Czech us out

We made our way to Prague from Berlin, which proved to be a long, beautiful journey. Czechoslovakia is gorgeous. I'm not sure if it was the spring weather but I (Gabe) loved it. There were beautiful rivers with small hamlets running on either side. While some areas were filled with derelict buildings, it is very hard to ignore the unbelievable natural beauty surrounding the place. Upon arrival we quickly exchanged our money at the train station and began to walk towards our hostel. Prague is big…very big in fact. The walk took us as what Mr. Cruz would describe to be a "cool minute". I (Amanda) would say though that Sir Toby's was a reward worth our efforts. The place was pretty wonderful with spacious accommodations, high ceilings, hard wood floors, and comfortable beds. The kitchen was also fully equipped and had a unique style that I could see us replicating should we ever create a kitchen of our own. 

We took a free tour advertised by the hostel in an attempt to get to know the area. We met in the Old Town Square and were immediately drawn to an old man singing "Ave Maria" while occasionally stopping to break into alternating tenor saxophone and trombone solos. He was a really cool guy and we enjoyed his talent for about 20 minutes while we waited for the tour to start. In the end we dropped a few coins into his saxophone case and his companion gave us a postcard with the musician on the front. After approaching the tour guides we were told that his name is Vladimir Pinta and he is the longest running street musician in Prague, he's been playing since he was three.

Our first stop on the tour was the astronomical clock which ranks number 2 on the most disappointing attractions in Europe, right behind the Mona Lisa. Fortunately I (Gabe) had never heard of the clock and the tour guide made a good sell. The clock has a ton of interesting features and gives time in ways I didn't think possible. Some of the more interesting things are time of year, what phase the moon is in, the amount of daylight left in the day, and when an ellipse is visible from somewhere on earth.

Next we toured some of the backstreets through Prague; We visited the last standing building where Mozart had performed, as well as some of the more beautiful examples of baroque and gothic architecture Eastern Europe has to offer. 

Our guide, a native Czech, told us about a number of the inventions his people had created over time including soft contact lenses, sugar cubes, and beer. After the long tour we wanted to go and experience the third of those inventions by visiting a bar my brother Dan had recommend called The Little Goat; unfortunately, it was closed and we didn't get a chance. 

We decided that instead we would pick up some groceries and I would cook us up some food while tasting the beer the hostel had on tap. 

Overall, Prague was a city where at times it seemed to be exploding with energy, while alternatively at times it felt deflated and sad. Like Poland, the transition of modes of production from a command economy to a market system have really gouged certain areas. The city centre thrives while the countryside dies was a mantra that kept running through my head. 

Tourism is one of the reasons for this but another is the mentality of the people living in the country. A while later after leaving Prague we were in Budapest and I conversed with a Polish 18 year old visiting Hungary. He talked about the differences in mentality between the various generations and how he felt the older Polish people wanted everything given to them. It was an interesting peek into internal politics of a transition economy. While we didn't get to talk with a ton of Native Czechs I can imagine some of the same differences between generations exist. Certainly walking around the outskirts of town we were able to see some of the rubble of older buildings from the Soviet Era abandoned. While they seemed very evident to us at the time I don't think that we would have noticed these things if we hadn't picked a hostel on the outskirts of town. 

While the city centre was very gorgeous I think perhaps what we valued most about our time spent in Prague were the people we met and the conversations we shared over dinners. While we love each other and find great value in communicating between ourselves, it was also really nice to engage in stimulating conversation, fresh with new perspectives. 

*Side note: We have discovered the perfect place for Gabe's four year old niece to attend college, unless her preferences change somewhere along the way. We did our research and this is a legit private institution with bachelors degrees in I.T. and Economics. Honestly, combining unicorns and Econ I don't see how you could go wrong…

Belated Berlin

Berlin was one of those cities that we found ourselves wishing for more time in once we were getting ready to leave.  It was so rich in history that we couldn't help but feel totally immersed.  It was easy to see the gradual change in scenery from large lakes to pastoral farm land as we made our way south from Sweden, through Denmark, and finally into Germany. The trip took us around 18 hours and by the end we were definitely exhausted. After a few failed attempts at navigating our way through the Berlin underground we finally arrived at our hostel. That night we tried to settle in so we could make the most of our next couple of days in the city. 

