is approximately a two hour train
journey away from Krakow with the fare being around
13 zloty one way. Don't forget that Auschwitz-Birkenau
are the Germanised names of the Polish towns known
as Oswiecim and Brzezinka so when travelling to
Auschwitz you should be looking for signs for
Oswiecim.
There are also
numerous mini buses that run from Krakow to
Auschwitz and these will take you direct to the camp
itself. A mini bus journey tends to be faster than
rail and is marginally cheaper. The train station at
Auschwitz is about a 1km walk from the main camp
although there are plentiful taxis outside the
station and they should only charge you around 10-15
zloty one way.
Please note that
admission to the Auschwitz Birkenau Museum is free
of charge. Individuals may choose to hire a guide
whilst large groups of people are obliged to hire a
guide if they wish to tour the Museum. Please visit
the official
Auschwitz Birkenau Museum website.
Contact Us
/ SiteMap |
