DAY 7 – Dachau

May 20, 2013 by · Leave a Comment
Jewish memorial in the Dachau concentration camp

Jewish memorial in the Dachau concentration camp

Today we visited the Dachau concentration camp memorial. It was the most chilling thing I have ever experienced.

Throughout our lives during education we, as Americans, are taught what happened in the Holocaust not only because it is history, but also because it is important to recognize genocide so it doesn’t happen again. Besides the history classes and research projects, I also have seen the movie Schindler’s list. I thought I had a full picture in my mind of World War II and especially the Holocaust. I was wrong. Dachau, was the first concentration camp and was initially a prison for political opposition. It was an example for the other camps. It was also famous for the medical experiments that were performed on the prisoners, which often resulted in death.

It put me right there where I could touch the trees the prisoners touched, walk the road they walked and see the barracks they slept in. Nothing could be more up close and personal then the incredible memorial we toured.

Having Arnoud as a tour guide was also very enlightening. He told me something very touching that I will use in my story – he never ceases to be emotional whenever he visits the camp, even though he has visited more than one hundred times. He was also very adamant about taking photos so that it can never, ever happen again. But yet fascism still exists in our world and that is depressing.

Touring the barracks and walking the main drag were great introductions to the religious memorials. It refreshed my mind so I could truly immerse myself in their symbolism. Arnoud gave us some very interesting side notes about life in the barracks while we were there, such as if there was so much as a coffee stain on the floor the whole barrack would be punished. It was hot in the summer and freezing in the winter, not to mention extremely overcrowded.

The most fascinating religious memorial was the Jewish one. The architecture created such a chilling effect. It is very difficult to explain the structure, but what I felt was darkness and cold all around me, closing in on me until finally when I came across a solemn beam of light leading to hope

The Jews were hopeless for much of their time at the camp. Many committed suicide by running into barbed wire. There is a structure in front of the main tourist building that is made up of skeletons contorted together to look like barbed wire as a memorial to those who chose to end their suffering.

Everyone was quiet and avoided eye contact when we toured gas chamber and crematorium. I felt so uncomfortable because what I had heard and what I had seen in movies was real. It was here. Death occurred right where I was standing. But Dachau didn’t use the gas chambers to execute mass murders because it didn’t have the power and according to Arnoud, prisoners heard what was happening in Auswitch and started to break what was used in the chambers.

We also watched an older movie on concentration camps in the tourist building. It tied everything together, and was especially powerful because of the real video and photos they used of what the Americans saw when they came to liberate the camps.

I wish we had hours to read the rest of what was available in the building because it was all so much. I love reading about the lives of the people who were involved, what brought them there as well as their stories. I tried looking for the names of my relatives who lived in Poland at the time in a big book of prisoners’ names. I found a few, so I took pictures, and I plan on showing them to my grandma to see if she can recognize any of them.

I know from now on I will be even more sensitive to genocide – because I know it occurs in many areas of the world, especially Africa. It is not much different from the torture these people went through. It was a solemn day, but it was a necessary day. I just wish that the world could see what I saw.

Filed Under: Blogs, Marina Weis · Tagged: , , ,

Hard to pronounce, easy on the eyes

May 20, 2013 by · Leave a Comment

Another interesting aspect of German history compared to the United States is that with our country being formed in rebellion from monarchies, we don’t have any royal history. Today we explored a little bit of Germany’s royal history when we visited Neuschwanstein castle a couple of hours outside of Munich.

We travelled by train again to the small mountain village that the castle is located in. At this point, the castle is so much of a tourist attraction that the village sort of lost some of its charm for me, but it really is beautiful scenery. Mountains and sprawling farmland speckled with trees, cows and the occasional lake are the most distinguishing factors. The sharp mountain peaks frame the ornate castle as it presides over the lush green valleys below. It is most assuredly something to behold. From below, the view just takes your breath away. It can only be matched by the view of the landscape from the windows of the castle. King Ludwug definitely chose his land for its location, location, location paying extreme attention to curb appeal. It is stunning.

It was quite a hike through a somewhat wooded area to get up to the plateau that the castle sits on, which was right up my alley. The inside of the castle to me wasn’t as interesting, possibly because the whole time we were taking the tour all I wanted to do was go be outside in the mountains. As a kid growing up in Kansas, my parents and I were always doing things outside and at least once a year we took a trip to Colorado to ski or camp or both. The Alps are kind of like the Rocky Mountains on steroids so I was just eating it up, and as a result, not particularly interested in the interior design of this castle built in the 19th century. After the tour a few of us walked over to a bridge that overlooks the castle and valley below, which was simply breathtaking.

