Thursday, March 31, 2016

Holocaust Reflection


The remains of  gas chamber at Auschwitz II

Remains of entry way to gas chamber in Auschwitz II

Pond in Aushwitz II filled with ashes of the murdered. This is also the location of our prayer service in honor of all the lost lives. 

     Something I do not think I will ever fully understand is why there was and is so much hatred in the world. I cannot fathom why the Nazis thought murdering an entire population would solve Germany's problems. It is hard to understand the Nazi ideologies and what caused them to seem appealing to the Germans. In another religion class, we questioned if Hitler can ever be forgiven and have salvation with God. In Poland, we somewhat discussed this. The only people who can truly forgive Hitler and the Nazis are the victims or survivors. Jewish and Christian people today cannot grant forgiveness and redemption for actions that took places decades ago. The idea that Hitler can be forgiven for his horrific plans of extermination makes me angry and I cannot imagine living in a world where his sins are forgiven.  However, can a perpetrator be a victim? There were many Germans who decided freely to partake in the violent and hateful actions, but there were also some that may have been forced into the job. There had to have been some SS guards who were unaware of the extent of their jobs. Perhaps some worried about what would happen to their families if they did not comply.
            While at Auschwitz II, I experienced a special moment. When we arrived at the remains of the gas chamber, I was completely numb and overwhelmed with sadness, sorrow, and anger. I sat on the stairs silent crying for a few minutes until one of my classmates, Sia, came over to comfort me. We walked over towards some trees and I started hearing beautiful chirping of birds, sounds I did not hear a few minutes prior. To me, this moment helps me see the light in darkness. God did not abandon his people during the Shoah, He was present in the hearts of the prisoners and shed His grace through the selfless actions of the prisoners.
            It is difficult for me to discuss my experiences with people who were not on the trip with us. We had such a unique and tremendous encounter that I do not want to dismiss its significance with the answer “good” when asked how the trip was. We learned from extremely well-versed professors, tour guides, and religious fathers and sisters about various perspectives on the Holocaust. Going into this class, I thought I had a lot questions surrounding the Shoah, but while studying and reflecting in the places where so much suffering happened, I bombarded myself with dozens of more questions. Why did God let the Shoah happen? Where was human dignity? Why is there so much hate? I had a difficult time finding the answers, but after truly reflecting and processing my thoughts, some answers are clearer to me. God is found in the hearts of the prisoners in the camps. The biggest sacrifice made by Fr. Maximillian Kolbe is an example of the love and human dignity that exists in the most horrific situations. He switched places with a father and husband in line for the starvation cell. The man who he saved ended up surviving the war. Such selfless actions prove the magnificent workings of God through His people. I used to think that God should have never let the Holocaust happen. However, God gave humans free will hoping they would choose good. Sometimes people choose evil and it is not God’s fault, rather He is ashamed when humans choose evil. God gave people the ability to choose good or evil which created human worth and dignity.

            I am forever thankful to have had the opportunity to study in Poland with wonderful and intelligent professors, such passionate students and thinkers, and Holocaust educators. I will truly never forget the discoveries we made, the lessons we learned, and of course, I will never forget the innocent lives lost during an unfortunate time in human history. 



Marina Falisi

The Final Days In Poland

    
Jan Karski monument

      I can’t believe that today was our final day in Poland! It has been such an amazing trip and the week flew by way too fast. There is still so much more that I want to see and learn about.
The past couple of days have been focused on tying up loose ends. On Wednesday, we participated in an interactive multimedia learning experience at Auschwitz 1 and traveled to Kraków to learn about the remaining Jewish area as well as some Polish history. Thursday was spent finishing our studies in Auschwitz where we learned about the clergy at Auschwitz and today was our last day. We spent it in Kraków learning about Polish history and visiting Shoah memorials.    

     On Wednesday, we participated in an interactive multimedia learning experience. We were posed with multiple challenging ethical, moral and religious questions that do not have one straight forward answer. We discussed the questions as a group but also listened to the responses of those in an appropriate position to respond to the question.  We then headed over to Kraków to experience the remaining Jewish area of the city. We visited synagogues, a Jewish cemetery and multiple other locations dedicated to the Jews who were subjugated by the Nazis. We also stopped at Wawel Hill to see the castle. We learned about one of Poland’s kings and that one his daughter became king when she was 14 and married the Duke of Lithuania who was also 14. The other daughter married royalty of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and both regions became intertwined.

