My Trip This Summer to Auschwitz-Birkenau

This summer, in the month of May, I visited the concentration camps at Auschwitz-Birkenau. We left from Krakow, Poland—a beautiful, historic city—and drove for over an hour before arriving at the camps. We had purchased our tickets and waited for our group, which consisted of 30 English-speaking people. All groups are made up of 30 visitors, and each group tours in its native language.

We had an excellent tour guide who spoke fluent English and was very informative about the history of Auschwitz. We were given headphones so we could clearly hear our guide. As we entered the main gate at Auschwitz, silence fell—you could not hear a pin drop. It was an emotional beginning to what would be a deeply moving tour.

As we walked through the camp, our guide pointed out different sites. We passed the medical building where Nazi doctors performed experimental operations on women, children, and others. We walked by the execution wall where prisoners were shot, and the gallows where many were hanged for no reason at all. Inside some of the buildings, we saw prison cells, torture chambers, and bathrooms that were absolutely appalling.

Other rooms were filled with the belongings of prisoners—luggage marked with names, piles of shoes, and eyeglasses stacked to the ceiling. It was heartbreaking. After finishing at Auschwitz, we boarded buses to Birkenau (Auschwitz II). There, we toured one of the women’s barracks. Each barrack had three levels of bunks, with five women sleeping on each level. It was almost impossible to believe, but true.

We also walked past the ruins of a destroyed gas chamber, left standing as a grim reminder. Along the railroad tracks, we saw a freight car similar to those used to transport Jews to the camp. The entire day—over four hours of touring—was both exhausting and profoundly emotional. We have all read about what happened, and we’ve seen the movies, but standing in the camps brought it home in a way nothing else could. Our guide told us that more than two million people visit Auschwitz every year.

NEVER AGAIN.

After our tour, we returned to Krakow for another day. There, we visited the Oskar Schindler Museum, walked past a synagogue with a Jewish cemetery beside it (both were closed), and passed by a restaurant advertising gefilte fish, falafel, and Klezmer music. We tried to make a reservation but it was sold out—I can certainly understand why!

Also on my bucket list was visiting the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam. Fortunately, we had made reservations in advance and arrived at our scheduled time. Each group consisted of 15 people, with short intervals between tours. It was an unforgettable experience to walk through the hiding place where Anne and her family lived until their capture. Anne later died in a camp, but her diary was saved by her father. I strongly recommend reading The Diary of Anne Frank. While there, I bought another edition of the book and read it again.

In Amsterdam, we also visited the 17th-century Portuguese Synagogue, which miraculously survived the war. This Sephardic synagogue is beautiful inside and is still used for Shabbat services and other events.

Finally, after leaving Krakow, we flew to Paris and stayed at a hotel one mile from the Eiffel Tower. Around the corner, to my surprise, we found Schwartz’s Delicatessen. I was tempted by the idea of a corned beef sandwich, but we didn’t have the time. The next day, I boarded a plane and returned home to Florida.

This trip was planned by my daughter, Lisa, and her boyfriend, Doug. She knew how much these visits were on my bucket list and made it all happen, ensuring we saw everything I had dreamed of seeing.

What a trip.