tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496559191887463909.post8775006466485178270..comments2024-03-25T08:10:55.433+00:00Comments on March House Books Blog: The Krakow Ghetto Pharmacy and a visit to AushcwitzBarbarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05962552429792516213noreply@blogger.comBlogger48125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496559191887463909.post-82317715678048755212017-01-04T16:24:51.760+00:002017-01-04T16:24:51.760+00:00Thank you so much. It was difficult not to be sad...Thank you so much. It was difficult not to be sad after visiting such a place, but I’m glad we went. I’ve never understood why people can’t all get along, but I suppose that is very naive of me. Barbarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962552429792516213noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496559191887463909.post-30129357108862365972017-01-04T08:09:27.330+00:002017-01-04T08:09:27.330+00:00Excellent post Barbara. But as expected very sad. ...Excellent post Barbara. But as expected very sad. With time I find difficult to read more or watch more films about WWII. But I think it is extremely important to never forget what happened. (Mum's family origins are German). Thank you for sharing your experience. The Reader's Taleshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12701126931175725145noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496559191887463909.post-55454310927736147252016-08-26T06:45:51.872+01:002016-08-26T06:45:51.872+01:00You are most welcome Charles. Thank you for your b...You are most welcome Charles. Thank you for your beautiful words, they could hardly be more emotive. BarbaraBarbarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962552429792516213noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496559191887463909.post-30565282931058767292016-08-26T01:44:06.995+01:002016-08-26T01:44:06.995+01:00Thank you for your comments. I tried to make the p...Thank you for your comments. I tried to make the poem as emotive as possible.<br /><br />CharlesAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496559191887463909.post-87016689102505253682016-08-07T22:35:39.614+01:002016-08-07T22:35:39.614+01:00Hi Nikki, I absolutely agree with you – we must no...Hi Nikki, I absolutely agree with you – we must not forget. <br /><br />I finished The Kracow Ghetto Pharmacy last week. It is harrowing, but I’m glad I read it. I’ve also just finished The book thief by Markus Zusak. I saw the film a while ago, but the book is so much better (in my opinion). If you’ve not read it, you should – it is a brilliant, brilliant book. <br />Barbarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962552429792516213noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496559191887463909.post-76067576322036302362016-08-07T19:24:13.038+01:002016-08-07T19:24:13.038+01:00I think this is one of those places everyone shoul...I think this is one of those places everyone should visit in their lifetime. Nobody should be allowed to forget what happened and it should never be allowed to happen again (though similar things have been happening, just not quite to this extent). I've yet to visit, but I do plan to one day.<br /><br />Thanks for the recommendation... I'll add The Kracow Ghetto Pharmacy to me to-read list.Nikki - Notes of Lifehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15116292112164268244noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496559191887463909.post-39750540418254949892016-08-03T10:29:28.106+01:002016-08-03T10:29:28.106+01:00Hello Sue, thank you for the welcome.
I had forgo...Hello Sue, thank you for the welcome.<br /><br />I had forgotten about one of the displays in Auschwitz, but your comment reminded me. It consisted of letters and other paper items as well as 1st class rail tickets paid for by wealthy Jewish people. It seems they were utterly convinced about a ‘better life’ at the end of the line. It makes it all the more terrible somehow.<br /><br />I had no idea about the Stolpersteine plaques, what a lovely idea. I do feel terribly ignorant of what went on. It was touched on at school but nothing more, and it was not something my parents talked about – other than in a hushed ‘not for the children’ kind of way.<br /><br />Thank you for the link and the information, I found it really interesting. <br />Barbarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962552429792516213noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496559191887463909.post-18028185089852612932016-08-02T19:11:48.020+01:002016-08-02T19:11:48.020+01:00It was a very moving day and one I will never forg...It was a very moving day and one I will never forget.<br />Anne Frank’s house is on my must see list. <br />Thank you for coming over and saying hello, Barbara.<br />Barbarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962552429792516213noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496559191887463909.post-60260330989922334992016-08-02T15:45:56.034+01:002016-08-02T15:45:56.034+01:00Fascinating to read this post and your latest one ...Fascinating to read this post and your latest one on the delights of Krakow. And welcome back!<br /><br />Living in the middle of Germany, as I do, I am acutely aware of what happened here in the period 1933-45. At our local train station, for example, there is a board of photographs taken during the late 1930s of Jewish people from the local area getting onto trains going East. I say getting onto as there were no guards with whips or guns, or cattle trucks. The people are well-dressed, carrying their suitcases, and in family groups. You can only imagine that they genuinely believed that they were being sent away temporarily to work. The people are named, and their ages at the time of the photos given. The seeming calm of it all makes it all the more chilling.<br /><br />I thought you might also be interested in the 'Stolpersteine' monument, started by artist Gunter Demnig which places small brass plaques in the pavement outside homes where Holocaust victims lived. In commemorating their last chosen home, this commemorates their life rather than the terrible circumstances of their death. We have a few in our local villages:<br />https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stolperstein<br /><br />Sue Imgrundhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16561248973128136601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496559191887463909.post-71106796704940218642016-08-02T04:17:58.425+01:002016-08-02T04:17:58.425+01:00This is so moving.