After all of that incline hiking, a long train ride was a welcome respite for my fatigued body. Definitely helped me to recharge.

 

More to come,

Michelle

Filed Under: Blogs, Michelle Graessle ·

Alexa’s Blog – Day 8

May 20, 2013 by · Leave a Comment

The following events transpired on 5/19/13.

We were up early to catch a train to Salzburg, Austria for a day trip. The train ride took around two hours. Compared to all the travelling I have been doing recently, between planes and buses, two hours on a train seems like cake. I had my iPod with me and was able to jam during the ride and enjoy the lovely Austrian scenery. The Alps are so beautiful! It’s so weird to realize that there is actually snow at the tops of these mountains.

After we arrived in Salzburg we had lunch in the train station and departed to meet our new tour guide for the afternoon. Salzburg is iconic because it is the location of the Sound of Music film as well as the true events that inspired the musical and movie. Our tour guide had plenty to tell us about the film and the Trapp family as we frolicked about the grounds and gardens. Everything about the garden is stunning, from the architecture to the flowers to the landscaping. There is a huge fortress in the mountains beyond the garden that is so noticeable that it’s almost distracting.

After we were done in the gardens and had exhausted ourselves singing Sound of Music songs we crossed the bridge into the main part of Salzburg. On the bridge there are thousands of locks fastened to the chain links. Couples purchase and initial these locks, attach them to the bridge fence, and toss the key into the river to symbolize their never ending love. Which is great for them, I guess.

The new tour guide gave us a walking tour of Salzburg with Arnoud following at a distance. Salzburg is officially now my favorite place that I have been to so far. It’s the perfect little city, complete with cobblestone streets, fountains, gargoyles, a huge, gorgeous cathedral, horse-drawn carriages, beer gardens, river cruises, street vendors, cheese shops, gelato and ice cream, expensive chocolates, souvenir stores, an incline, the fortress, and above all, an amazing view of the Alps! I wish that I could just move everything from my life in Pennsylvania and bring it to Salzburg.

After the walking tour was over, our group split up and Carson and I decided to explore. We saw quite a lot, which is great considering she is still on crutches. We got a little too zealous and started climbing a steep road that actually turned out to be the path leading up the fortress. We turned around as soon as we figured that out.

The day started out sunny and warm, but it quickly turned chilly and rainy. We didn’t let that deter our spirits as we stopped at street vendors, got ice cream for a euro per scoop, and took in the Austrian atmosphere. It felt like we had just set out to roam the city when we realized it was time to meet back up with the group for dinner. We could have probably used at least another hour. Even though I have limited money I was able to get my mom a souvenir. She is into old-timey home decorating and cooking so I bought an oven mitt that can be used as a decorative item or for real cooking. It has a recipe for apple strudel written on it in German. The woman I bought it from thought that it was silly for me to be buying something not in English, but my family has German background and my mom may or may not have taken German in high school, so it’s close enough.

We had dinner on the third floor of a quant little café near the birth house of Mozart. Here, we experienced chicken for the first time since leaving the United States. It was magical.

After dinner we departed for Munich on the train and made it back to the hotel exhausted but fulfilled. I’m ready to look at the photos I took today and see what edits I can do – the fortress is all but washed out in a few of them. My camera is having some kind of lens issue and won’t work so it looks like I’ll be up taking care of that tonight. Hopefully all will be better by tomorrow because we’ve got the biggest photo op of the trip – Nueschwanstein Castle!

Filed Under: Alexa Blanchard, Blogs · Tagged: , , , , , , ,

Two trips through the countryside

May 20, 2013 by · Leave a Comment

We’ve spent the past two days visiting the countryside — a journey to Salzburg, Austria, and to Neuschwanstein Castle. We planned this trip with the goal of showing the students the urban and more rural side of this lovely country. And we kept in mind its history and close allegiance to countries like Austria.

To keep the costs low and to show the student how the average German citizen travels, we decided to take the trains to both locations. That meant we had to mind schedules and take some extra time, but both journeys were quite comfortable and permitted great scenic views for us and the chance — if we took it — to talk to other tourists and German residents (which I always try to do). The Alps and the countryside — just lovely. My small camera won’t do them justice. I’m relying on the students to provide this.

