'Lessons from Auschwitz'
I've just got a place on a 'Lessons from Auschwitz' trip for mid-March. I just wondered if anyone on here has been before, or been to any of the camps, for that matter.
I'm actually quite nervous about going. I know it'll be a very harrowing experience, but also something that I think everybody ought to know about.
What are your experiences of visits like this?
I'm actually quite nervous about going. I know it'll be a very harrowing experience, but also something that I think everybody ought to know about.
What are your experiences of visits like this?
Scroll to see replies
Original post by cornish-chough
I've just got a place on a 'Lessons from Auschwitz' trip for mid-March. I just wondered if anyone on here has been before, or been to any of the camps, for that matter.
I'm actually quite nervous about going. I know it'll be a very harrowing experience, but also something that I think everybody ought to know about.
What are your experiences of visits like this?
I'm actually quite nervous about going. I know it'll be a very harrowing experience, but also something that I think everybody ought to know about.
What are your experiences of visits like this?
Hi! I went on the North East trip in October
It's seriously the best thing I've done, even the seminars that I imagined would be a bit boring were amazing. The talk with the Holocaust Survivor is amazing, if you get Ziggy Shipper I can tell you it'll change your life, just the fact that he feels no hate towards people & stuff because he knows what hate can do. Learning about perpetrators and bystanders, victims and the history behind it is great!
You get split into like 6 groups, that you talk to before and after the visit to Poland, and during you'll stick with them
.Poland itself, is very emotionally and physically draining, not just because it's a 21 hour day, but obviously because of the fact you're at a concentration camp. The pre-Auschwitz trip to Oswiecim is great for history students, as it highlights pre-war Jewish life in one town. One big group go to the site of the Great Synagogue, & one go to the Jewish graveyard; I went to the Great Synagogue & it was amazing to hear about its history; then you go to a working synagogue in the centre of the town, like there are no Jews left in the town, but it's amazing to see the solidarity.
Auschwitz and Birkenau, they're harrowing. But on and off. No one on my trip was crying all the way round like you expect to, its sort of like one minute you're fine & the next minute you see something & you're in a whole other state of mind. It's a very strange experience if I'm honest; the only point I broke down at all was during the memorial service where Rabbi Barry Marcus conducted prayers in Hebrew at the International Memorial. Though nowadays, the whole camp is very uplifting, in my opinion anyway; there's candles and singing and flowers everywhere, people make pilgrimages, to pay their respects to the victims. It's actually beautiful
The reflection seminar is a bit different and you get to talk about how you feel & stuff; it's not as emotionally charged, but you get to talk about the Lessons
It's just an all round amazing experience. You will love it! If that's the right turn of phrase!
Original post by cornish-chough
I've just got a place on a 'Lessons from Auschwitz' trip for mid-March. I just wondered if anyone on here has been before, or been to any of the camps, for that matter.
I'm actually quite nervous about going. I know it'll be a very harrowing experience, but also something that I think everybody ought to know about.
What are your experiences of visits like this?
I'm actually quite nervous about going. I know it'll be a very harrowing experience, but also something that I think everybody ought to know about.
What are your experiences of visits like this?
Yeah, I went last year.
I'm going to be honest...I didn't cry...it's difficult to explain. I just sort of felt numb like I couldn't really comprehend what we were being told/ shown. But there was a point when we were shown images of children and it had written beside them whether they lived or died. That hit me hard.
Honestly though it is a remarkable experience. Auschwitz was hardhitting in that you see the hair, the shoes etc, however, Birkenau has remained virtually untouched so you really can visualise what life was like there far more.
It's odd, very surreal, to walk under the entrance sign of Auchwitz. You see the images of it and it looks so intrusive but in real life...you realise it's not that big...and I guess the experience made me realise that it was real human beings just who had caused the whole thing (silly as it sounds).
Sorry, getting all sentimental here
Just try not to be nervous because it's a real eye-opening experience!
I didn't go to on the LFA trip but I have been, I went when I was about 15 and it was worth it. The camps Auschwitz and Birkenau are just strange places, eerie, it's extremely hard to describe but it does just feel wrong and unnatural. I went with about 30-40 people from my school and I think two were physically sick in Auschwitz, but neither regretted going. No one really shows there emotions, it's shocking but in a "rabbit in the headlights" way, the memorial at Birkenau is appropriate and in a strange way reassuring.