Castle at Wawel Hill

     Thursday was a lighter day, physically, not mentally. We finished our studies at Auschwitz with a lecture on the clergy who were imprisoned at Auschwitz. We were given estimated numbers as to the diversity at Auschwitz. They were astonishing! The number of innocent people who were subjected to the harsh treatment of the Nazis for doing nothing wrong was outrageous. We learned that approximately 70% of the clergy at Auschwitz perished. Then we had some free time to continue exploring the rest of Auschwitz and visit the exhibits that we were unable to see as a group. I went to the Polish and Russian national exhibits. I could only produce a one word response: wow! The vast difference in perspectives of the war from the two countries was unbelievable. Poland knew that it was struggling to defend its homeland but still managed to push on and ultimately were able to claim victories. However, the Russians believed that what they were doing was not only right, but that through their victories they laid claim to a great feat.

Communist Poland plaque

      Friday was spent in Kraków learning more about Polish history and visiting historical structures as well as learning more about resistance in Poland. We saw a memorial to Jan Karski who smuggled himself into Nazi camps to save Jews and passed Oskar Schindler’s factory.   We also had the opportunity to do some shopping in the main market square and eat real Polish pierogi. We also passed a remaining part of the Kraków ghetto wall and a plaque commemorating the poles from 1978 when Poland was under Communist control.

The Unknown Side of Auschwitz 1

Auschwitz 1 registration building



     The experiences we had at Auschwitz 1 and 2 are some of the strongest memories that I will carry with me for the rest of my life. To stand and walk where Nazis and prisoners carried out daily activities was surreal. I could not and still cannot believe that I was actually there.

     Monday was the first time that we went to Auschwitz 1. I did not know what to expect, especially not the number of people waiting in line to enter. The air, however, was heavy and the atmosphere solemn and somber and rightfully so; you could tell from the moment you stepped on the grounds. We started our tour by the infamous “Arbeit Macht Frei” (work sets you free) sign that everyone sees who enters the camp. We learned that tragically, six years ago, someone stole the original sign and cut it into three parts. We then continued our tour around the grounds and visited some of the blocks, some more bearable than others. We saw the harsh reality that consisted of a variety of awe inspiring, yet repulsive numbers, creations and things. In one of the blocks, we saw stolen goods from the prisoners such as glasses, shoes, and kitchenware. We saw where roll call was taken and the post where the officer who was in charge of the number of prisoners was stationed. We saw the estimated numbers of people killed and the book of names of people killed during the Shoah.

     In the basement of one of the blocks were another unfathomable creation of the Nazis called starvation and dark cells. Prisoners were put in these rooms as punishment. A dark cell was a bigger room and was entered by a door while a starvation cell was entered by crawling on the floor through a small opening and then the prisoner stood up. However, it wasn't only one prisoner in a cell at a time. It was four! These cells weren't very big either. They were about 90 cm x 90 cm (~35 in x ~35 in). The prisoners inside were denied food (or light if the prisoner was in a dark cell) for a certain amount of time and then were expected to work the next morning.    

     Then, towards the end of the tour, we came to a building with a tall chimney behind a little hill. I couldn’t even begin to guess what this building was used for, especially after seeing the kitchen that looked nothing like a kitchen with so many chimneys. Then our tour guide told us that it was a gas chamber. I was shocked when I heard that. In all the years that I had learned about or done research on World War II and the Holocaust, not once did I come across any information that mentioned Auschwitz 1 having a gas chamber. I couldn’t believe that in a concentration camp there was still the systematic killing of Jews similar to that of Birkenau.

     In lieu of all the death and sadness, there is a glimmer of goodness. At one point, a prisoner ran away and was successfully able to escape from Auschwitz. As a result, the Nazis tortured 10 other prisoners. However, one man begged not to be killed as he was a father and husband and wanted to live and continue to see his family. So, a Franciscan friar named Maximilian Kolbe offered to take his place. Of course the Nazis were confused, but they ultimately allowed the switch. Maximilian Kolbe gave his life to allow one man to continue to care for his family and have hope that he will survive and witness the liberation of the camp.  



Wednesday, March 30, 2016

Witnessing Auschwitz

The day trip to Wadowice, which was the birth place Pope John Paul the 2nd showed the good aspects that Poland has to offer before transitioning to two concentration camps. When in Wadowice I experienced Palm Sunday mass. I noticed right away that life in Poland was filled with joy. The church is located in the city square. Within the square were local shops and education facilities which Pope John Paul attended. The interesting part of this trip was the high security prison in the center of the town. Other noticeable building was remnants of a synagogue transformed into an active preschool. This preschool is a symbol of new life replacing all the destruction the synagogue endored during the war.