The first day we took a tour that centered around the rise and fall of the Third Reich. It was an extremely informative tour that began at Brandenburg Gate where Hitler once opened the summer olympics in 1936. 

Afterwards we walked a couple hundred meters to the Reichstag where you can still see some damage from the Battle of Berlin.

It was a very thought provoking being able to see where Hitler first gained power after the Treaty of Versailles. When the ceasefire was called and the treaty was signed Germany had to take full responsibility for the first World War and agree to pay off massive reparations (which had only been fully paid off in 2008). This led the German government to print off more money to pay off their debts. Unfortunately, this action led to extreme hyperinflation on levels comparable to current day Zimbabwe. The German Mark (their form of currency previous to the Euro) fell from being worth 4.2 to 8.91 Marks per dollar at the beginning of WW1 to the point where by November 1923 the American dollar was worth 4,210,500,000,000 German Marks. The repercussions were depression, both economically and psychologically. Many of the veterans were upset having not technically lost the war, seeing as there was a ceasefire called, yet they saw their country being forced to pay for the war. This led a young Adolf Hitler to call for a uprising against what he called a weak government. Hitler's first effort failed and as Germany began to prosper again, due to increased American investment, fewer people were looking to the edges of the political spectrum for answers to their problems. 

This changed in 1929 with the U.S. stock market crash. American investment began to pull out and Hitler, sensing the opportunity seized power through a series of political moves.

Outside of the Reichstag was a memorial for the murdered Members of Parliament during the Nazi period. These were all members of various levels of government that stood in the way of Hitler expanding his power when he gained Chancellorship. Over the next several years after Hitlers rise to power many would be removed from office or killed. I (Gabe) thought that the monument's placement just outside of the Reichstag serves as a good reminder about the dangers of excessive government power.

We made our way to Soviet War Memorial erected for those soviets who died during WWII Outside you can still see two original tanks that liberated Berlin from Nazi power.

Directly opposite the monument is StraBe des 17. Juni.

This road passes under the Brandenburg Gates. Originally Hitler commissioned the avenue to connect his empire. That particular area saw devastation when the Soviets took over control of Berlin. The commanders of the soviet army told their troops that Berlin was their prize after fighting all the way from Stalingrad. Hundreds of thousands of women were raped and Germans continued to fight right up to Hitlers bunker. Unfortunately, the great majority of the male population remaining in Berlin were the elderly and the children. Any man who refused to fight on behalf of his country was hanged by a lamppost and identified as a traitor. From this particular street a body could be seen hanging from every lamppost. 

On the other side of the road, across from the monument, is a park which once was used as hunting grounds. Today it is the location of memorials honoring separate groups who were targeted during WWII. The newest addition is the monument for the Sinti Roma killed during the Holocaust.

In the park you will also find a memorial remembering the homosexuals persecuted during the war. The memorial doesn't look like much from the outside but inside is a film reel playing movie scenes portraying various romantic relationships. Originally women were not included in the reel on the basis that they did not suffer quite extremely as men did but that has been modified. 

Another memorial was erected to honor all of the Jewish men, women, and children who lost their lives during the war. Located across from the park, it is incredibly large and pretty impossible to miss. 

It was created in such a way that the meaning was not clearly explained, instead offering the interpretation to be decided by the viewer. To describe its physical appearance; there are 2,711 of rectangle concrete blocks that all measure exactly the same size (LxW) but differ in height. Some of the highest were at least double Gabe's height (who is 6'1") while the smallest are nothing more than rectangles etched into the ground.

The land that they sit on is uneven, creating the illusion of rolling hills. They are placed in such a way that you can see unobtrusively from one end to the other, a very grid like layout. 

