Trip to Dachau Concentration Camp

Just a few pictures from my trip to the Dachau Concentration Camp in Dachau, Germany.




I cannot explain the emotions that I was having while visiting a place where thousands lost their lives, not because they were evil, not because they were criminals, but because of their race, religion, orientation, etc... It seems I am constantly confronted with the fact that the human race is capable of such mass atrocities. Why is it that one person or group of people must assert their beliefs and their cause on another, often to the death. I found this quote from Pastor Martin Niemöller, who initially supported the Nazis, but he ended up in Dachau in 1938, whereupon he famously noted that...

When the Nazis arrested the Communists,
I said nothing; after all, I was not a Communist.
When they locked up the Social Democrats,
I said nothing; after all, I was not a Social Democrat.
When they arrested the trade unionists,
I said nothing; after all, I was not a trade unionist.
When they arrested the Jews,
I said nothing; after all, I was not a Jew.
When they arrested me, there was no longer anyone who could protest.

May we never forget...

Category:

Travel & Events

Tags:

• Dachau
• Concentration
• Camp
• Germany

[elvisovlojzek]

how romantic video.... why didn't you just write below: yes, we were on vacation, and having a good time.... since Arbeit macht frei!

I was there last year and felt very bad while walking there... it is a place with very bad karma! People who thinks there was no holocaust need to grow up!!!

[smileyBA]

I don't understand the point of your comment... I lived in Germany for over 15 months and took a weekend trip specifically to go visit the Dachau Concentration Camp. Do you see any of us laughing or smiling or having a good time while there? No. It is a horrible place that of course would make anyone sad to visit. I thought I was more than respectful when making this little video, sorry you don't feel that way...

[ChosenFaith]

who singed this song?

evanecense?

[smileyBA]

yep... that'd be her. It's "My Immortal" :)

[nhazean]

okay whatever it is, the photos and the mood/melody of the accompanying soundtrack compliment each other. Whether it's real or not, aesthetically the video with the song and subtitles is touching.

[smileyBA]

Glad you enjoyed it. :)

[MrZekoslav]

My grandfather died 2 weeks before american troups went in.

thank you, nice video.

[LordAlwinTHC]

You should include a picture of the stone that has NEVER AGAIN on it. The Hanging Poles, the 'statue' of the dead people. The whole row of where the jews stayed. The open space where they stand every morning to do row call.

Just a suggestion.

[lipsonsinaus]

It is such a pity that your intelligence doesn't go any further that the tip of your nose.

[arctictranquility]

Are you joking?

[lipsonsinaus]

I visited the same site in November of 2007. The most horrific experience I have had in 37 years of my life.

[CoffinCornerX]

That being said, I am still proud of the bravery my grandfather showed in open field combat. His arm was nearly removed by artillery fire outside of Opotcka, Russia. YES, most of the people who perpetrated this wore SS uniforms, however, there is a common misconception that if you were in the SSTK you were a Jew killer. NOT TRUE. The loins share were honorable battlefield soldiers trained to a fault with a sense of patriotism and loyalty. My grandfather will always remain one of my heroes.

[CoffinCornerX]

If a wounded, battlefield hero SS soldier could be summarily shot for simply stealing supplies, you can imagine that all of Europe including Germans were running scared. After his death is was clear that Hitler had played no favorites. Hitler viewed everyone, EVERYONE....as disposable. Even his own SS. That is exactly how they were treated. My grandfather served 6 months in jail after the war simply for having been SS Totenkopf Oberbayern.

[CoffinCornerX]

The worst of the holocaust started post Jan. 1942, when sadistic minds found nothing wrong with the alternative of killing people who they could not "repatriate". Those who implemented the "Final Solution" did so from the "better them than me" philosophy. After my grandfather was wounded in 1941 he was assigned to SS cloth supply in Berlin. As a wounded SS soldier he signed a document that stated he would allow himself to be shot if her were caught stealing. Now, try disobeying an order.

[CoffinCornerX]

One need look no farther than the copious notes taken at the Wannsee Conference (January 20, 1942). They outline the troubles the NAZI's encountered with trying to exile such a large mass of people and the difficulty encountered trying to remove them to countries that had already absorbed hundreds of thousands of the "banished". "The Final Solution" was the product of what Hitler had deemed the problem of "So many Jews, where to send them to?" Eventually other countries closed their doors.

[CoffinCornerX]

My grandfather was in the SSTK Oberbayern. From 1937 to 1939 he was stationed at the Dachau military complex as it was the headquarters for this division. The dissident camp was only a small part of it. You would think that I would be here to deny the existence of the holocaust, but in reality I'm here to argue for its existence.