When arriving to both camps, the surrounding structures and land were populated with developing villages. I don’t know how one could come back knowing the cruel behavior that toke place on their land. This just shows that all residence of Poland had to ignore and move on, which says a lot. Before I made the trip to Poland I read a ton of articles describing the culture before, during and after the war. Being able to stand on the ground where the Shoah occurred I couldn’t but now could imagine the amount of pain people were felling as I walked though the camps.

The first camp visited was Auschwitz I, comparing to Birkenau, Auschwitz I has 28 barracks versus over 300 barracks. However, that didn’t mean Auschwitz I wasn’t deadly. This camp involved deaths and destruction of Polish prisoners and later the Jewish population after 1942. Walking though the gates, knowing the original gates where stolen by someone that didn’t respect the events occurred are questioning how the world was affected by the Shoah. There were rules in place, for every prisoner who escaped, ten prisoners would be executed. To account for every prisoner each person was “tagged” and a roll call was conducted twice a day. The prisoners would stand in lines until everyone were fully accounted for. The longest roll call was 19 hours, imagine standing at attention for long periods of time and not knowing if you will be alive end of the roll call. All prisoners worked 12 hours shifts for six days out of the week, when not working they were sleeping however, the sleeping barracks held 1800 and the sleeping areas were constructed from wood. Some prisoners died from the sleeping environment others became ill.

Auschwitz II also known as Birkenau showed the reality of the conditions of every poisoner. Hearing that 50-60 thousand people lived in this camp was not comprehensible by the living quarters seen. Walking from barrack to barrack I couldn’t imagine the prisoners walking with non-existent shoes and cloths day after day. My group and I went to the camp on a gloomy day. The gloom put a day into context for a murky day. Having two coats, pants and water-resistant shoes was a luxury compared to all the prisoners. When it started sleeting on the way to the registration building until know I could feel how they felt, step after step.

Spending time at both concentration camps, I was amazed by the distinction of the barracks and how neatly they were constructed. When I heard the prisoners build all barracks were insane. Both the barracks and camps needed time to plan and heavy machinery to construct in a timely fashion. Its stunning that one could think of constructing these camps with precision. When the prisoners arrived all belongings were sent to a barrack “Canada”, the Nazi’s got this name because of the meaning of richness. When being transported the prisoners were told to bring what you could hold. When they arrived everyone were to get out of the trains, who were alive and form a line. On the way to decision of path they were instructed to drop everything. Lastly, learning the fact that Hitler never once visited any of the ordered camps raised a question: Could the camps been stopped with appropriate backing?

-Elijah Ziobron


I Will Never Forget

Monday, March 28th, 2016                                                                                              

I’ve been back home with my friends and family asking me questions like, “How was Poland...Did you have fun?”  Dr. Procario-Foley told us to be ready to answer these questions.  Of course I had fun with my fellow peers touring Kraków and playing games like “Heads Up” and “Salad Bowl,” but touring Auschwitz was not fun.  Yes, I had a great experience and had one of the best weeks of my life, but fun wasn’t necessarily the right word.  How did I answer the questions about my trip to Poland?  Well, I simply said it was a trip I’ll never forget.  I will forever have the images of the cobblestone grounds, red/orange brick barracks, and the rooms of human hair, luggage, personal belongings, eyeglasses, shoes, and the photograph of the eight year old boy imbedded in my mind.  I don’t need to watch documentaries or look back at the pictures taken on my camera because seeing the camp has affected me in more ways than I could imagine. 
The prisoners' luggage.


The prisoners' belongings.


The prisoners' eyeglasses.

The prisoners' shoes.


Yesterday on Easter Sunday, I spent the day with my family, grandparents, and cousins at my aunt and uncle’s house.  After our meal, my family was eager to hear about my trip and look at my pictures.  I thought I would be able to hold it together while explaining my trip, but I was wrong.  Explaining each picture’s significance to my family brought me back to this past week and gave me flashbacks of each moment.  As I began to cry, naturally my mother and sister did as well.  My mom explained to me that seeing my pictures and hearing my stories was making her feel as if she was there with me.  Even though my mom obviously was not in Poland this past week, she sympathized with me and helped me process my feelings.  I cannot ever imagine losing my mom – she’s my best friend and the first one I call for everything.  Even though I’m twenty-one years old, I still count on my mom for more than I probably should.  So to even think about how young children, toddlers, and even babies were taken away from their mother’s is just so devastating for me to process.  For me to imagine being sent to a different line or different barrack than my mother after exiting a train at Auschwitz is one of the scariest things for me to think about.  Coming home from Poland, I have developed a much deeper appreciation for my life, my religion, and for those whom I love.  I will never take anything for granted – I am truly blessed and forever grateful for this unbelievable, eye-opening experience. 

