2007-07-20 Terezin

The WVHS orchestra trip to Europe was absolutely amazing. We visited historic palaces and cathedrals, many of which have been added onto and changed over the centuries. We toured Haydn's house and Mozart's house. We saw monuments to heroes and tombs for unknown soldiers. We saw statues, elegant gardens, a museum of musical instruments, the Lipizzaner horses of the Spanish Riding School, and dozens of beautiful and very old buildings. We visited the graves of composers in Vienna's Central Cemetery where we also saw hundreds of large and unusual gravestones.

We had dinner in Vienna at the apartment of renowned opera singer Dr. Jutta Unkart-Seifert who spent all day cooking for the fifty-six of us. She is President of the European Cultural Initiative for the Young Generation, working to promote cultural exchange with other countries. [*is it possible to get a copy of our certificate printed with this column?]

Each country we visited uses a different currency so needed to do a lot of conversion calculating. Drivers did not stop or slow for pedestrians so we had to get quickly out of the way. Most cars were very small and parallel parked very close together. Most menus we saw were printed in several languages and most people we encountered spoke at least some English. There was a church service being held while we were exploring the impressive St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Vienna. We walked miles on cobblestone sidewalks and narrow streets. We enjoyed shopping and sightseeing on pedestrian streets. We saw street performers and a political demonstration.

While we saw incredible wealth, history, and beauty, we also had a glimpse of the darker side of Central Europe.

In contrast to the warm and sunny weather we had most of the trip, our first morning in Prague was cool and rainy. This seemed appropriate for our visit to a concentration camp north of the city.

I heard adults and students alike questioning whether or not it was appropriate to visit a concentration camp on our Europe tour. This was a difficult but invaluable experience for us all. My only regret is that as with much of the trip, we were in a large group and there was little time to stop and reflect.

The camp was built as a fortress in 1780 by Joseph II, ruler of the Austrian Empire, and named Terezin in honor of his mother, the Empress Maria Theresa.

Thousands of men, women, and children were imprisoned in Terezin during World War II. This was not an extermination camp, but used mainly to hold people before they were sent to other camps and almost certain death. Thousands died in Terezin during the Nazi occupation from the appalling living conditions, illness, and torture. Even after liberation many died due to a typhoid epidemic.

What we’ve seen in books or on TV does not compare to actually being there and feeling the horror of it. The details of what we saw and heard have made a lasting impression on us. Partway through our tour we encountered a group of high-schoolers who had just arrived. They were laughing and chattering on their way in, in stark contrast to our group which was now silent and somber with a few tears falling, some holding hands or leaning on each other for comfort. What a difference a few minutes in such a place can make.

Fifty-six of us crowded into a room which we were told had been used to hold eighty men, who had been required to stand facing the walls and use one corner of the room as a bathroom. This was very disturbing.

Another room had wooden bunks four high on three sides. We were told that six hundred men had slept in this room. There were no mattresses, pillows, or blankets. Each man had a width of fifteen inches on the hard bunks. There was a long table with benches where the men had coffee and bread in the morning and soup in the evening, their only food for each day. In between they worked twelve hour days in all weather conditions, clothed in World War I army uniforms. The room was not heated and the two bathrooms were open only fifteen minutes each morning and evening.

Even worse were the tiny holding cells used for punishment, some with a window and some completely dark. Prisoners in these cells were not allowed to communicate or smile. One punishment doled out was ten days in a solitary dark cell with no food or water, a sentence that could not be survived. It seems unfathomable that humans could treat other humans in this manner.

I can only hope that as each new generation takes a glimpse at some of the horrifying things that have been done in the past that it will help prevent such things from happening in the future.