Dachau Concentration Camp

you can read the books and see the movies, but it becomes real when you touch it with your hands and see it with your eyes.

I was surprised by how close some of the neighborhood houses were to the concentration camp. In the back area where there were ovens, gas chambers and where the dead were piled, there was a neighboring house which would have had a clear view into that area from their second story window. Surely, the people living right next to the camp during WWII knew what was going on. Seeing that house in such close proximity to such horror, and realizing that they likely said and did nothing, was a stark reminder of the “banality of evil”.

I live in Munich and I’m always amazed at how voyeristic people can be. If you do go, please demonstrate respect (not wearing tube tops and flip flops).

Unfortunately I really recognized how ridiculous and ignorant people can be when an American family was having their children pose and smile in the bunker, while other children were playing hide and go seek and having races up the middle of the camp. If children aren’t old enough to understand or behave, it might not be the place for them.

This is a sad and depressing place that takes a lot out of you. While it is an educational place, it is also unfortunately a serious matter that demonstrates what people are capable of. The only reason I am for leaving it open is because some people have to see things to believe it.

I visited the camp this last June. The weather was awful. It was pouring freezing rain (even the locals said it was unusual) and the wind literally blew me off my feet several times. My companions and I were soaked to the bone and and couldn’t keep from shivering, even in the museum. I stuffed paper towels in my socks and hood to keep the cold fabric off my skin. It was an absolutely miserable experience – and because of that, it was a life-changing experience. If I was that miserable as a free tourist in June, how miserable would I have been as a prisoner in the middle of winter, standing in all sorts of weather for hours during role call?

I visited Dachau when I was about 14. It was overcast and a bit rainy which made the experience that much more morbid. I think it was a great thing to see and understand but it makes you really feel for what those poor people went through. If you have the chance to see for yourself, I definitely recommend.