May 25, 2014
A day I had been waiting on since I was a young girl in elementary school had finally arrived. I didn't even know if this day would even come. I was going to visit a real concentration camp. When planning my trip I made sure to fit this in my itinerary. I originally wanted to visit the famous extermination camp, Aushuwitz in Poland but I would of had to miss Bratislava and Vienna so I decided to find a camp along my already set path. I researched all the camps in Europe and majority of them were along my path during Eastern Europe, which made sense since those were the countries that were taken over during WWII and where Jews were captured during the Holocaust. I read about Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp while researching camps. There were great reviews about it and many people said it was as authentic as you could get with how the camp was preserved. I added an extra day to Berlin to give myself the day trip to visit the camp and also decided to go to the camp with a tour. I met with the group at 9am by the Brandenburg Gate and grabbed some breakfast before heading out. It was about an hour north of Berlin and we had to take a couple trains to get out there. I met a guy in my tour group who had recently graduated from the University of Florida! He was only 19 and was doing a 2 week EuroTrip.
The tour was nothing short of amazing. It was surreal to be there. The same exact place that I had read so much about prior. I had learned about the Holocaust since I was a little girl and I could now see where some of it had taken place. I loved the experience but it was so sad to just think how something this tragic could happen. The tour gave such a detail insight about this exact camp.
Now most people that know me know I LOVE to take pictures. I've heard so many times to enjoy the experience and try not to take pictures but that doesn't apply to me. Everyone is different and for me I need to take pictures. It's a passion of mine, not to do professionally but a hobby that I love. So for me the pictures make my experience better. This is one of the reasons I didn't care too much for group tours. They're a little too quick for me because I have to listen to the tour guide then find the time to photograph. I made it work though and listened in and took my pictures at the camp.
Once the tour was over we all headed back to Berlin. I stopped by to take some pictures of the Brandenburg Gate and headed to grab some gelato. Do you guy remember Stefan, my German friend? Well, he's from Berlin and told me that it was a priority for me to stop by Potsdamer Platz to get some gelato. He didn't mention the name of the place just I went to the mall anyways and tried to figure it out. The Holocaust Memorial was on the way so I stopped by and took a few more shots. When I walked into the mall I saw several people with gelato and saw they were coming down from the escalator. I went up a floor and saw a huge line and realized I found the gelato spot. Well, looks like there was a hype about this place so I didn't hesitate to wait in the line. There were several mouth watering flavors to choose from but I stayed a little safe and got hazel nut and tiramisu. Wow, best gelato ever!
Since I still hadn't eaten I grabbed some curry wurst which is the signature Berlin dish on the way back to my hostel. It tasted similar to a polish sausage with ketchup and curry seasoning. Not bad! I took an amazing and much needed nap once I reached my hostel. When I woke up it was still bright out so I decided to head over to the Berlin Wall. It was on the east side of the city so I had to take the train out there. I got off at a stop before the stop for the Berlin Wall to see that side of town. It was very different from the part of the city I was staying in! It was a way more urban part of the city with so much graffiti everywhere! People were dressed differently, the food was much cheaper and I kind of felt in my element. I thought the graffiti filled streets were pretty dope...that is until I reached the East Side Gallery. The East Side Gallery is the part of the Berlin Wall that is painted and covered by art. It was beautiful! Just thinking about it now makes me so happy. I love the East Side Gallery! It took me about 2 hours to walk the whole strip and I got some amazing shots. By the time I got to the end the sun was already setting so I headed back to my hostel for the night.