In general it really creates an intimate and personal experience for the observer. After the tour Gabe and I (Amanda) returned to walk through the Holocaust Museum, located on the corner of the Jewish memorial. It was very well done, I think mostly due to its simplicity in presentation. The first room was a timeline, accompanied with pictures, describing the escalating events leading up to, during, and in conclusion of the war. The next room was dark and displayed letters written to loved ones from those imprisoned in concentration camps. Some were heartbreaking, including one little girl who was writing to tell her daddy good-bye because she knew that her death was inevitable. Instead of looking at mass statistics it really focused in on the individual tales and every story was one of pain and suffering. The following room told of families, showed pictures of their lives together, followed them on their individual paths throughout the war, and told what had come of the family unit after the war was over. Walking further was a room that immersed you in complete darkness and contained benches for seating. A name would be displayed along the wall and for 30 seconds you would listen the the individuals story. If you were to sit in that room and just listen to the 30 second summary of every person who was imprisoned in a concentration camp during the holocaust you would be there for years. Too many tragically ended with the words "nobody knows what became of them". The next room led you to information on all the concentration camps erected throughout the war. To say that the information was disgusting would be an understatement.  Finally the end offered you the opportunity to research your ancestry and find information regarding your own family members. The exit to the museum brought you directly into the middle to the memorial, which seemed to have taken on a new layer of meaning to our interpretations. 

We also saw what was once the propaganda building, responsible for all German media output during the war. 

One of the most fascinating stops was a place that to the bare eye would not seem important at all. We were led to a small patch of grass in a parking lot resting between a group of apartment buildings. 

As it turns out we were standing on top of what remained of Hitlers bunker.

It was here that Hitler spent his last day alive, he got married, and celebrated his honeymoon. That same day he took the lives of his bride, his dog, and himself. The German people are adamant that nothing be erected to commemorate any person responsible for the atrocities of the war. Nazi bodies were burned and their ashes scattered into the sea so not even a grave could mark where they lay. These same ideals apply to Hitlers bunker.  

We trailed off to the remnants of the Berlin wall to see what remained of the foundations of the SS headquarters along with a few of the interrogation cells.

When this area was excavated and those foundations were discovered the city decided to convert he area to an outdoor museum about the third reich. 

Later in the tour we were shown a Jewish Synagog that had been reconstructed after what is referred to as "the night of broken glass". 

There was a German diplomat that had been killed in the German embassy in France abroad by a young Jewish man during the time Hitler was in power and the Nazi party used this event as a launching point of propaganda. The basic message released to the public was that the German government was under attack by Jews and the German people should stand up against this. Massive damage was done that night to Jewish businesses and synagogues. 

We ended at the warehouse of a German man named Otto Weidt who employed Jewish workers and kept them safe. The Schindler of Berlin, he payed off SS soldiers to turn a blind eye and stay away from his warehouse. In one instance he managed to get a note into a concentration camp for one of his former employees containing the location of an apartment and access to money should she manage to escape. 

After a long day of history we settled into beds, thankful to be living in the time we are. The next day we took a general tour of Berlin where we saw many of the same things as the day before. 

We returned to the ruins of the Berlin Wall. Germany was divided after WWII because the allies and the Soviet Union decided Germany could not be trusted with any power. The Allies took control of West Germany and the Soviets had East Germany. Because Berlin was the capital it was also divided between the Allies and Soviets (even though it was located on the Eastern side). This was something the Soviets were not too pleased about. If a resident of Eastern Germany didn't like how things were going  they would simply walk over to the west  and catch a flight out of there, change their citizenship, whatever they pleased. Hence the Berlin wall, completely surrounded the West side to keep anybody from getting in. The wall was erected over night. This wall had a kill-zone with barbed wire fences, spotlights and guard towers keeping people inside East Berlin. Further more, the kill-zone was filled with sand and metal spikes to keep people from getting across. Finally the wall itself was designed by engineers and tested by olympic athletes to make sure the curve of the wall was impossible to grasp onto. 

Later in our tour we passed by a mural that presented the Soviet utopian ideal. 

The Mural shows strong workers pooling their collective talents together to create a powerful society. It is filled with bright colors and displays many of the classic images of the workers uniting for a common goal. This mural spans half of an entire side of the old Nazi air-force base where the Soviets made their headquarters of East Germany. Because this was the Soviet headquarters during that time many demonstrations were staged on a small square on the corner of the building. During one of these demonstrations the scene turned violent and people were killed. Today, on that square, there is a fountain with a picture of a scene from that day. You can see the protestors before they were killed and this picture below the fountain is the exact same size as the mural on the wall, showing the contrast between the ideal and the reality.

Later that night after dinner while walking back to the hostel we came across a protest ourselves. It was May 1st, which is an important day both historically and politically. The march across the city passed right by the building while over 7,000 police officers followed the crowd watching closely. It was a very surreal experience and unfortunately our hostel was on the other side of the march. 

