We arrived safe and on time in Munich Friday, a blessed change from our journey overseas from Pittsburgh. We met our new tour guide, Arnoud Beck, who is originally from Amsterdam, and made our way into the city.
Arnoud gave us a nice introduction to the city once we dumped our luggage at our new hotel. He was kind enough to bring a wheelchair for Carson. Lots of walking here, and he stunned us with the most amazing feat: He held on to that wheelchair as we rode the escalator up to the Marienpletz. (We found out on the way back there is indeed an elevator to transport her down the underground mall that led to the square. Thank goodness! I could see her rolling back down the escalator and the two of us back in a hospital ER again.)
I don’t know what I expected to find in Munich. I knew it would be different from Berlin, but I didn’t expect it to be the tourist attraction that it is … so many people here! We’re also arriving on a holiday weekend, but really! Just throngs of people walking through this center of town, looking around, shopping in stores, eating in cafes and restaurants, and just having a great time.
Lots of churches, beautiful architecture and buildings to see. Much of Munich, like Berlin, had to be rebuilt after the war. More construction is going on here, but not nearly as much as in Berlin.
We ended with a traditional German dinner — sausages and sauerkraut, pork and pretzels. Most of us came right back to the hotel to sleep. I did fall asleep quickly once I got settled into my tiny, tiny room (I call it the cheese wedge, as that is how it is shaped). Unfortunately, I am above a street lined with a number of hostels. Lots of noise last night. That and an upset stomach meant I tossed and turned for quite a while.
Today we traveled to Dachau, the concentration camp I had listed as a must-see on this trip from the start. Arnoud led us around the buildings with good authority. Seeing first hand the barracks, the memorials, the crematorium and more brought back so many memories of world and American history classes. He told us we would get emotional, but I already knew I would. The museum exhibition, the film, the re-created rooms and the stories just were heartbreaking. How could people do this to fellow human beings? Why could this happen? Fear and a quest for absolute power is the answer, along with economic conditions that provided the excellent backdrop for such butchery. I won’t get those photographs out of mind for a long time, and I bought two books to learn more.
I had looked up Dachau’s website and knew there was an photography exhibition of Dachau survivors who returned to visit. The nun who took those portraits, Sister Elija Bossler, lives in the convent right behind it. The exhibit of 30 portraits of the 100 she took was striking in it simplicity and display of her talent. I bought the catalog and will read it carefully. She knew recording these survivors would maintain the camp’s history. She didn’t treat them as victims but brave survivors who came to confront their past.
Looking at the site, its museum and information center, visitors can see the care that has been taken to maintain this camp, striving to keep it as a reminder of the evil that inhabited this planet. We have so many genocides and wars tearing apart countries, killing innocent people, and ruining lives right now. Why does this occur and how can they be stopped? Difficult questions with no easy or simple answers.
Jan Getz and I spent the shopping leisurely and enjoying Marienplatz on our own. We ended the excursion by attending a special Mass and candlelight service at St. Peter’s Church, a lucky find as we searched for some small gifts. Jan said it best: It was almost necessary to find some solace and comfort in a church ritual after our morning visit to Dachau. Just beautiful singing and music in a beautifully rebuilt church that had been bombed in World War II proved to be that perfect complement. We couldn’t understand much but relished this small look into German culture and religion. And exchanging hugs and handshakes at the sign of peace took on a special meaning for us today.
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