Ursula, our guide in Salzburg, whisked us through the beautiful streets there, pointing out “Sound of Music” shooting sites (and some insider information), Mozart’s birthplace and homes, beautiful concert halls and cathedrals, and more before she left us to shop and enjoy an Austrian dinner together. Despite the constant rain, Jan and I walked along the river and the  artists’ tents, talking to a number of them and admiring their wares. We had a long conversation with a musician who created some very special CDs, and we both bought one as gifts.

It’s amazing to look at a city such as Salzburg, with so many beautiful buildings, cathedrals, monasteries and castles built into the hills and rock. And the pride of its citizens. Many couples, dressed in traditional Austrian clothes, walked the streets on their way to dinner or to Mass or a concert. Ursula says this is very common and a show of cultural pride. Just beautiful.

Today we headed to Neuschwanstein Castle, one of four castles created by King Ludwig II, the supposed mad king. It’s the castle that inspired Walt Disney’s Sleeping Beauty Castle, and it is beyond lovely and well maintained. The tourists just packed into it, despite a very long walk up the mountain and then back again, and we took a mass tour through its public areas with others. More steps to climb than I want to count or remember, but it was well worth it. Beautiful artwork, luxurious furnishings and innovations for the mid to late 19th century that proved to me that king wasn’t all that mad. I am sure he had all that money could buy and could not. No wife or lover, a brother who died of mental illness himself, and a reclusive life. Marina bought a book, which I read on the train ride home. He had a sweet tooth and a large appetite, which left him with no food and 288 pounds when he died of mysterious circumstances at age 40. But he left such a marvelous gift to German citizens. A tremendous gift.

At our meeting upon our return I told the students today that this holiday weekend’s visits to Dachau, Salzburg and the castle provided them with first-hand history that can’t be learned completely in any classroom or  private reading and research. The care the Germans and Austrians take to maintain these wonderful sites and the legacy they leave for so many generations to come is no minor feat. Some may say they exist for tourism and not history, but the costs and operations to do so are immense. The revenue from tourism keep these sites alive and well, and that can’t be measured in dollars and cents.

 

Filed Under: Blogs, Helen Fallon ·

Alexa’s Blog – Day 7

May 20, 2013 by · Leave a Comment

The following events transpired on 5/18/13.

Today we took the train to Dachau to visit the concentration camp. I knew that it was going to be an emotionally exhausting trip but I didn’t truly know what to expect. We were able to observe two remade barracks complete with bunkers, lockers, and bathrooms, the empty barrack markers, the crematorium and unused gas chamber, the Jewish and Christian memorial sites, and an extensive museum collection. All of it was very unnerving, but the worst part was the crematorium. It made me queasy just looking at it. I couldn’t help but imagine thousands of prisoners working, slaving, and dying on the grounds that we were walking on. In essence it was one terrible, massive graveyard.

Arnoud gave us a tour of most of the camp but let us roam on our own after we had finished looking at the crematorium. Behind the crematorium there was a path in the woods that had plaques representing a headstone, marking the memory of thousands of unknown Dachau prisoners. There were also sections that marked the location of a blood ditch and a wall that prisoners stood against before they were shot. It was all very hard to take in.

But it doesn’t stop there. After we were done outside, we went into the museum and watched a short film with real photos and clips from the Dachau camp. That was too much at times because it the camera got very close to the dead. And they were everywhere: stacked on wagons, suffocated in train cars, loading into ditches, remains in the crematorium, hanging on electrical fences…it was impossible to get away, and it was horrible.

After the film was over I went through the rest of the museum and found snippets of new things I hadn’t known about Dachau, all of which were very interesting but none the less horrific. There was one room that showcased the portraits of camp survivors called Recording Survival by Elija Bosler. Her work was exquisitely done and seemed very personal, but it was also very sad. I read the bios of each of the people she photographed and they all lost a huge part of their lives. Yes, the may have survived, but many members of their family did not. Some of them were completely alone once they were liberated. Just thinking of it is upsetting.

After we returned from Dachau, we had the rest of the day to ourselves. Almost all of us decided on retail therapy to try to burn the image of what we had seen at the camp out of our eyes. I eventually broke off from my group because I’m one of those people who shops better by themselves. I ended up getting a few small things and moving on to explore. There’s a tiny shop around the corner from the Glockenspiel that sells sheet music and I was in there forever just looking at their collections. It was nice just to wander for a bit and have nowhere that I actually needed to be. Eventually, I walked back over to the Glockenspiel just in time for it to chime, and then headed back to the hotel to relax for a few hours before a late dinner. I ended the night with a quick trip to the bar with rest of the group before returning to the hotel to get some sleep. Tomorrow’s big adventure lies in Saltzburg!