Our tour took us by the site of the Nazi book burning on the steps of the Humboldt University where Einstein lectured. The memorial is still under construction but there is an interesting quote by Heinrich Heine on the ground from 1821 it says, "where they burn books, they will in the end also burn people."

Our last stop was at the memorial honoring all of the victims of war and tyranny. From the outside it is ornately decorated. Inside was stark. It is a large space with blank walls. The only object can be found in the middle of the room; a statue of a mother cradling her dead son. Things like these evoke a physical response where you can't help but catch your breath and became immobilized. In saying nothing they have managed to say everything. 

Berlin is a crazy, cool, and extremely interesting city. It has seen a majority of the major wars in recent history. It has been split in half, creating unique cultures within only several hundred feet of each other; it is still reintegrating those two cultures together. Berlin is a hub for raves and all night clubbing. It is an epicenter for public art, some commissioned by the city and others condemned by the public. It's a city I think we want to return to. There is a lot we didn't have an opportunity to tap into and yet we feel like it's one of the cities where we got the most out of it. 

Auschwitz

We've come to a bit of a stumbling block in our writing. Much of Germany had been filled with interesting history and beautiful scenery. However, there have also been some extremely disturbing things we've recently experienced. It started in Berlin (which we will post a bit later) with the memorials to the victims of the Holocaust. The discomfort continued on the train tracks through Poland. By the time we began to go through Auschwitz the discomfort had evolved into shock and extreme sadness. The experience was well worth it but there have been times since where at least I (Gabe) have regretted going. The experience gets too real and it's usually when I see pictures that the despair kicks in. We have struggled with how to describe what we experienced because our words seem insignificant, almost insulting. How do you tell about something that has shaken you to your core? It's been a process but here's what we have.

One of the first things we noticed upon entering Poland was how outdated the public transportation seemed in comparison to much of Western Europe. 

The train system was sluggish for international travel and painfully slow when commuting between local cities. Many of our stops had no station building, no platform for exiting. The trains had a tired feel to them like they had been worn just past the point of usefulness. We covered short distances with long hours in a very jerky sort of way. We gazed at piles of brick and rubble along the tracks, skeletons of buildings that had never been restored.

I (Amanda) don't know what I had been expecting but it wasn't this. After a toiling day of traveling, observing, and feeling grateful for all that we have, we settled in for some rest. 

The following morning we took a train from Krakow to the city Osweicim. This is the location of Auschwitz, the largest extermination camp established by the Third Reich during WWII.  Our intentions were clear to us from the start. We had no interest in moving around with a tour group, listening to facts and snapping pictures. I (Amanda) do know that many tours can be well done having experienced such a trip at Dachau four years ago. When we went, we were there to be present. We believe that our experience was more powerfully impacted because of our decision.

We spent our day at only one of the three sites that comprise Auschwitz, Auschwitz II- Birkenau. Emotionally, it was just too hard to go any further. 

We could see it from 1,000 yards away. Everything was exposed. The only thing separating the inside from the outside was a single barbwire fence. 

There had been absolutely no attempt to mask what was going on, no denying the truly outrageous reality of what was happening. The 'Gate of Death" has a singular rail track going through it where hundreds of thousands of people entered but that is the only structure that really impedes a view, the rest is out for everyone to see.

When we walked in it really felt like stepping into another world. There is a somber feeling that surrounds that place. You walk through the gates, look down the rail tracks, and on both sides of you, almost as far as you can see, are barbwire fences that were used to keep people inside. The rail splits off, at one time allowing the trains to deposit people inside the camp. We saw pictures of the people and they were standing then exactly where we were standing.

There is a vast array of ways that you respond to the surroundings. Emotionally there were feelings of deep sadness unlike any I (Amanda) have ever experienced. Utter disbelief, disappointment, despair. Physically it felt like there was a large lump in my throat, a sob that I was trying desperately to swallow but no how many times I gasped I could not alleviate it. And then we would go to yet another horrifying place and my tears would run rampant and for some small moment there would be a release only to feel that lump return just as restrictive as before. 

