Dachau

So i decided to wait awhile before posting about my experiences in Dachau. I think it took a while for things to settle in my mind. It was really sort of shocking, I thought, because i felt like we walked right off the bus and into the concentration camp, all in a matter of a few minutes.

When we first got inside the metal gate, it was really hard for me to imagine the camp as it was during its use. With all of the tourists around, it felt more like a movie set, and I had trouble picturing it as it had once been. Once we began the tour with Mark (who I thought was a FANTASTIC guide), however, I began to get really emotional.

Going through the barracks and the rest of the camp was horrifying, but for me the worst part of the tour was seeing the crematoriums and the gas chamber. Walking through the gas chamber, even though it was not technically used for mass extermination, absolutely sent chills up my spine.

I really thought the video at the end put everything into persepctive. Seeing the actual images and videos of the camp after touring it was really difficult to watch, but it made the rooms and places we saw seem much more real.