Filed Under: Alexa Blanchard, Blogs · Tagged: , , , , , , , ,

A Magical Day in Germany

May 20, 2013 by · Leave a Comment

Monday May 20, 2013

 

Today was the day I was looking most forward to from the start of the trip!  I love visiting castles, but there was something that made this castle look extra amazing in all of the pictures that I have seen before.  We started off the morning by taking the train about 2 hours to a little town near the castle.  The train ride was even better than the day before when we traveled to Austria.  We got to see even more of the Alps, which I think are amazing, and more rolling farm land.  The train ride there was impossible to sleep through for me because I did not want to miss the amazing scenery.

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When we arrived to the train station right outside the little town the castle was in we took a bus to the castle.  It was a short ten minute ride and on the way up a winding road we saw the castle in the distance, from that point I could hardly contain my excitement!

 

Went we got to the little town the castle was in our first stop was the lake.  At this point we were in the Alps and each and every view was amazing.  Neuschwanstein was in plain sight wherever you walked in the village, and I loved that!  After visiting the amazing lake we went to lunch and got some shopping done.

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Then, it was finally time for the walk up the mountain and tour of the castle.  The walk up was hard, but at the end very rewarding.  It is not every day that you can say you climbed the Alps to see a castle!  When we got to the top one thought went through my head, how did they possibly build that?  After getting many pictures of the castle and in front of the castle it was time for the tour.

I wish the weather would have been a little bit less rainy, though.  I felt like I had to keep taking my umbrella in and out of my purse, which got to be a pain.  I also would have look much better in all of my pictures it the rain would have held off.

After going inside Neuschwanstein we learned that it is less than 150 years old, which blew my mind.  Everything inside was so amazing and looked like new.  All of the woodworking, paintings, furniture and light fixtures were perfect.  I wish I could live there!  My favorite part of the inside the castle was the view that you could see outside.  The windows either overlooked mountain lakes and country land or the wooded Alps which were both were amazing.

 

After the guided tour we decided to take another hike up to the bridge that over looks the castle.  The hike was a super quick struggle in the rain for a breathtaking view.  I am not a fan of wobbly, old, and wet bridges, but I knew I had to walk out and see the famous view.  As soon as I saw the view it took my breath away and it seemed like nothing else mattered in the world.

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The whole day at Neuschwanstein was picture perfect, other than the rain.  It was something that I will remember forever and will always look back on.  Even though it was a long day I would not have spent it any other way.

Xoxoxox

Katie

Filed Under: Blogs, Katie Pflug ·

Day 9

May 20, 2013 by · Leave a Comment

5-20-13

 

Another early two-hour train ride kicked off our day, we visited the castle Neuschwanstein, a medieval-looking castle that was actually built in the 19th century.  The scenery was beautiful, but the weather was not.  It rained most of the time we were there.  Aside from fearing for my camera’s life, I liked photographing this place.  We got a brief tour of the castle.

For such a huge place, the tour didn’t seem to take very long.  Afterwards we walked around the castle to a bridge just behind it, which was my favorite view of Neuschwanstein.

 

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Salzburg Trip

May 19, 2013 by · Leave a Comment

Today we went to Salzburg, Austria! I have never been to Salzburg before or Austria. I also have never taken a train anywhere before, so today was loaded with “firsts” for me today.

Once we got off the train and after our hunt for a usable  restroom, we started walking towards where we were supposed to meet our Salzburg tour guide. We started our tour in Mirabellplatz, where the DO-RE-MI scene was filmed in The Sound of Music. (The Sound of Music is one of my absolute favorite movies!) This ranks as one of the most exciting parts of the tour for me, seeing sights where the Sound of Music was filmed. We saw steps that the children sang on, two fountains from the movie, statues, and a green leafy arched passageway that the kids run through. I think our tour guide said we were suppose to see the house from the Sound of Music as well as the Von Trapp’s actual home, but we did not get a chance to see that.

Another highlight from this walking tour today is seeing Mozart’s birthplace and learning about him. It’s amazing how muh of a genius he was, and I love how we got to see the house he was born in. This just shows you truly how remarkable and preserved the city is. I can’t believe such an old building is still there. This goes for the entire old city. It is just so preserved to look like it did hundreds of years ago. It’s amazing. I also love the architecture. It’s beautiful and really has that old middle aged charm.

