Dachau

I planned out today’s plans last night, and when I read my daily reading from the “Little Black Book” this morning (reflection book provided by the Church for lent), I was not shocked to see the info section concerning a priest who encountered an experience at a German concentration camp. Although I didn’t visit the Buchenwald or Flossenberg camps where Dietrich Bonhoeffer was incarcerated, I did visit Dachau this morning.

The tour group left at around 9am this morning, and we took a train out to Dachau. It was only a 15 minute trip. We had an excellent guide and she gave a lot of good background on everything we witnessed while there. I took a class in my 1^st winter quarter at UC called Auschwitz testimony which focused on the holocaust. There was some deep material in that class, but let me tell you, there is nothing that substitutes actually standing where it happened.

Dachau was the first of the camps. Dachau was to be the “model” camp for the others and it was also the location where most of the men in the SS trained. Today, the training grounds are actually used to train Germany police, but the prisoner camp has been turned into a memorial site. This was NOT an extermination camp, but a rehabilitation and work camp. Well over 60,000 people died at this camp though. Through horrifying work conditions and the contraction of diseases, death was a normal part of the camp’s daily happenings.

The closeness of the event in recent history and its relation to the Germans today is much closer than I really comprehended before. We had a small tour group, so we exchanged names and a little background as the tour went on. When I mentioned that I was working at BMW for a term, an interesting theme was brought up. Many of Germany’s successful companies today survived the war because they utilized labor from those in camps. BMW was one of them… along with Siemens, Audi, and many others. Knowing something like that, I can realize why many Germans today are still very sensitive to these events within the last century. Points were made on how you see very few German flags in the front yards of citizens and how Germans make it a point to remember their history well. I mentioned this in one of my earlier Cologne blog posts.

The tour lasted well past lunch and ended in the crematoria. It was difficult to imagine such horrors occurred in the brick ovens not too long ago. It was a very nice day today too (65 degrees and sunny). That made it even harder to imagine all of the camp’s past realities. It was, however, a good experience… one I will not forget. I think back to when my grandpa entered Germany, and I have to wonder how he handled seeing some of the things he did. I’m not sure I would personally be able to do it. I give all the credit in the world to those who experienced WWII.

In the afternoon, I took a short pause for lunch before doing a walking tour over some of Munich’s Nazi history. We visited MANY buildings of great significance to the rise of the party and the operation of the war machine.

We began the tour at 3pm (same tour guide as in Dachau) at the east tower leading into the Altstadt. It was here that we stopped by the brewery where the Nazi party was first formed and Hitler became a member.

Our next stop was a location you are likely familiar with. It was the birthplace of the Nazi party as we know it. The policies and rally behind the party’s forward motion began at the Hofbrauhaus. This was my first visit to the hall since being in Munich. This time, I did not have a beer. It was hard to imagine such a political campaign beginning in such a jovial place.

The tour progressed with some really good background history on the party and Hitler’s rise to power. Munich was it. This was the city where Hitler made it all come together. It was here that the party formed. It was here that he convinced the public to join in on National Socialism. It was here that he created an empire and led the 3^rd Reich. At the end of the tour we saw many buildings used for NAZI headquarters during the war. Many of these date back to Roman times, but their recent past uses cannot be denied. As an American citizen, I have always understood what happened in Germany. Actually being here and standing next to buildings bearing shrapnel scars is something else entirely. It adds some pretty good depth to the words in the history books.

Today was a reflective day for me. It was a good day, but one of realizing the closeness of these events to home. I don’t always understand why things did or do happen in the world, but always trying to better understand humanity is what will prevent future tragedies from coming to be.

On a brighter note… three incredible things did happen today!

1 – It is my brother’s birthday. Wish him a happy birthday if you get the chance! I do wish I could be home to enjoy some cake and ice cream with him!

2 – I finally saw a Jeep over here!!! I miss mine. Hopefully the birthday boy is taking good care of it!

3 – Mass this morning was very nice. I took some pictures of Old St. Peter to share with the blog too. I got to visit St. Paul and St. John in the front of the church as well. That was a good start to the day.