Had been only to the Anne Frank...This is so moving.<br />Had been only to the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam so far. Will visit this place one day.Haddockhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11573906991666088642noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496559191887463909.post-6761398329737231852016-07-30T16:27:24.366+01:002016-07-30T16:27:24.366+01:00
Hello Stephanie, I am constantly amazed at how a...<br />Hello Stephanie, I am constantly amazed at how anyone survived such an ordeal, but it just shows how strong the human spirit is. You are absolutely right it must never be forgotten. <br />Barbarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962552429792516213noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496559191887463909.post-78174673999986799232016-07-30T16:16:33.483+01:002016-07-30T16:16:33.483+01:00Hello Aunt Mary, I don’t feel at all brave just te...Hello Aunt Mary, I don’t feel at all brave just terribly sad. I understand why you had difficulty sleeping; these things do play on the mind.Barbarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962552429792516213noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496559191887463909.post-71587785353780853332016-07-30T16:13:44.723+01:002016-07-30T16:13:44.723+01:00Hello Alex, you are absolutely right. It is beyon...Hello Alex, you are absolutely right. It is beyond incomprehensible and terribly, terribly sad. Barbarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962552429792516213noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496559191887463909.post-56474844282681734822016-07-30T04:40:23.438+01:002016-07-30T04:40:23.438+01:00Barbara- I visited Auschwitz and Birkenau 8 years ...Barbara- I visited Auschwitz and Birkenau 8 years ago when I was in Poland for the first time visiting with my husband's family. You described the sadness perfectly. I was shocked by how much bigger the camps were than I had expected. Seeing the shoes, living conditions, and all the pictures of prisoners was heartbreaking. My husband's great aunt was a prisoner and knowing she had survived such awful conditions was overwhelming. The museum is an important reminder that we can never let history repeat itself! <br /><br />Thanks for sharing. Stephanie@Fairday's Bloghttp://thesecretdmsfilesoffairdaymorrow.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496559191887463909.post-68217117635220016402016-07-30T03:14:53.976+01:002016-07-30T03:14:53.976+01:00Hello Barbara,
You are really brave that you visit...Hello Barbara,<br />You are really brave that you visited that place. But I can understand that it would have been so difficult for you to write about it. Years ago I saw a movie about auschwitz which made me very sad.I couldn't even sleep for the next few days.<br />Thank you for sharing your experience.<br /> <br />Aunt Maryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13732663968352463136noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496559191887463909.post-91415436614278853062016-07-29T14:14:14.409+01:002016-07-29T14:14:14.409+01:00This is truly a difficult place to visit. It'...This is truly a difficult place to visit. It's hard to comprehend how it was ever allowed to come into existence let alone commit the kinds of crimes against humanity that did happen there. Thanks for sharing your visit and your reactions to Auschwitz. Alexhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15988251415347075888noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496559191887463909.post-3503891182289328192016-07-28T16:04:36.850+01:002016-07-28T16:04:36.850+01:00Hello Marcia, I’ve done a lot of thinking about my...Hello Marcia, I’ve done a lot of thinking about my reactions to Auschwitz, and maybe your son had to do a similar thing. It is not an easy place to visit and even harder to talk about. <br />I know what you mean about the breaks getting longer – sometimes I wish the world would slow down a bit so that I could catch up! Thanks for coming over. Barbarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962552429792516213noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496559191887463909.post-13425618254823388842016-07-28T15:59:49.598+01:002016-07-28T15:59:49.598+01:00I was in Andover yesterday afternoon, and it felt ...I was in Andover yesterday afternoon, and it felt like every other person was trying to ‘catch’ a Pokemon character. I can see the fun in it, and it is getting kids out of their bedrooms and out walking but there has to be a time and a place and Auschwitz is most certainly not the place. <br /><br />I saw something in the news earlier where they said Japan is asking for the Fukushima nuclear exclusion zone to be classified as a no-go area for Pokémon after the discovery of at least one of the game’s characters on a power station’s site. How worrying is that?