Visiting Auschwitz was something I had been preparing for prior to the trip. On day three we visited the site, guided by a woman speaking to us through headsets. Some found the ongoing information to be distracting or overwhelming while others enjoyed learning the small details we hadn’t covered over the years.

 

Walking in and out of buildings preserving the belongings and artifacts of the Holocaust seemed like it was going to be an extremely hard experience. I walked away feeling differently than expected, and I think most of my classmates agree.

 

After discussing our time at Auschwitz and seeing the ruins of Birkenau, many of us were only connecting with a few moments of the hour-long tours. Some that stood out to us were the rooms holding the hair of the Holocaust victims, the pots and pans collected from suitcases, and the cold cement cells the victims were kept in between processes.

 

After watching the film Deniers, I questioned how individuals could still deny the horrific events of the Holocaust. So, while walking through the rooms I was personally drawn to the documents that were labeled as proof of several events. Others briskly walked pass, feeling no connection. As I did with some of the items they felt drawn to. This made the experience different for all of us, which I enjoyed.

 

I believe that when we think of visiting Holocaust memorials we expect to feel an overwhelming wave of emotions throughout the experience. But that was not the case for us. Maybe because of the commercialized feel, or maybe because it is truly unbelievable what these humans did to other human beings.