Trip to Poland to see Auschwitz and Museums in Berlin

I've done many things since the last time I wrote in this blog. Just to keep it simple I will list the things I did and maybe explain a few of them along the way...

For our two history based classes we've had scheduled excursions of things related the Germany in the time of Nazism and the GDR. So, for class purposes we've visited the Freie Universitat (Free University) in West Berlin, visited a Stasi Museum and toured a Stasi File Collection (we were drowned with information about the Stasi aka the Secret Police in East Germany throughout the time of the GDR {before the wall went down}).

We only have class 3 days a week (thank god), so on the weekend I got together with 4 other friends and took a 12 hour night train to Poland! We only went for a day to visit Auschwitz, the Nazi Concentration Camp known for having the worst treatment of Jews and other groups targeted by the Nazis. I was an very hard thing to see because it wasn't just another museum with displays and facts. I actually stood in the same spot that these poor people stood before they were gased, worked or starved to death. I can't even describe the feeling I got when the camp first came into sight from the car. I had always read about this scary place, but to see it in person gave me the chills. Millions of innocent people were killed there and it's incredible to believe that a place like that still exists.It was a very eye opening experience and it definitely made me appreciate my life even more.

Despite the mentally draining tour of Auschwitz, Poland itself is a beautiful country! I wish we could have stayed longer, but we had to take a train back home the following night.

The train rides themselves were really fun. On the way to Poland we met 4 French guys on a Euro-Trip and on the way back we met 2 French speaking girls from the French Indies. They were all very nice and there accents were really cute :-) I love how everyone knows at least a little English, I wish people in the US all knew more languages.

Well the rest of this weekend I have been visiting as many museums as possible. We bought a 3 day museum pass and I've been to 5 museums so far, ranging from Botanical Gardens to Technology stuff. I am really tired of walking, but I have to catch up on reading because I have a midterm test on Wednesday! As much fun as Berlin is, I have to study! ugh...