Sachsenhausen

Yesterday, Bucky and I had a sobering experience visiting Sachsenhausen, a concentration camp about 50 minutes north of where we live. I was surprised to see  a neighborhood right outside the camps doors, with lovely homes, playgrounds and schools. It just seemed so odd compared to what was beyond the walls, but I learned that the neighborhood has been there since even before the camp was built. 

We opted for the audio tour (only 7 Euros for two devices and a map) which was a smart move. The camp is HUGE and it took hours for us to walk through it. The audio tour shared details with us about the buildings and spaces, but also the experiences of the prisoners. It was moving and quite overwhelming.

I would love to write more about the experience but I will not do it justice.

The entrance

The original wall around the camp

The gate into the main part of the camp


Looking out as a guard would have



A memorial



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

First hike in the Black Forest

Image
The area we live includes the Black Forest , which (according to Wikipedia) "is a  large  forested   mountain range  in south-west  Germany , in the state of  Baden-Württemberg , bounded by the  Rhine  valley to the west and south and close to the borders with France and Switzerland. [1]  It is the source of the  Danube  and  Neckar  rivers." It is a popular place for hiking and exploring.  Gengenbach is within the Black Forest so we knew we needed to adventure into it one day while we were there. I downloaded an app called 'komoot' and found lots of trails nearby. We love a loop and found one that was just a couple of hours and set out.  It was beautiful and nice and cool in the shade. There were a few locals on the trail with their dogs, but we were alone much of the time. In the middle of the hike, we found a pool that seems to have been created just for the hikers. The last mile or so of the hike, the woods w...
Read more

Finding the source of the Seine

Image
Bucky read The Seine: The River that made Paris by Elaine Sciolino a couple of years ago and has wanted to find the source of the Seine ever since. So, guess what we did? Yep, we decided to go find it. It is located in Source Seine, about 30 kilometers northwest of Dijon. Interestingly, this spot has been owned by the city of Paris since 1864. We joked about texting Lucie when we arrived there and saying we were in Paris (which we were), but decided against it since we were still three hours away by car! The source was really pretty - very peaceful and powerful. We captured some of the pure water of the origin of the Seine in our water bottle and drank it! We also threw coins into the grotto and made wishes!  We ended up staying the night in Logis Relais de la Souce Hotel  which was lovely. We had dinner there that night and it was a little too fancy for us, but it was a fun experience. The town where the hotel is located, however, was the real find. Saint-Seine-l'Abbaye ...
Read more

Weekend in Paris

Image
Lucie recently received a promotion at work and quickly started looking for a one bedroom apartment! She has been living in her charming studio for two and a half years and she and Louise were ready for some more space. She found a lovely place in the same arrondissement (the 2nd) and was persistent with the landlord about making it happen. She received the exciting news that she got the place while we were in Eygalieres and, of course, Bucky and I offered to come to Paris to help her move. The move took place over the weekend of May 14th which also happened to be my birthday AND Mother's day. The original plan was for Lucie to sleep at the new place and for me and Bucky to sleep at the studio. The landlord at the new place, however, was slow to get the apartment ready so while en route to Paris, I searched for a place for Bucky and me to stay. I had always wanted to stay at Hotel Bachaumont, a pretty hotel right by Lucie's studio and they had space so I made plans to spend the...
Read more