<br />Barbarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962552429792516213noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496559191887463909.post-50603916484839123492016-07-28T09:19:42.066+01:002016-07-28T09:19:42.066+01:00Hello Shashi, lovely to hear from you. To be hones...Hello Shashi, lovely to hear from you. To be honest this post was rather more difficult than most. It is such a sensitive issue and being wary of upsetting anyone I decided less was probably more. <br />When I was growing up it was discussed in a ‘not in front of the children’ kind of way, which left me with a hazy idea of what happened. Of course, I’ve read and learnt more as I’ve got older, but it really didn’t prepare me for the horror of it all, and I’ve felt a bit low ever since. <br />Your experience at the Jewish museum in Berlin sounds very similar to a visit to Auschwitz. Most people were subdued throughout the tour but once inside the museum it was impossible not to shed tears. The thing that really surprised me was the tour guide who cried along with us. I spoke to her afterwards, and she recalled her grandfather’s memories and said it was because of him that she does the work she does. I don’t think I will ever forget the things she said both on the tour and afterwards. Barbarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962552429792516213noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496559191887463909.post-60023742415053778062016-07-28T00:40:28.667+01:002016-07-28T00:40:28.667+01:00Thanks for sharing this sad, but interesting post....Thanks for sharing this sad, but interesting post. My son visited there, but was a bit quiet about it when he returned. Now I have a better sense of what he witnessed as a young student. Looking forward to hearing more about your time away from blogging and before I forget---welcome back! My blogging breaks seem to be getting longer and longer, as well...but I'll have a new post soon.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496559191887463909.post-83111464287064545682016-07-27T16:20:10.476+01:002016-07-27T16:20:10.476+01:00I also had the honour of visiting Auschwitz when I...I also had the honour of visiting Auschwitz when I participated in an exchange programme with a group of young Polish people. Amazing to see the reaction of the British teenagers, it brought it home even more that the families of the Polish young people had their personal memories that they kindly shared with us. Having broken down at the sight of the shoes and all that hair, I'm afraid I couldn't bring myself to go into the gas chambers themselves.<br /><br />On a separate but related note can I ask what you think of the Pokemon craze which has seen people capturing what I believe to be a rat character within AuschwitzFelicity Grace Terryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17852843882007267665noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496559191887463909.post-21911275443994551272016-07-27T12:34:26.604+01:002016-07-27T12:34:26.604+01:00Dear Barbara you were very brave to visit the plac...Dear Barbara you were very brave to visit the place and you have very eloquently put your feelings and experiences down. Whenever I read or see films about auschwitz my heart is greatly saddened. But you know in some ways I am glad that I know about it. As a little girl and in my school we never learnt about this. But my dad was an avid reader and he would bring some wonderful books home which I used to browse through and one of the books was a full illustrated book of WW2. There used to be many pictures. Ofcourse I didn't fully understand a lot of it at that time even though my dad tried to explain in simple terms to me but it made me curious to know and as I grew older I began to understand little by little about the terrible events that took place. Last year I visited a Jewish museum in Berlin which had displays of torn letters written by Jews that were deported to Aushwitz. Many of these fragments were found in the camps. They were displayed in a tablet format and was such a poignant and sad reminder of those terrible times which many many people went through. Just reading those letters filled me with so much of sadness and I could hear many visitors men and women crying as they read the letters. So I am not sure how I will cope if I visited this place. However if I did get a chance to visit it I would visit it.Shashi Nayagamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12104875758016386977noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496559191887463909.post-68597274623359118532016-07-27T07:31:30.473+01:002016-07-27T07:31:30.473+01:00Hello Eve, it will stay with me for the rest of my...Hello Eve, it will stay with me for the rest of my life, but I’m glad I went. Barbarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962552429792516213noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496559191887463909.post-76718905164067287282016-07-27T07:26:18.888+01:002016-07-27T07:26:18.888+01:00Hello Bish, I’ve just read a couple of reviews abo...Hello Bish, I’ve just read a couple of reviews about The Nazi Officer’s Wife, and I am certainly going to look for a copy. Thank you so much for mentioning it. Have you read Born Survivors by Wendy Holden? It’s the story of three concentration camp prisoners Priska, Rachel and Anka, who are all pregnant when they arrive at Auschwitz. I’ve just started reading it having now finished The Krakow Ghetto Pharmacy. I think this is going to be the summer when I read nothing but Holocaust memorials. Have you noticed how your reading goes in ‘cycles’ like that or is it just me? I seem to get so engrossed in something I feel the need to keep reading about it.Barbarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962552429792516213noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496559191887463909.post-62934772266866107992016-07-27T00:45:40.839+01:002016-07-27T00:45:40.839+01:00Truly a sad post but educational. You are so brave...Truly a sad post but educational. You are so brave for going to see such a painful place. Intangible Heartshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05047040538015079182noreply@blogger.com