As for the weather today… it was alright during the walking tour. It only rained a little bit during the tour, but after the tour is when it really started to pour. To make matters worst, it was a holiday so mostly everything was closed. The only shops, which were open were the tourist gift shops and you can only go in so many gift shops before they all start to look the exact same! Katie and I walked alongside the river through a market, but then the stand owners began to close up because of the cold rainy weather. Then we took shelter in some enclosed sidewalk and sat there for 30 minutes to take up time before we had to go to dinner.

I loved the place we ate dinner. The restaurants seemed extremely small from the outside, but it was actually pretty big, with many different floors, which had small rooms to eat in. We ate in a small room after climbing about 4 or 5 sets of stairs, some very uneven. Naturally, while we were eating dinner, the weather became very nice. We had a nice dinner and then made our way back to the train station so we could journey back to Munich.

Filed Under: Andrea Karsesnick, Blogs ·

5.19.13 Der Klang der Musik

May 19, 2013 by · Leave a Comment

5.19.13

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A rainy yet gorgeous day has come to a close. As we traveled to Salzburg today we got our first look at the alps. We rode a train through the countryside. This journey gave us two hours of beautiful scenery to watch pass by.

 

When we got to Salzburg, Arnoud, our faithful tour guide introduced us to a guide more familiar with the town. Ursula, our guide for the day, began by taking us through the gardens where scenes from the sound of music were filmed.

 

It was really interesting to see the town where the Trapp family actually lived and where scenes from the movie were filmed. It was fun to here the contrast between the real story and the one produced for the American Film.

 

Another famous person grew up in Salzburg, this person was considered a genius from a very young age and will be remembered for many years. This would be Mozart. He was born in an apartment on one of the main streets in the old sections of Salzburg and then moved across the river when he was a little older.

 

Salzburg has many attractions on top of being home to these famous people. It is home to a large fortress in the Alps, which houses a museum. There is an incline from the town to the fortress where patrons can experience a magnificent view of the town and learn about its history.

 

The Alps surrounding Salzburg are also home to salt mines which is what gives the town it’s name. These minerals give the water a beautiful bluish green color. One of the bridges that goes across this picturesque river is home to love locks. These locks symbolize the bond between a couple who has come to the town, put their name or initials on the lock, close it onto the bridge and then throw away the key,

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Despite the rain we had a very enjoyable evening ending with a group dinner and the train ride back to Munich, The weather cleared up for the ride back allowing for man pictures of the Alps to be taken.  As we get back to the hotel we don’t hesitate long before getting ready for bed. Tomorrow will be another long day outside of the city.

 

Guten Nacht!

 

 

Filed Under: Blogs, Johnie Freiwald ·

I am 16 Going on 17

May 19, 2013 by · Leave a Comment

Sunday May 19, 2013

 

After an amazing night in Munich it was time to catch the train to Salzburg, Austria!  Salzburg is home to the “Sound of Music”, so I knew this side trip would have many great sights.  We caught the train at the train station right across from our hotel, which is very convenient, and had a quick 2 hour ride to Salzburg.  The trip there was amazing.  We rode right through the countryside and had am amazing view of the Alps the whole time.  I couldn’t believe that some of the mountains that we saw still had snow on the upper ledges!

 

When we arrived it was a race to find lunch, we were all so hungry!  After a quick lunch we met our tour guide who gave us an in-depth tour of Salzburg.  We visited the gardens that were used in the “Sound of Music” movie, along with amazing scenery, magnificent churches, the Alps, and the home of Mozart.  Salzburg had such a rich history between the “Sound of Music” and Mozart.

 

My favorite part of the tour was walking through the gardens.  The landscaping was so beautiful and the flowers were so bright!  The statues were also, in a way, very whimsical.  The unicorn statue was my personal favorite because a unicorn isn’t even a real creature! It also blew my mind that the same flower patterns were showed in the movie.  The gardens also gave an amazing view up to the Alps.

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After the tour Andrea and I walked around the city for a bit.  At this point it started raining, so we were both glad we remembered our umbrellas!  I really think that Salzburg is the trinket capital of the world, in each store we went into there were, what seemed to be, billions of little trinkets.

 

After a long day in Salzburg we all met for a group dinner, which included chicken!  That was the first time on the trip that one of our group dinners included chicken, which was amazing.

 

The trip back to Munich was very relaxing after the long and wet day in Salzburg.  I got so many amazing pictures from the day and I cannot wait to print some out!

 

Xoxo

Katie

Filed Under: Blogs, Katie Pflug ·
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