Auschwitz?

[Anonymous]

Anyone been? Thinking of stopping in Krakow after Prague and wondering about it.

[Anonymous]

I went because I was with people who wanted to go, and tbh it was depressing that it has become a tourist site. There were frat guys taking selfies, etc.

[Anonymous]

I went on an organized trip with my synagogue. It is obviously awful. Not sure what else to say!

[Anonymous]

Krakow is a beautiful city to see in its own right. I was more struck by Birkenau than Auschwitz, but they are both important places to see. It's important to see the monsters among is in humankind. And that unfortunately, the monstrosities repeat decades later. It's tragic.

[Anonymous]

I think it's important to go, but be prepared for somehow emotionally difficult it is. I left Auschwitz and spent the evening drinking and saying "I hate humanity." It was an absolute gut punch for me.

Am I glad I went? Yes. Was it one of the most depressing things I've ever voluntarily done? Yes

[Anonymous]

Not Auschwitz, but I visited Dachau more than three decades ago. Like PP, I thought it was important to experience it. The emotions that witnessing the remnants of that horror brought out in me left me unable
To have a normal conversation for a couple of days. And even still today, I get a hole in my stomach when I remember. I don’t regret going. But it’s not a tourist type destination.

[Anonymous]

I went when I studied abroad in Prague over 20 years ago. It is an important place to visit and that makes it worthwhile. But as PP said it’s also very weird to see people taking selfies and treating it as a tourist site.

Krakow is very nice though. I recommend.

[Anonymous]

Krakow and Prague are both beautiful. Agree with the others about the strangeness of the site being treated just like a tourist spot rather than a place of understanding or remembrance. But I think it is an important part of visiting those cities. Depending on where your travels take you - you may also be interested in Terezin - a concentration camp/political prison or Lidice where a massacre to wipe a city off the map occurred.

[Anonymous]

It’s well worth the visit. It’s important to bear witness. I thought people were behaving respectfully but even if a few people don’t, that’s not a reason to skip. Krakow is a lovely city and worth a few days in its own right.

[Anonymous]

Definitely worth a visit and loved Krakow.

[Anonymous]

Krakow is terrific. Take walking tours there.

You may never be as close to that concentration camp again so I ‘d say go. It is about an hour from Krakow. We made it easy on ourselves with a driver and packed lunch. Even if you have been to the Holocaust Museum. A meaningful, gut punch.

[Anonymous]

Given what is going on in the world this thread is really making my stomach flip over. I hope everyone on this thread has good intentions…

[Anonymous]

I went many years ago, and it was one of the most meaningful trips. I wouldn't miss seeing this if you're nearby. My advice is to see it early in the day, and give yourself time afterwards at a lovely park or somewhere else quiet to decompress a bit. It's really hard to go from that tour to something upbeat. Pairing with another nearby but quiet landmark, like a park or a cafe, may provide you the right balance that it did for me years ago.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Krakow is a beautiful city to see in its own right. I was more struck by Birkenau than Auschwitz, but they are both important places to see. It's important to see the monsters among is in humankind. And that unfortunately, the monstrosities repeat decades later. It's tragic.

Agreed. I went in the early 90's and Birkenau was deserted whereas Auschwitz had many tourists. Birkenau is where the train would come in - you see it in all the movies and it was so eerie in person. I've also been to Dachau.