There are two things that stick firmly in my mind about the Birkenau site. Firstly the sheer size of the complex. It is huge and stretches as far as the eye can see. Secondly, as you walk around the site you begin to realise that Birkenau was built with a very serious purpose probably with just one aim in mind. Specially built gas chambers and crematoria. State-of-the-art constructed sewerage facilities. The inbound railway line and platform/ramp. Stone floored accommodation huts. All of this impressive infrastructure makes one realise that this facility was very well planned indeed.
There are many ‘attractions’ at Birkenau that leave a lasting impression. We walked down the railway line and at the end of the line to either side are the remains of two gas chambers. As you walk around the ground by the twisted remains of the structures, you wonder what you are trampling on and it makes one very reflective indeed. Further on is a Holocaust Memorial, a rather sombre (for obvious reasons) sculpture and stone collection.
One of the most haunting sights is looking at the possessions of prisoners, many of whom died within moments of arriving at Birkenau. To look at their pathetic belongings that have been preserved in tact, including suitcases, shoes, spectacles and so on. The emotions simply well up inside. There are also hundreds of photos of family units – father, mother, sons and daughters from far happier times. The family name and the date they perished in Birkenau is displayed. I recall one family portrait, the daughter aged 12 sitting at a grand piano with her parents standing proudly behind her. All were exterminated on arrival.
For me personally, the most emotionally spot was what is known as the ‘little wood’ and neighbouring pond. The wood is indeed tiny, more like a copse really. After leaving the train, those selected for immediate extermination were brought to the wood to await their fate. Little could they have known. Just walking through the wood was a haunting and surreal experience, imagining as we did what those poor souls must have gone through. And then the pond. On the day we were there, the pond looked so innocent with the sun glistening on its surface. And yet it hides the darkest of secrets. Into this small pond were deposited the ashes of tens of thousands of people, who were gassed at Krematorium IV. The reason I believe was that the ash was piling up and it was easier to dump it into the pond rather than bury it. Shocking.
As you open the door to go into one of the preserved accommodation huts, be prepared for a shock. To say they are basic and sparse structures is an understatement! Far more people were housed in each hut than was ever intended. The internal heating system it seems did little to cope with the harsh cold of the winter. The toilets consisted of a row of concrete bowls all together in a row in the middle of the hut; absolutely no privacy. The wooden bunks were three high. People on the upper bunks perished of the cold, whilst those on the lower bunks died of disease. Life in this setting, especially in the depths of winter must have been beyond belief. In fact, animals are kept in better conditions.