concentration camps
Do locations where disasters and horrible events interest you? Would you willingly travel to a location where hundreds of people met their maker, in the interest of seeing history?
I would. The question came up recently when my husband and I were talking about visiting Germany or Poland. My ideal trip would include a day at one of the concentration camps, like Auschwitz-Birkenau or Bergen-Belsen. I’ve always been interested in that dark time in history, and I would have to visit one of the sites to see it all with my own two eyes, and to pay my respects to the thousands of people who were slaughtered. I’d want to see the camps to remind myself of what can happen when the wrong people gain power. When the contestants on Survivor knelt at the entrance (death gate) of Auschwitz II-Birkenau, I found myself crying in my living room. I can only imagine how moving it would be to see it in person.
My husband thinks it’s too depressing and it’s not something he would be interested in seeing.
Who do you agree with? Would you want to see something like this on a vacation? Why, or why not?
Personally, I think as a human race, we are obligated to make visits such as this. Is it depressing? Yes, it is. But it is the history of humanity, and it is real, and must not be forgotten. When I was in Germany 6 years ago, we visited Dachau, and I will never forget it. Walking through the bunkhouse, the museum, and the crematorium that are there was haunting… and powerful. I think we owe it to those who died there to never forget what happened.
I agree with Jennifer. It is important to remember how our world came to be what it is now… even the stuff that is difficult to stomach. I visited the National Cemetery here in town for Memorial Day and that isn’t a happy place to see, but a great reminder of how our country was shaped.