We turned left towards one of the bunker areas that was used to house women and children and to preform medical experiments. Several of the bunkers were still standing and you could go inside. It's very hard to put the feelings we felt inside that one large room into writing but it was without doubt the most terrifying place we've ever been in. As soon as we walked through the door we were overcome with fear and just wanted to leave. We felt like we shouldn't have been there, obtrusive. There were cubbies in the wall 6 feet by 4 feet by 2.5 feet stacked 3 high where whole families sans fathers would live. The cubbies were made with stone and wood planks. Some of the walls still had pictures of the children's drawings. It was dark, damp and terrible. 

We moved on through the camp, going further towards the back where the gas chambers and crematorium were located. It was a painful walk, retracing those steps that carried so many to their death. When the Russians were advancing on the Eastern Front in WWII, the Nazis blew up the gas chambers in an attempt to hide what they had been doing. Thus, all that was left of the gas chambers in the Birkenau camp was rubble and a few partial walls. Even so, being there was chilling. Several groups of Israeli nationals were waving their flag and reading poetry in Hebrew near the chambers. The placards by the rubble explained the gruesome process  of gassing massive groups of people and estimated at the numbers of those who died there.  You could see the stairs where people were led down to undress, it was a long hallway leading to the gas chamber. It was dark and looked terrifying. I (Gabe) felt terror looking down those stairs. The fact that it was underground kept going through my head. I just kept imagining the darkness, surrounded by people who you probably didn't know, separated from your family. While I felt this terror, I couldn't possibly begin to grasp at what someone imprisoned there must have felt. 

The gas chambers and crematorium really threw a wrench in my thought process. When I was there I had the constant problem where my mind would stop working. I tried to focus on what was around me but I just couldn't. A phrase or an image would repeat itself in my head. I tried to reason through why something like this had happened and why this place existed. The answer was simple enough; this place existed to kill people and the whole camp was set up to do that in the most efficient way possible. But that answer just didn't seem enough to me; It was simultaneously gross and inadequate. As for why something like this happened, that is beyond what any of our reasoning could comprehend.  A wave of nausea accompanied us as we stared down at the abrupt conclusion of the railroad tracks, in every way the final destination for so many. 

Somberly we walked away. Walking was haunting because the scenery was so beautiful. Birds were chirping, grass had grown long and the sky was blue. How beautiful this place could have been if it hadn't been tainted. I  (Amanda) would find myself appreciating the trees or sweet songs of the birds only to reprimand myself for finding anything even remotely pleasant about where I was. I gazed at fields of flowers knowing that's where bodies once burned and I couldn't bring myself to hate. 

I don't understand how humans could dehumanize each other like they did there. People put people in cars designed for cattle, converted stables to "housing". There was a building known as the Sauna where people were processed; their clothes and possessions taken, hair shaved off their whole body, forced to identify no longer with their name but a number tattooed to their skin. All they had left was a suit of black and white stripes and they were taken to work until their death. 

We came to another former gas chamber where you could still grab ahold of the bricks of the wall. There were pictures of a boy, about 7, waiting in a grove of trees for his turn in the gas chambers. And we moved through that same grove of trees, sitting down on a bench for a long time. It had gotten too real for me (Gabe). It's one thing to read about these things in books, see the numbers and hear stories. To actually see the evidence makes you really question humanity. This was where part of me wished I hadn't come. I stuck my hands in my hair, elbows on my knees, and we sat there for a long time. 

When we finally got up we walked back to the front of the camp. Our conversation was repetitive, remarking about the absurdity of the place. I (Amanda) think we spoke in circles because neither of us really knew what to say and silence was uncomfortably quiet. After so much emotion your brain can't handle anymore. We left at that point. To resume the simple tasks of everyday life felt wrong. How could I jump right back into looking at train timetables or think about finding dinner? How could I not feel overwhelming shame?

I don't think this post really sums up what it was like for us to be there. There is a feeling that you get at Auschwitz that I've never felt before and I couldn't even bring to words when I was feeling it. If you get a chance, go. There are times I wished I hadn't gone but I feel like there is a responsibility to be aware of what xenophobia, racism, and nationalism can get you. On a broader scale it's an us vs. them mentality that is promoted in our culture to a much smaller scale. It's important to remember that the ultimate goal of racism was achieved with places like Auchiwitz and it's important to not just try and stop it once it gets to that point, but to be proactive.

We miss you guys a lot.