“Never forget…

After two delightful nights in Salzburg, we woke up to rain and clouds for our drive to Munich. The majority of the group wanted to see Ludwig’s famous castle in Bavaria…the one that was the model for the Disneyland castle. Ten or so of us wanted to visit the Dachau concentration camp. The only time I was in Munich before, we were told that Dachau was open all year long. However, when we arrived at the Dachau train stop, there was a sign stating the beginning January 1 (1983), Dachau would be closed on Mondays! We were so disappointed…and took the bus out there anyway, giving each other “boosts” to look over the fence! I was determined to see it this time, especially after visiting the Holocaust Museum in Washington D.C.
As we neared Munich, it became pretty obvious that the castle was going to be lost in the clouds, so the group decided (disappointedly) that it wasn’t worth the time and the money (2 hours each way, $30), so we picked up a few more on our self-made tour to Dachau. After a city tour of Munich with a novice guide named Teo (who had been an exchange student in Oklahoma in 1993), we grabbed a quick lunch and boarded the train for Dachau. We made friends with a delightful elderly German frau named Claudia. We discussed politics (she brought it up…who’s going to be your next president?). She said that the Germans really wanted Obama, because the older they get, the more they remember about their past history with war. I just listened to her and nodded, without agreeing!
Dachau was worth the visit. The gloomy day (light rain off and on) added to the somber mood. There we saw the main building, a restored barrack, a restored crematorium and gas chamber, and Jewish, Catholic, Protestant and Russian Orthodox memorials as well as sights of mass graves when the people were dying too quickly for the crematorium to keep up. There is also at a Carmelite Convent at the back of the property. There were originally 34 barracks, and the spots where 32 of them were are just marked with foundation-like structures of wood and gravel. The Carmelite sisters were praying on the site of where the clergy were housed. Those who made the trip with us were very moved. Some didn’t want to go, because they didn’t want to be depressed. But I feel very strongly that it is a part of our world history and that if possible, people should see it out of respect for those who died there. So I’m very glad I went.
We had a wonderful dinner of sauerkraut, sausage, salad, and lemon pie at the Ratskeller on the main square. They even served fresh horseradish with the main dish! We tried to go to the Haufbrau House afterwards, but because of the football match, it was packed. We stayed about 10 minutes, and then went to a quiet street café for our after dinner beverages….wine, pepsi, and hot chocolates!
We had less a less than stellar opinion of our hotel in Munich….another ACIS group was there, and we both gave them the “red card”! I had never used a red card in my life, but Abi, our tour manager, said that that hotel had been red carded four times already this summer! So, I guess ACIS has some work to do with them!