With all I have learned throughout this past week, I will continue to educate those who are unfamiliar about the Holocaust.  One day, I will teach my children and grandchildren about the Holocaust by telling them the stories of my experience of Auschwitz and showing them my pictures.  Learning about how many people visit Auschwitz daily was just amazing and gives me hope.  Each visitor who attends Auschwitz becomes a witness of the horrific event of the Holocaust.  After visiting Auschwitz, each visitor may choose to do whatever they wish with their experience.  Leaving Auschwitz, I choose to become an advocate for anyone who has gone through a traumatic life experience – especially the survivors of the Holocaust. 

Leaving With Peace

Thursday, March 24th, 2016


Today we went back to Auschwitz 1 for the very last time. Entering the camp, I still had the same peaceful feeling I had when leaving Auschwitz-Birkenau yesterday.  This morning we attended a lecture and had some time before lunch to walk around the camp on our own.  I think today was the hardest day of the week for me.  As I walked around the grounds of Auschwitz 1, I entered barrack number twenty-seven where there were exhibits from Belgium and the Netherlands.  As I walked through the Netherlands exhibit, my chest began to feel extremely heavy and my eyes began to fill up with tears.  A large photograph of an eight year old boy wearing the Star of David pinned on his jacket immediately caught my attention.  The description underneath read that upon arrival to Auschwitz, this innocent eight year old boy was immediately sent to the gas chamber.  I found that I could not stop staring into the little boy’s eyes.  Throughout the week of tours at Auschwitz, I would begin to cry as soon as children were mentioned.  Innocent, naïve, beautiful children with the rest of their lives ahead of them were brought to experience this unbelievable cruelty.  Absolutely no one who suffered or died during the Holocaust deserved the inhumane treatment or horrifying death.  However, I cannot accept or understand how or why anyone could commit these acts on a child.
 
The babies barrack at Auschwitz-Birkenau.

As I walked around the corner, there was an entire wall covered with the names, hometowns, and dates of arrival/death of the victims from the Netherlands.  Every name that caught my attention was from Rotterdam, Netherlands.  I live in Rotterdam, New York – just outside of Albany.  I began to burst out in tears as I saw the names, and I couldn’t help but imagined my own family's name being on the list.  I felt heartbroken for the helpless people whose lives were senselessly lost.

For the past two days we have sat in barracks listening to lectures and engaging in interactive activities.  I sat in the barracks without a worry that at any given moment my life could come to an end.  I was sitting at desks and computers without a worry in my mind, while looking out the windows seeing tour groups pass by.  I thought how fortunate, safe and sound I was, knowing that in this very room, on this same ground, people hopelessly suffered, were cruelly tortured, and died.
Looking out the window at Auschwitz 1.
Reflecting on my experience at Auschwitz.

Exiting the camp for the very last time was bittersweet.  I walked around the camp ground and gathered my thoughts.  I tried to think about the beauty I saw in the rose yesterday.   I remembered what Sister Mary told us the first day we arrived in Poland – “It’s not the 1940’s anymore, its 2016.”  I tried to talk myself out of envisioning the dismal history of the camp and attempted to focus on whatever beauty, in nature or on the grounds of the camp that I could find.  I glanced up to the beautiful blue sky as I felt the strong rays of sunlight beaming on my back.  I looked at the green grass and I heard the birds chirping.  As I walked along the cobblestone pathways, I became a witness along with the hundreds of visitors also touring the camp.  I leave believing that experiencing Auschwitz has given me a greater appreciation of my own life, and because of this experience, I will take nothing for granted.
Glancing at the beautiful blue sky, while taking my few last steps at Auschwitz 1.


 

Can There Be Peace In Auschwitz Today?

Tuesday, March 22nd, 2016

For the past week, I have been experiencing many different emotions: anxiety, happiness, sadness, but also excitement.  I wasn’t nervous about traveling abroad or about being on an airplane.  My anxiety stemmed from the unknown reactions I was going to have during and after my arrival at Auschwitz.  This class has been extremely eye-opening, since I have never been exposed to any of the history of WWII other than high school history class.  On Monday, I felt as though I had a pit in my stomach as I found out a resident from the nursing home I have worked at since my sophomore year of high school had passed away.  Her death was not the only reason I did not feel right – it was also due to knowing that the next day I would be walking the grounds of a place where 6,000,000 people were tortured, murdered or died from starvation and disease. 


