Day 10 - Auschwitz/Bickenau

This is the most interesting (and disturbing) day of the whole trip. We first had breakfast in the basement of our hotel in this little inlet.

We had a driver come and pick us up and take us to Auschwitz where we joined a group tour. Words can not really describe this day, nor pictures but I'll do my best. By the way, the kids did fine during the tours of the concentration camps.

Auschwitz was broken down into three camps...Auschwitz I, Auschwitz II (aka Bickenau) and Auschwitz III (Monowice...a chemical plant no longer there).

We first started at Auschwitz I.

The day started with a 15 minute video about the Holocaust with some very graphic pictures of when the Soviets came and and what they found. This picture is a sculpture outside the theatre where we saw the 15 minute movie.
The gate with the famous words...."Work Brings Freedom". Which of course was a lie.

Electric fence at Auchwitz I.

Bunker where Nazi would go if they thought they were under attack.

On the grounds. We each wore a headset so we could hear the tour guide. The tour guide is the woman with the sunglasses facing us. Chuck and Mackinzi are on the left.

More grounds. Inside these building are the artifacts and pictures. A urn full of ashes, human hair (by the tons), luggage (by the tons), hair brushes/tooth brushes (by the tons), cloths, jewish prayer robes, children cloths, etc.

This is a square where they shot prisoners, hung them, and/or tortured them. The building on the right is where a lot of medical experiments and torture occured.


This is the gas chamber/crematorium standing at Auschwitz I. We walked through there. Approx 60,000 people lost their lives in this building.

The second part of the tour was at Auschwitz II (more commonly known as Bickenau).

Guard area where trains would come through.


Wooden barracks built by the prisoners. Only a few are left standing.

Bathrooms

Bunks where up to 10 individuals slept on one bunk.

Women gave birth on these slabs in the middle.

This is where the train would stop and the selection process would start. Women and children (mostly) would go to the gas chamber and strong men and children would be selected to work to death.

The gas chambers and crematorium were positioned in front of those trees. Once the people got off the train, they would walk that way thinking they would be taking a shower.

Ruins of the biggest gas chambers where millions of Jews, political prisoners, homosexuals, Jehovah Witnesses and many, many others went to there death. The entrance below is where they thought the "shower' was but was actually the gas chamber.

Human ash ponds.

Those white dots are not pebbles by Kinzi shoe, they are human bone fragments.

Ruins of the gas chamber/crematorium.

Memorial at Bickenau.

I'll have many more picture once I get a copy of Don's as well. He took some pictures inside the buildings. I'll post those when I get them.

After we finished the tours and went back to the hotel to eat, we decided to go geocaching. On the way there, we walked through the square where there is a lot of activity going on. There were people in some freaky costumes. Here's one...Kinzi is making friends. You give him 1 zloty and he'll let you take picture. Nathan wouldn't go near him.

Kids hanging out on a statue.

We went geocaching by this mound. Long, long, long, long, long walk.