When I went we stayed in Krakow, which was a nice place, the people were friendly. However the iron curtain has left scars on the city (and presumably the country) so you can walk down one street and it is modern and turn onto another and feel like you've stepped into a war zone.
If you have any more questions please ask.
When I went we stayed in Krakow, which was a nice place, the people were friendly. However the iron curtain has left scars on the city (and presumably the country) so you can walk down one street and it is modern and turn onto another and feel like you've stepped into a war zone.
If you have any more questions please ask.
(edited 13 years ago)
I went to Mauthausen in Austria a few years ago.
Your right, it is 'harrowing'. A very strange experience but it is life changing. I thoroughly recommend going. While some of the stories you will hear from the guides are a bit disturbing, and the general atmosphere is sad and depressing, it truly makes you value life.
Your right, it is 'harrowing'. A very strange experience but it is life changing. I thoroughly recommend going. While some of the stories you will hear from the guides are a bit disturbing, and the general atmosphere is sad and depressing, it truly makes you value life.
I've been to Bergen-Belsen which was a different sort of camp to Auschwitz but still disgusting in it's own way.
It's where Anne Frank died.
There are mass graves so you walk past these rectangular mounds with a stone at the end saying 'Hier ruhen 5000 tote'... 'Hier ruhen 2500 tote' etc...
Don't think I saw any interpretation boards or signs there that weren't in German or Hebrew - Auschwitz seems to be the focus for international holcaust interpretation.
It's where Anne Frank died.
There are mass graves so you walk past these rectangular mounds with a stone at the end saying 'Hier ruhen 5000 tote'... 'Hier ruhen 2500 tote' etc...
Don't think I saw any interpretation boards or signs there that weren't in German or Hebrew - Auschwitz seems to be the focus for international holcaust interpretation.
I went to Auschwitz when I took part in a Polish exchange a couple of years ago. The timetable was organised in a way that meant we ended up going to Auschwitz and Birkenau on my birthday 
It's a really weird experience. It was like nothing I'd ever felt before. When we were walking around, it was a sunny, summers day with blue skies and it felt odd as the place was where lots of horrible, mind-rotting events happened; but the weather didn't match the background of the place. When I went there (I know this sounds weird but...) I almost imagined a big black cloud over the place with rain and grey skies.
It's a numb feeling. When I went round, I didn't cry. I felt really bad because all the other girls in my group were crying all the time and I felt like I should be. It wasn't until I got back to England that all the emotions all came out when I talked to my mum about it....because everything I'd seen all came back to me...and I really remmebered the true extent of the events that happened there. I cried lots and lots then. But it's something that you have to do to get rid of the feelings caged inside.
Things there really open your eyes.....and I came back feeling rather different about life and the way life is.
It's actually a really nice experience overall.....it will make you feel sad - (no doubt about it).....but it will also make you feel happy afterwards (you'll value life more and love what you have)....just embrace the experience....don't worry about it.
On a lighter note....Krakow is beautiful!!!! There's a castle (well i think it was a castle) and it has beautiful green areas aroud it....when I went there it was a sunny day and the sky was BRIGHT BLUE, the grass was BRIGHT GREEN and everything was just really beautiful there. There's a dragon there......(statue) and it breathes fire at 12:00 mid day i think. There's also a little cave underneath the castle which is really cool!
I was staying in Tarnow and it's a very pretty place too. The town unfourtunately lost lots of the civilians in world war 2. We had a tour of the place. I also went to the salt mine (I can't remember where it was)....but i think it was one of the deepest in europe.
Polish food is very yummy (well...I thought it was)! When I was there, I had a lots of soup. They like to put eggs and sausages in with the soup.....it's vair nice!! It may sound yuck right now...but wait till you try it!
Anyhows....I hope all that info will help....especially if you go to other places on the trip.
It's a really weird experience. It was like nothing I'd ever felt before. When we were walking around, it was a sunny, summers day with blue skies and it felt odd as the place was where lots of horrible, mind-rotting events happened; but the weather didn't match the background of the place. When I went there (I know this sounds weird but...) I almost imagined a big black cloud over the place with rain and grey skies.
It's a numb feeling. When I went round, I didn't cry. I felt really bad because all the other girls in my group were crying all the time and I felt like I should be. It wasn't until I got back to England that all the emotions all came out when I talked to my mum about it....because everything I'd seen all came back to me...and I really remmebered the true extent of the events that happened there. I cried lots and lots then. But it's something that you have to do to get rid of the feelings caged inside.
