My Guide to Sabbatical Travel

A Photo Tour of My Day at Auschwitz-Birkeneau

Krakow / by / 5 Comments

So the whole reason I came to Krakow was to do a day tour of Auschwitz-Birkenau and it didn’t disappoint.  You can book your Auschwitz tour through Viator.  It may be one of the most emotional tours of my entire life.  My tour guide was incredible at giving a voice to  the memorial and the horrors that occurred at Auschwitz-Birkenau.  She was able to bring us back to World War II and help us put ourselves in the shoes of the prisoners of Auschwitz-Birkenau.  One girl in our group got so upset that she broke down and had to go back to the bus halfway through.  It can be emotionally hard to take this tour but I think it is an important part of history that shouldn’t be forgotten.

“Arbeit Macht Frei” is the sign you see entering Auschwitz that means “Work Sets You Free” which was a slogan that appeared not only at Auschwitz but other concentration camps as well
The view of camp as you enter Auschwitz. As you can see barbed wire fence surrounded the camp.
Cartoon drawing of life as prisoners at Auschwitz
The lines of barracks that housed the prisoners and the path was used to conduct roll call which could last for hours. During that time, the prisoners had to stand completely still wearing thin clothes while the guards had a tower they could go into in case of bad weather.
Another look at the towers the guards could stand in during roll call.
A powerful quote and a good reason to visit Auschwitz.
All the cities throughout Europe that were sending prisoners to Auschwitz

It’s just crazy to look at the amount of people transported at one time into the camp. I can only imagine how scared they were.
As you can see they were separated into women and children on the left that weren’t cable of work and would be sent straight to the gas chambers. The line on the right was the men, some women, and children over 12 that they thought were cable of work.

The leftover glasses that they found. Just imagine that each pair represents someone killed at Auschwitz.
Many people were told to pack one suitcase with their valuables and anything they wanted to take with them. Many people brought various cookware and vases. This proves that not everyone truly understood what was happening to them and where they were going. What would you bring with you?
What really got to me in this part of the exhibit was all of the shoes that they found. Again imagine each pair of shoes represents someone killed at Auschwitz-Birkenau. Now this picture was about 1/10 of the amount of shoes that they had on display. There were so many that I couldn’t even get them into one picture.

Info from Wikipedia on the Killing Wall – Block 11 was the name of a brick building in the Auschwitz concentration camp. Between the tenth and eleventh block stood the death wall where thousands of prisoners were lined up for execution by firing squad. The block contained special torture chambers in which various punishments were applied to prisoners. Some could include being locked in a dark chamber for several days or being forced to stand in one of four standing cells. Punishment in these special compartments (one square metre each, with a hole 5×5 cm for breathing), consisted of confining four prisoners, who were forced by the lack of space to remain standing all night for up to twenty nights, while still being forced to work during the day. It was at Block 11 that the first attempts to kill people with Zyklon B were implemented.
Initial gas chambers in Block 11
More barracks throughout the camp

Everything above is from the Auschwitz I Camp where they have all the exhibits and memorials.  After this portion of the tour, they took us to Birkenau or Auschwitz II Camp.

Entrance to Birkenau
The first thing you notice at Birkenau is the sheer size of the place. It is approximately 10 times bigger then Auschwitz I Camp.
The remains of just some of the barracks at Birkenau. You can also see the railroad tracks that they used to bring people into the camp.
This train car is a memorial dedicated to over 400,000 Jews deported to Auschwitz by the Nazis between May and July 1944. The railroad car stands at the place where SS physicians deemed who was physically able to work based on a quick glance and sending the majority of the deported Jews to death in the gas chambers.
The remains of the gas chambers at Birkenau
I couldn’t even begin to get all the remains of the gas chambers in one photo.
A memorial to the victims of Auschwitz-Birkenau. Many of the victims’ ashes were disposed of in this pond.
A look inside the barracks and the dismal living conditions of the prisoners.
Just trying to show the size of the camp
I was glad that I got to go view this sad part of the world’s history but was also happy to leave after an emotional day. If you ever get a chance, I hope you make the time for a visit as well.

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Comments

  3. Barbara Diemer

    I’m sure it was difficult to experience the camps. It was difficult to experience your pictures and comments, but necessary to understand mans’ inhumanity to others different than themselves. Our country is experiencing more overt hatred toward many minorities, Muslims, Hispanics, LGBTQ, etc. It’s good to be reminded that it’s not always past history.

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