Day two in Munich
By: Camille Hanks #9
On the way over to Dachau (the “parent” concentration camp that all other Nazi camps were modeled after) we remembered movies that we’ve seen about Nazi Germany, facts about Auschwitz and other famous camps, and gruesome details we’ve all learned in history class. It seems like we all think of the Holocaust as some far away thing in a far away time, but standing there, in Munich, only 65 years after it all happened, was moving.
Stepping off the train and walking into the entrance of Dachau–seeing the the real place where humans were torchured and murdered by other humans–was something you can’t be taught, only experience. We began the tour at the execution wall, which was lined with bullets, and walked through the barracks where the prisoners of Dachau were kept. We looked into rooms where people were forced into “standing chambers,” where they were given a two-foot square to live in.
The museum we walked through included historical information about how someone like Hitler gained so much power, and how something like the Holocaust was possible in the 20th century. Pictures and stories of real life victims gave realness to the buildings, cells, showers, and gas chambers we walked through. Although it was sad to be reminded the realness and horror that was the Holocaust, I think we were all glad to experience a part of history.
After lunch, we had to aggressively get back on the train (perhaps taking a few old german ladies down on the way…) and had a fabuloous time at dinner–eating our weight in italian food, learning Chris’ favorite female traits, struggling to a glass of TAP water, and devouring an entire pan of Tiramisu (We’re SO American…).
Thanks to everyone for making my 21st one that I will never forget.
(…and a special shout-out to Steven and the german kids who macarena-ed with us. As Jairka would say, “we liked you, so we miss you!”)