Things there really open your eyes.....and I came back feeling rather different about life and the way life is.
It's actually a really nice experience overall.....it will make you feel sad - (no doubt about it).....but it will also make you feel happy afterwards (you'll value life more and love what you have)....just embrace the experience....don't worry about it.
On a lighter note....Krakow is beautiful!!!! There's a castle (well i think it was a castle) and it has beautiful green areas aroud it....when I went there it was a sunny day and the sky was BRIGHT BLUE, the grass was BRIGHT GREEN and everything was just really beautiful there. There's a dragon there......(statue) and it breathes fire at 12:00 mid day i think. There's also a little cave underneath the castle which is really cool!
I was staying in Tarnow and it's a very pretty place too. The town unfourtunately lost lots of the civilians in world war 2. We had a tour of the place. I also went to the salt mine (I can't remember where it was)....but i think it was one of the deepest in europe.
Polish food is very yummy (well...I thought it was)! When I was there, I had a lots of soup. They like to put eggs and sausages in with the soup.....it's vair nice!! It may sound yuck right now...but wait till you try it!
Anyhows....I hope all that info will help....especially if you go to other places on the trip.
Original post by Bobbler
I went a few years ago on an A Level History trip.
Auschwitz and Birkenau, they're harrowing. But on and off. No one on my trip was crying all the way round like you expect to, its sort of like one minute you're fine & the next minute you see something & you're in a whole other state of mind.
I went a few years ago on an A Level History trip.
Auschwitz and Birkenau, they're harrowing. But on and off. No one on my trip was crying all the way round like you expect to, its sort of like one minute you're fine & the next minute you see something & you're in a whole other state of mind.
I couldn't agree with this more. For a large part of it, I felt completely numb and disconnected. I think the things that really got to me were the photos of people coming into the camps, and then the boxes displaying children's shoes and things. I completely broke down when we got outside and were walking along the railway tracks outside Birkenau.. I still have no idea why. I guess it was just the reality of everything that had gone on there.
The guide I had was incredible, and had some amazing stories to tell.
Original post by purple_starlight
On a lighter note....Krakow is beautiful!!!! There's a castle (well i think it was a castle) and it has beautiful green areas aroud it....when I went there it was a sunny day and the sky was BRIGHT BLUE, the grass was BRIGHT GREEN and everything was just really beautiful there. There's a dragon there......(statue) and it breathes fire at 12:00 mid day i think. There's also a little cave underneath the castle which is really cool!
On a lighter note....Krakow is beautiful!!!! There's a castle (well i think it was a castle) and it has beautiful green areas aroud it....when I went there it was a sunny day and the sky was BRIGHT BLUE, the grass was BRIGHT GREEN and everything was just really beautiful there. There's a dragon there......(statue) and it breathes fire at 12:00 mid day i think. There's also a little cave underneath the castle which is really cool!
It really is! The Grand Square and the Cloth Hall are gorgeous, especially at night when it's all lit up.
Original post by Philbert
Original post by Philbert
The guide I had was incredible, and had some amazing stories to tell.
The guide I had was incredible, and had some amazing stories to tell.
Ours was awesome too! Helina, such an amazing woman.. wanted to take her home with me haha
Hi everyone, thank you for the replies
Good luck for everybody going on the trip tomorrow. I had the LFA pack through school today, with the book etc. It's all so well prepared.
What did you all do for your Next Steps projects?
Good luck for everybody going on the trip tomorrow. I had the LFA pack through school today, with the book etc. It's all so well prepared.
What did you all do for your Next Steps projects?
Good luck to everyone going, my trip was about 3 weeks ago.
DRESS WARMLY!!!
Honestly, I can't emphasise it enough. By the time you get to Birkenau it's hard to concentrate on anything other than the freezing temperatures, so seriously wear 7 of everything, you can leave layers on the coach if need be. It's a horrible lesson in the way that you can understand 0.0001% of what the prisoners went through just from that, and that's in your winter clothes. They had virtually nothing.
For me, it hit hardest when I got home. I'd been away for roughly 24 hours, and it had gone by so fast it felt like I hadn't left, but everything had changed.