"Work Will Set You Free"
Yesterday at Auschwitz 1, we bared witness to just how horrifying and gruesomely the prisoners were treated.  As we entered the camp, the sign read, “Arbeit Macht Frei,” which means, “Work Will Set You Free.”  We learned that this quote was to mislead prisoners and to attempt to obscure the dreadful events happening inside of the camp.  The German Nazi’s concealed from the outside world all the harm they were doing to the Jews and prisoners.  As we learned today at Auschwitz-Birkenau, the Germans destroyed the gas chambers in an attempt to cover up the evidence of their disgusting and inhumane acts.  Walking through the grounds of the camp, I reacted less emotionally than I had imagined.  I found myself tearing up at times, especially when we entered the rooms displaying the luggage, belongings, and especially the hair of the prisoners.  I cannot fathom what the victims went through.  Seeing their hair gave me an indescribable feeling.  I immediately began to think of the loss of individuality and identity the prisoners experienced.  Upon arrival, they were not only tattooed with numbers to replace their names, but they were all given matching clothing, and all men, women, and children’s heads were shaved.
 
One of the many demolished gas chambers.

The steps down to the gas chamber.
Walking through Auschwitz-Birkenau today, I remembered what Alice said from the movie we watched in class – that in Auschwitz, “Each step hurts.”  Today, I experienced that hurt.  Walking around the gas chambers made me feel that same indescribable feeling I had upon seeing the prisoner’s hair.  I could not help but imagine and internalize the horrific aurora that came from the gas chambers.  It made me so sad and I tried to imagine how I would have felt if I had been a young woman taking those steps down into the chamber.  Would I know my life was about to come to an abrupt and gruesome end?  I had to take a few moments for myself and I sat down on the steps of a memorial adjacent to the gas chamber to process my feelings.  At first I felt devastated, but then I saw a long-stemmed, red rose lying on the destroyed wall of the gas chamber.  Suddenly, the rose made me feel peaceful and content.  The rose gave me some satisfaction that there is still life in a place where too many innocent and loving people were killed.
The rose that gave me a sense of peace.


Monday, March 28, 2016

Seeing Europe Through a New Lens- Auschwitz Birkenau by Caroline Farella


    
Carts used to transport victims to the concentration camps
I knew that visiting Auschwitz-Birkenau was going to be difficult.  I reminded myself that if just learning about the experience of the camps was taking a toll on me I could only imagine the horror of living it each day.  I thought perhaps my second tour would be easier since I had already heard and seen so much devastation.  Sadly, my theory, along with the theories I carried with me to Poland, were wrong. I got through yesterday at Auschwitz 1.  So I knew I could get through today.  I was confident the second day would be easier but I was wrong.  I started out the morning with a calm spirit. When we arrived at the camp we were told we were going to go on a little detour before we entered.  The whole walk there I was chatting with my friends but I was quickly silenced when I looked up and in front of me stood cattle cars.  They were the wooden transportation for the victims journeying to their gruesome fate.  I stared at the carts and felt my relaxed mood rapidly diminish.  People were shoved in that car, had no room and no knowledge of where they were going.  I thought about how scary the unknown must have been.  I thought back to the valuables people brought with them because they had no idea what was in store for them.  Some people did not even make it to see the camp alive because the conditions of the carts were so poor.  I turned away from the carts and we made our way back to the camp.  My confidence that this day would be easier was brutally shot down when the first stop on our tour was to a guard tower that overlooked the entire camp.  It was bigger than I could have ever imagined. I looked out onto the acres of land, dozens of barracks, and multiple watchtowers.  I was in shock about the amount of land that was provided to exterminate innocent people.  We had entered a malicious sanctuary of death.  The ultimate goal of the land I was looking out upon was to make sure no one that exited those cattle cars and entered the gates of the camp came out alive.
Barrack where the prisoners slept
                             
