Poland has come and gone…my time away is going so quickly I always
have to remind myself not just to sit back and nearly wish it away but to make
the most out of every opportunity. So this is why I decided to go to Poland with
a class to see the Auschwitz death camps.
The trip started with a group of 10 exchange student friends
traveling down to the south of Sweden on a luxury coach (it was amazing). We
had two seats to ourselves which was great as we were going to be on this bus a
long time. We pick up the rest of the people traveling with us; they were
teachers of all kinds and ages. So it was great time for us to practice our
Swedish. We got on the overnight ferry to Poland, I was sharing a room with
Niall but felt more like a walrus the way he snored. So we arrived in Poland
the next day early morning and travelled all day until we arrived at Krakow. It
has been my favourite place I have visited, absolutely beautiful.
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| Gas chamber |
We went to Auschwitz 1 the next day and I have to say I wasn’t
really looking forward to it as I was worried how it may affect me. We arrived
at the gates which said ‘Arbeit Macht Frei’ which stands for
work makes one free, but this was never the case. The camp was big with large
warehouses where prisoners slept, roughly 1000 in each one. It was just so
difficult for me to think t that this was not that long ago only 68 years. We
went into one of the houses which had different rooms filled with different
items to help make you realise the numbers. They showed us 2 tonne of hair
which was originally 7 but got destroyed by the Germans. They would have used
this to make clothes to send back to Germany. They camp just had a weird
feeling about it, it made me feel uneasy. I really found going into the gas
chamber difficult, I just needed to get out as quick as possible.
The camp Auschwitz Birkenau was massive;
it was like a town or a small city. This is the more famous one as it can be
seen in films like Schindler's list. I found this day just as hard but in a
different way. It was such a beautiful day with the warm air, green grass, rabbits
and butterflies everywhere I felt my brain was trying to make me forget that 3
million people had died horribly there. I
don’t think I have ever been on such an emotional rollercoaster. We could still
see pieces of human bone in the ground and try to get of feel of what it would
have smelt and been like with 150,000 people there at the one time.
It wasn’t a nice time but it was a time I am definitely thankful
to have experienced. There is always a quote seen at Auschwitz and it is.
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| Me at Auschwitz Birkenau |
“The
one who does not remember history is bound to live through it again”
Tak så
myket for reading. (more pics will be up soon)
Until next time Hej
då
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