We traveled about 25 minutes northwest from Munich to the town of Dachau today for a tour of the Dachau Concentration Camp Memorial. Opened in 1933 shortly after Adolf Hitler came to power, Dachau was the first concentration camp in occupied Europe, and served as the model for subequent camps such as Auschwitz and Buchenwald. Nearly 32,000 people were murdered at Dachau. The weather was quite symbolic as cold wind burned our noses and ears and whipped through our hair. We toured the entire camp, and walked through the bunkers and gas chambers. It was sobering, educational and uncomfortable all at the same time. An eery stillness filled the gas chambers as we walked through them. For me personally, phyiscally being on the property put all the things I have learned about the Holocaust into perspective. I looked down at my feet as we walked across the massive open square where daily roll calls were made, and I kept thinking of who had been standing where I was 73 years ago... what was their name, what happened to them, what must they have been feeling on a miserably cold day like this in 1938?
Being face to face with such autrocity, albeit some 70 years later, was surreal. Having spent the last three weeks traveling to beautiful places, my priviledged position in this world was put in perspective. Itś not easy living out of a backpack and sleeping in a different bed each night, and yes, it is annoying to pay to use public bathrooms, and have random roommates who snore, but standing infront of the watch towers at Dachau suddenly opened my eyes to where I am, both physically and historically in the world. I have learned that traveling makes you feel very, very small in the world. In the grand scheme of things, my humble and simple life in sweet little Bellingham, Washington is not the epicenter of the world, though it feels that way sometimes. Our lives at home become trivial as you watch people walk down the sidewalks in cities like Paris, Florence and Munich, and you think about what their lives are like in comparision to your own. My existance in the world is tiny. I felt this way as I stood infront of the massive "maintenance" building at Dachau where prisioners were registered, their heads shaved, their rights and identities dissolved.
Touring Dachau made us feel blessed. There have been several times along our journey where we feel blessed, or lucky. Those emotions have generally been stirred by the amazing people we have met, or when we looked out across the Mediterranean Sea for the first time, or when we tasted really delicious, and buttery pastries in Paris. We are lucky to travel, we are lucky to see the world, we are lucky to be here, we are lucky to have each other. You cannot help but feel a great deal of sympathy and compassion, and for me personally, remorse, when you think about the victims of the Holocaust. I cannot fathom what life must have been like. My brain does not process that degree of suffering. And, for that reason I feel blessed. Our tour guide was adamant in communicating that Dachau victims do not want us to feel sorry for them, though it seems impossible not to. However, the other side to that coin is that we are also blessed to take part in and experience the educational component of such an evil period in history. There are lessons to be learned and we were lucky enough to stand face to face with such a lesson today.
On a more positive note, we are planning to snuggle up at the hostel tonight with big mugs of hot chocolate. The cold weather is actually quite enjoyable through the windows of our room :) It is great to have a change of pace. Jamie departs tomorrow morning so we are looking forward to a quiet night just the three of us, reminicing about all the great times we have had over the past three weeks. Lots of laughs, and so many memories in such a short period of time. This has been a really unique and incredibly lovely journey so far, and today was just another page in our book of experiences.
Sending love home to the states! Emily and I are off to Rome tomorrow night, so we will keep you posted on our adventures. Love, Kels
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