I slept in longer today than yesterday, waking up at 5:00 AM. We needed to be showered, fed and ready to go by 7:30 AM. I figured out the hot water thing so we were able to have hot showers this morning...which was nice because it was cooler this morning. Michal and Pavel were prompt. We loaded into their car and off we went to Poland. Due to an international motorcycle race in Brno, we had to take a longer route, bypassing Brno. We arrived at Auswitch around 2:00 PM. Very long driving day for all of us. We stopped once at a KFC close to the Poland border. The KFC here only had chicken strips or wings. They had some sandwiches but other than that...not much else. It was good....but had a limited menu.
Auschwitch....wow. There are two camps here, Auschwitch I and Auschwitz - Birkenau. We arrived at Auschwitch I. But the tour lines were really long. So we asked someone what was going on. The young girl said that tours ended at 3:00 PM and after that everyone got in free. She also said that we could take the free shuttle bus to Auschwitz 1- Birkenau. So we did that first. It was amazing to see the size of this camp. At its high points it held 90,000 prisoners. But 1.4 million people were killed here. Their bodies, as we know, were cremated and their ashes were strewn in the fields. Many of the wooden barracks are destroyed with just the chimney's standing. We saw the 'hospitals' where human tests were performed. We saw the underground chambers where people were led believing that they were going to be cleaned and sanitized, then led to gas chambers where they were killed. Their bodies were generally cremated and their ashes distributed in the fields around us. It was a bit overwhelming to imagine what transpired at this place. I was really amazed by the size of the Birkenaur camp. I am more amazed at what one human is willing to do to another.
While walking around the camp, I noticed 2 girls and a young man coming at me. I quickly noticed that the two girls were the same girls that sat by us on the train ride from Plzen to Prague. What a small world to see them again some 5+ hours away from Prague in Poland. We had no idea that we were both going to Auschwitch. Crazy....
We are now headed back to Brno, which will be a 2.5 hour drive. We will be staying at their home tonight. They have been such gracious hosts!
Well, the drive was a bit longer than planned. There was something on the freeway that brought cars to a halt. At the same time, Pavel and Michal saw that we were almost out of gas and began to sweat a little bit. At the first exit that we crawled to, we got off the highway. But finding a gas station was a different story. We saw parts of the Czech Republic that were definitely unplanned. But eventually we found the station before we ran out. Whoo.....
We arrived at their home at 8:45 PM and met Michal's Mother and Brother for the first time. We also met his brother's girlfriend too. Such wonderful,people. What a beautiful home they have. Ivanna (Michal's mother) had worked for days to prepare a marvelous meal. It was so good...Pork Scnitzel, a flattened chicken that was breaded and fried, breaded carp, a chicken in a bath(sauce), potatoes, soup, salad (both potatoe and green). I think it is safe to say that it was fit for a king. We were and have been treated as royalty. I hope they would come to Utah and let us return the favor someday. I will get pictures tomorrow of their home and post them at that time. Another nice, but long day here.
Auschwitz pictures:
Entrance sign to parking by Auschwitz 1...
Auschwitz 1 Barracks.....
Auschwitz1- Birkenau Entrance. The trains rolled through here with prisoners.....
Remaining wooden barracks....
After they unloaded, they were evaluated to see if they were strong enough to work. If they were not, they were sent down this road to be 'sanitized' (gassed).
Toilets....
Part of the crematorium. When the Nazis realized that their work was being discovered, they tried to destroy as much of this camp as possible. They dynamited these structures.
Entrance to under ground gassing chambers....
Location where ashes were sprinkled....
New born babies were tested and killed here.....
Many guard shacks lined the fence line...I was amazed how big this Birkenau camp was. It was huge. Amazing part of history that we should never forget!
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