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| Railroad tracks in Birkenau |
When I applied and considered the trip for Poland, us being
able to tour the concentration camps was one of the main reasons why I wanted
to be able to experience this. I have always been fascinated by the Holocaust
and wanted to learn more about why and how something catastrophic like this
could occur. Auschwitz-Birkenau housed over 80,000 people in the camp although
the aim was to hold about 100,000 but wasn’t completed because of the camo
being liberated. Before Birkenau became a concentration camp, the land was a
village occupied by locals who were all eventually kicked out. A main reason
that we learned about why the Nazis chose to put the camp here was because
there were railroad lines created and in place way before, giving them easy access.
Around 500,000 people were sent to this railroad line and most of those who
were murdered were Polish Jews. I had already had a lot of knowledge about the
Holocaust because of all the reading and movies I have watched on my own time,
I learned so much more new information
than I expected. Although at Auschwitz
there was a lot of information given because it has since been turned into a
museum, Birkenau was raw. We had visited Auschwitz the day before and had a guided
tour, but Birkenau had a different feel. Seeing the camp in person was so
different than I had expected, it looked like all the photos I had always seen
but I couldn’t believe that I was walking where harmless people were murdered for
no reason other than they were thought to not fit the “Aryan” race. Most of the
people brought to Birkenau were killed in the gas chambers but some without any
documentation, so although we have numbers it could also be much higher than we’ll
ever know. One thing that stuck out to me was when we were told about the
Sonderkammando. This was a group of prisoners, mainly Jewish, who were forced
with their own death to aid in the disposal of the bodies from the gas
chambers. 450 of those in the Sonderkammando revolted and destroyed a gas
chamber on the camp, after this occurred 250 prisoners from the camp were then
shot as the punishment for what they had done. You can sit and question all day
why people would revolt or go against the Nazi’s knowing that it would result
in some other innocent prisoner being killed. But, the fact is they were
nothing more than scared for lives and unless we could walk a day in their shoes
choosing to be “selfish” may have been the only option to them if it meant
possibly becoming free. Something I questioned a lot, which I could only
imagine the victims of the Holocaust were questioning as well, was where was
God during this time? But, I don’t think there is an answer to that question at
all.
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It has now been almost two months since our trip to Poland
had begun and ended. I’ve been trying to figure out how to put into words my
experience during this trip. Although it was overwhelming at times, I know it
was something not everyone gets to experience. Going into this trip I had a lot
of expectations and worries, like how would going to the concentration camps
make me feel? I have always been interested in the Holocaust since I read The Diary of Anne Frank when I was in
elementary school. I also have always had a desire to visit Auschwitz and
Birkenau for a few years now, so when I realized that Iona offered this course
it was something I was extremely interested in. Looking back on the day we left
for Oswiecim, Poland, I was super excited but also nervous. I had looked over
the itinerary for the week and started to prepare myself for what was to come. I’m
not a religious person, so after hearing about some of the tours I was a bit
anxious. Although I didn’t really know what to expect from this trip I’m extremely
grateful that I was given this opportunity, one that many people don’t have. The
whole week that we had spent In Poland was something that I could never fully
explain to someone who didn’t experience it first-hand. When we arrived back
from our trip, all everyone seemed to ask was… “How was visiting Auschwitz? Was
is scary? What was it like? How was Poland? What did you do?”. But, I couldn’t
give anyone a complete answer. I thought I would come back and be able to tell
everyone who asked just exactly what I did experience on this trip, but I couldn’t.
I still can’t find the words to explain what it was like to walk on the same
ground as millions of Jews did to their unknown death. It was eerily calm and
peaceful when we visited both camps and thinking back it’s such a weird thing to
say because of all the murder that happened at one time there. You heard the
birds chirping and you saw the grass growing where it used to not grow. I don’t
think that I would ever revisit Auschwitz-Birkenau, I feel as that it is a place
to visit once to give your respects. But, I too am now a witness and it’s my
job to make sure that this piece of history is never forgotten about. 