Ideas for the next steps project would be much appreciated please
Seeing the hair was the most bizarre experience I've ever had. The little plaits.. I burst into tears on the spot.
Sorry for all the edits! x
DRESS WARMLY!!!
Honestly, I can't emphasise it enough. By the time you get to Birkenau it's hard to concentrate on anything other than the freezing temperatures, so seriously wear 7 of everything, you can leave layers on the coach if need be. It's a horrible lesson in the way that you can understand 0.0001% of what the prisoners went through just from that, and that's in your winter clothes. They had virtually nothing.
For me, it hit hardest when I got home. I'd been away for roughly 24 hours, and it had gone by so fast it felt like I hadn't left, but everything had changed.
Ideas for the next steps project would be much appreciated please
Seeing the hair was the most bizarre experience I've ever had. The little plaits.. I burst into tears on the spot.
Sorry for all the edits! x
(edited 13 years ago)
I went on a school trip to Auschwitz. It's definetly something everyone needs to do at least once in their life.
That dragon! The cave is really cool! Did you climb up all those steps?
Original post by purple_starlight
On a lighter note....Krakow is beautiful!!!! There's a castle (well i think it was a castle) and it has beautiful green areas aroud it....when I went there it was a sunny day and the sky was BRIGHT BLUE, the grass was BRIGHT GREEN and everything was just really beautiful there. There's a dragon there......(statue) and it breathes fire at 12:00 mid day i think. There's also a little cave underneath the castle which is really cool!
On a lighter note....Krakow is beautiful!!!! There's a castle (well i think it was a castle) and it has beautiful green areas aroud it....when I went there it was a sunny day and the sky was BRIGHT BLUE, the grass was BRIGHT GREEN and everything was just really beautiful there. There's a dragon there......(statue) and it breathes fire at 12:00 mid day i think. There's also a little cave underneath the castle which is really cool!
That dragon! The cave is really cool! Did you climb up all those steps?
Original post by choly7
I went on a school trip to Auschwitz. It's definetly something everyone needs to do at least once in their life.
That dragon! The cave is really cool! Did you climb up all those steps?
That dragon! The cave is really cool! Did you climb up all those steps?
I know!! I love the dragon!!
and yep....every single step
Original post by purple_starlight
I know!! I love the dragon!!
and yep....every single step
and yep....every single step
Aww that was so amazing! I have loads of facebook pictures of that dragon, me and my friends basically stayed around it for ten minutes just to take pictures when the fire came out! Krakow is a lovely place
Original post by roseroserose.
Ideas for the next steps project would be much appreciated please
We were thinking of having a small exhibition in a lobby area at school where we can have a group of younger pupils in during their PSHE/PD lessons. We're hoping to have information up, like short stories or case studies perhaps, to talk through with the kids.
Would it be a good idea to ask them first what they know about the Holocaust before throwing all that at them? Somebody in my form thought Auschwitz was a theme-park!
Original post by cornish-chough
We were thinking of having a small exhibition in a lobby area at school where we can have a group of younger pupils in during their PSHE/PD lessons. We're hoping to have information up, like short stories or case studies perhaps, to talk through with the kids.
Would it be a good idea to ask them first what they know about the Holocaust before throwing all that at them? Somebody in my form thought Auschwitz was a theme-park!
Would it be a good idea to ask them first what they know about the Holocaust before throwing all that at them? Somebody in my form thought Auschwitz was a theme-park!
That's a really cool idea. I really didn't find the follow-up seminar helpful, I understand that "YOU DON'T HAVE TO DO A POWERPOINT ASSEMBLY" but when we asked the leaders what other people had done, they couldn't really point us in the right direction :/
Yeah definitely, maybe a 10 minute discussion first? You could get them to make mind maps of what they already know, then maybe compare with other groups or something or stick them up in a board. The case studies stuff is good as well, would really humanise it for them. I think it's really difficult for anyone, especially younger kids, to just take in 6 million as a number.
That's the one thing that's struck me since I've got back, there's 3 categories of reaction:
1. The interested people, that genuinely want to know how you felt, even if they're not studying history or anything.
2. The sort of "ew why would you want to go there?"
3. The complete ignorance - the most infuriating
My partner for the project is thinking so big at the moment lol, nothing from the 1900's is on the Welsh syllabus until sixth form, which she's determined to change. We'll see how that goes
(edited 13 years ago)
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