A note: This is a rather serious post, we noticed upon reading it before posting it. I think it's necessarily so, noting the subject matter.
We had wanted to visit, or, felt the need to visit, a concentration camp at some point during our cumulative month in Germany. We had gone to Dachau, about 20 minutes by S-bahn train outside Munich during our time there in June, but it was closed since it was Monday. We decided to go back another time.
We went Tuesday am, before heading to the airport to fly to London. The first time we went we were struck by the proximity of the camp to the City of Dachau and to Munich. It's right in the community. We also learned about the city of Dachau -- how before being known for the hideousness, it was actually a place where a lot of artists flocked because of its beauty. In 1900, it's said that that one in every ten people in the streets of Dachau was a painter.
My grandfather, my mom's dad Herbert Berkovitz was in the U.S. Army during WWII and was among those who liberated Dachau. He never talked about it and after going there, I understood why. What to say? There were images of the deaths the liberators encountered -- nothing you could prepare for emotionally, certainly.
The museum exhibits were really well done - they had bits about the lead-up, the history of the camp as a factory, who was in the camp (early on it was who they called political prisoners. Then later it became thosethey saw as a threat to the state.) It then documented the later atrocities and eventually (certainly not soon enough) the liberation.
It was a sobering experience. One which, at the time I did not want to have, but which I thought was important to visit and which I'm glad I did. I said to Troy during the visit that I reckon that every world leader upon inauguration should have to visit such a memorial site and camp, as a reminder of what greed, power and hatred can rear. With the current state of the world, I saw some definite parallels with the early history, as told in a timeline of how the Nazi regime and Hitler came to power. (ie the underlying needs of a society, the desire for domestic economic stability, nationalism, political parties, voting blocks, etc.) I can almost understand the various elements which led up to the war and such events, but can't get my head around how people can be so inhuman to one another.
Even understanding collective behavior, a bit, and even fear for ones self, duress and brainwashing, I can't still understand how people could succumb to commiting the violence, the hatred or willingness to commit such evils.
It was an altogether sad experience. But one which I think was important and which I "recommend" to those visiting the area.
That was pretty much the last thing we did in Germany. It strangely, perhaps, didn't change my feelings that we had in the previoius months -- enjoying the food, the culture, the eco-awareness, the artists, the landscape and the people. It was a part of the history -- something to be reconciled with the history the nation is currently forging. Something hard, but worth doing.
I think that our German trip experiences were a recognition of history, both global and familial, and a merging of history with a future for the nation which hopefully looks brighter. I hope that Germany's history, and the German people's recognition of it can help the world avoid the atrocities which it committed and which can help others learn from its lessons.
We brought the camera in case we wanted to take photos, but individually we each decided not to take any. Seeing those taking photos, I, myself, was reminded of the photo-takers at the World Trade Center site, who smile at the camera with the pit in the background. They confuse me -- "Why are they smiling?" "Why do they need photos?" Everyone's different, I guess. For me it wasn't something I needed to say I went to, to show photos I had been there, it was more of something I needed to experience. I'm only writing about it, since we made a commitment to write about all that we did on the trip.
