Day 7

         Today was a very intense day. We woke up at about 6:30 and left for the train at 7:30. Today was the day we visit Mauthausen, one of the concentration camps in Austria and one of the only ones that was preserved mostly how it was. We arrived at the train station where there was plaque that stated that this was where all those who were imprisoned at Mauthausen started their trek to the camp. As we walked, we saw quarry’s where workers were forced to work and I tried to envision those people working there. When we finally arrived, everyone’s legs were very tired and I was ready to experience this memorial to the tragedy of the Holocaust. On a side note I have learn that the Holocaust is no longer the correct term for what happened. There is a movement to now call it the Shoah so I will be calling what was the called Holocaust “The Shoah” in this blog as it is now the more accurate term.  As we started touring the camp, we split up into smaller groups and it ended up that it was Gabe, my roommate, Carmen, the TA, and I in one group. We began by going to the main gate of the camp and I saw the way that Jews were trucked into the camp. What I did not know was the amazing amount of memorials that were constructed outside of the camp. This road also overlooked the main Quarry where Jews and the others enslaved there were forced to work. I had mixed emotions ranging from sadness to curiosity at this point and I tried to read every memorial if it was possible but I also did not want to run out of time when looking at the camp so we decided to move to the gate of the camp and go through it. We saw the barracks where people slept, the wailing wall, where knew arrivals were forced to stand chained against the wall sometimes for days depending on the mood of the guards. We saw the Kitchen, Laundry, and other barracks. One barrack, Barrack 5, was called the “Jewish Block.” This was very powerful to me after what I learned. This was the barrack where most of the Jewish prisoners were held and killed shortly afterword. Then we arrived at the most heart wrenching part of the camp. We arrived at the crematorium, execution area, and gas chambers. As we went into the crematorium, I was picturing what had happened there and I realized I had an expression of disgust on my face without even realizing it. As we went through the rooms where peoples bodies were mutilated by taking off their tattoos and breaking out gold crowns, etc, and the room where bodies were piles to the ceiling, I began to feel a mix of emotions ranging from disgust to sadness to anger and many more in between.

           What finally got to me and almost made me break down in tears was the execution room and gas chambers. In fact, Carmen decided she could not handle it and waited for us outside. We saw the iron girder where thousands of Jews were hung in the most humiliating way possible. Finally, we moved to the gas chambers, which, as the stories I’ve heard said, did look like shower rooms, and as I walked into it, I was overcome by emotions and had to step back. I was standing in the room where at least 10,200 people were systematically murdered. I realized that I was covering my mouth in awe and disgust without even realizing it and this moment was one of the most powerful moments at the camp for me. Almost 200,000 people, mostly Jews, were deported to Mauthausen. What was more disturbing to me was that I felt that there was a lack of focus on the fact that it was Jews that were being killed. Around 100,000 people died at Mauthausen and it seemed to focus more on the fact that they were people and not on the fact that they were being killed just for the fact that they were Jewish. We toured the rest of the camp but this time I had in the chambers was the most powerful part of the experience for me. Hopefully others in my class will comment on what was the most powerful part for them or their thoughts on our visit in general. After we all met up, we took a cab back to the train station and then took the train back to Vienna. This was an all-day excursion so we ended our day with dinner at an Austrian Restaurant and rapped up our class part of the trip by talking a bit about our experience and Carl gave out “Awards” that he definitely came up with on the spot. Overall, a very long but good day.  I wish I could say more in words but I willlet pictures do some of the talking for me.

On the train to the camp

The rails of the stop we got off at and where prisoners started their trek

Gabe walking across the rails

The train station where we got off

A plaque that stated that this was the spot all prisoners started their journey at to finally arrive at Mauthausen

Everything was covered with vines

The gloomy weather fit the atmosphere of this trip. This is a picture of our class on our way to the camp

This was where carl pointed out the first quarry that prisoners were forced to work in

Another quarry

On our way, I saw this view and had to take a picture

Almost there...

Part of the trail

Finally Arriving at the camp

Finally when we arrived, this was one of the first things I saw

The first of many memorials

A Hungarian memorial

The road that leads to the front gate. Thousands of Jews and
                 other prisoners were forced to march through this very way.

A Jewish memorial.

One of the memorials plaque

The front gate

The wailing wall. New arrivals were forced to stand against this wall chained to it for hours and sometimes days depending on the mood of the guards

The sign outside of the Barracks

All of the different badges prisoners were forced to wear

Two of the still standing barracks

A disturbing photo that was displayed in the barrack

These are the very same beds from the previous photo and this is the room it was taken in

The entrance to the crematorium. This was where the trip started to get more powerful for me.

The entrance to the execution rooms

The dissection table where they cut off tattoos and broke of golden fillings in teeth of the dead

This iron bar may not look like much but it was used to hang hundreds maybe thousands of  innocent human beings.

The entrance to the Gas Chamber

Inside the gas chamber

Two if the ovens in the crematorium

A photo displayed in one of the buildings

A memorial plaque right inside the front gate

A view from the S.S. guard quarters

Another powerful memorial

I walked a little farther past the last memorial and came upon this view. It is amazing the contrast of what was happening in the camp and the natural beauty around it. This little bird watching tower has been through some of the worst times in our history.