Throughout the tour our guide had us all take turns reading stories from Holocaust survivors in the areas in which the memories were from.  The housing conditions for the people would be inhumane even for a street rat.  The walls were made of thin wood, there were gaping holes at the top which let cold air seep in, the ground was muddy and the air was damp.  The bathrooms allowed for no privacy and the seats were close together and as cold as ice.  I told myself again not to over think anything but the statements from the survivors made everything too personal to not mourn over.  We then walked into another barrack in which I was asked to read the statement from a survivor that had once lived in one.  She explained how horrid, unhygienic and infested the barracks were.  My heart raced as each painful word rolled off my tongue.  My eyes couldn’t fight the tears any longer.  I was so angry that blameless people had to suffer so much for no valid reason.  I felt guilty myself that there was nothing I could do that would change the events that took place on the very soil I stood on.   But nothing compared to my intense emotions as when I looked around the barrack and saw graffiti of insensitive people that signed their names on the walls.  I told the tour guide that I could not believe people would come here and have the audacity to sign their name in a place where hundreds of human beings suffered.  The guide made me realize that the disrespectful acts that I saw were nothing compared to the swastikas she had found while giving a tour last year.  I was disgusted about how inconsiderate people could be.  I was so distraught and I was tempted to paint over each scratch myself.  Hadn’t the victim’s received enough cruelty and disrespect?  I felt all the emotions I was trying to keep down inside me rush up all at once. 
Plaque remembering the victims of the Holocaust

Suddenly in all of this darkness there was a light peering through again.  Before me were beautiful plaques from all different countries and in multiple languages that stood in solidarity.  The purpose of these plaques is to serve as a reminder to those who visit this “decent into hell” that they have been warned about what humanity is capable of.  Throughout the remainder of the tour I held onto these words, all around me were signs of the worst reflection of humanity.  At the end of our tour we had a service to pray for the victims that had perished in the Holocaust.  The sun shined through the gray skies and the gusts of wind served as a reminder to me that the Holy Spirit surrounds us. I have always believed the good outweighs the bad and the righteous people win in the end.  I couldn’t let myself believe the people that come to the camp to take selfies and draw insensitive things were going to stop people who came to honor the victims and had pure intentions.  I could not let myself accept that Hitler and the Nazis won the sick game that was the Holocaust.   Our service ended and we made our way out of the camp.  In the distance we heard singing.  I thought I was imagining the angelic voices at first but then before my eyes were hundreds of Jewish people singing and holding up the Star of David proudly.  The bad did not come out victorious.  Goodness had made it through.  Hopefulness still prevails.  The survivors and their descendants are living proof that evil did not win that war.  

The First Days In Poland

Polish crest eagle

After a lot of waiting and a couple of plane rides, we finally made it to Poland. Initially, I was expecting Poland to be more like suburban U.S., but just spaced out. Little did I know that while it was suburban, it was also quite rural. The small cluster of houses and large amounts of open or farm lands was quite surprising. I was amazed at how peaceful and serene it was. Even when people were outside working or travelling to wherever they needed to go, the serenity was unaffected. Right then and there, I knew that this was going to be an amazing trip.

The first two days in Poland have flown by and have truly been extraordinary. We traveled around Oświęcim to learn about the past as well as the present and Wadowice to learn about one of the most significant popes in history.

We spent the first day in Oświęcim and it enforced my respect towards the challenges others face. We visited the only remaining Jewish cemetery and synagogue as well as a Jewish museum. At the cemetery, we learned that the Nazis, during their attempt to eradicate Judaism from the town, destroyed the cemetery. They caused the destruction and dislocation of the headstones, which when recovered were not necessarily put back in the right place. A man named Szymon Kluger initiated the effort to restore the cemetery. Thus, the headstones no longer commemorate the memory of the person buried in that particular location, but rather honor the memory of the events that occurred and the people that are buried there. No one was buried in the cemetery once the war broke out in 1939 until 2000 when Szymon Kluger passed away. We also visited the only remaining synagogue in the town connected to a museum. In addition to learning about some of the history of the town and that the war should have destroyed the synagogue, we learned that because the synagogue was used for storage, it was able to survive.   

The second day was uplifting and inspirational. We traveled to Wadowice to learn about Pope John Paul II. We visited the elementary and secondary schools that he attended as a child as well as the museum that also contains part of his house. We learned of his struggles as a child and that he was able to overcome them to achieve his goal to become the Pope. We learned about his respect for the various religious beliefs and ways he used to embrace them. He illustrated that it is possible for people of different faiths to get along and be respectful people towards one another. Additionally, we attended a mass since it was Palm Sunday. We experienced the veneration that the Polish people have for Pope John Paul II and all the good that he did for the Catholic faith. Finally, we ended the day with a lecture from Fr. Manfred. He spoke to us about the different perspectives of the Germans, Jews, Polish and Russians during World War II and their influence on their actions in relation to various religious beliefs.

All in all, the first two days in Poland were quite exciting!