Miriam's Adventure Blog: Miriam and Mom Take On Poland

We entered Auschwitz I and Auschwitz II-Birkenau of our own will, wearing two layers of pants and socks, and multiple sweaters and jackets, which we were not asked to remove. We were not separated by age, gender or physical strength. Only by our ability to speak English were we counted off into groups of 24 and lead down the path and through the gates that in English read, “Work Makes You Free.” My mom and I traveled to Poland to experience the horrors that our actual and spiritual relatives faced during the Holocaust. This trip is more than about feeling the sadness and oppression they felt. It is to show the perpetrators of these atrocities that we are alive and have not forgotten what they did, and in part to study our family history and to do so together.

During our seven-day journey, which I have named, “Miriam and Mom Take On Poland,” we will travel in Krakow, Zamosc, and Warsaw. What we have realized so far is that Krakow is a very hip and international city. There are many vegan and vegetarian restaurants, as well as cafes that provide cuisines from around the world. Additionally, like most of Poland, Krakow has a thriving Jewish community. In fact, Poland has one of the fastest growing Jewish populations in the world. In Zamosc, we will visit and research Pearl “Morris” Zimmerman’s life. Pearl is my great grandmother of whom I have many memories. While she was a proud American, she emigrated from Poland to the US circa 1920. In Warsaw, we will visit the sight of the Ghetto Uprising and board our planes back to our respective homes.

Today, we walked through the barracks in which countless men and women lived and died, but we experienced the facilities as an outdoor classroom where more than 1.5 million people perished. In Auschwitz I, the barracks now contain collections of human hair, suitcases, eyeglasses, and other personal belongings. To us, the most moving display was of 110,000 shoes. Each shoe represents a different owner and life. To compliment these shoes there were thousands of shoe polish brushes and containers. Each person sent to Auschwitz was allotted 25 kilograms of baggage, and because they were sent on cattle cars with the idea that they were going to a new and better life, they packed shoe polish so that they could look presentable for job interviews and for meeting their new neighbors. Yet, after arriving at the camp, they never again saw their belongings nor the sunrise and set. We were told that from the time a new train arrived with Jews from across Europe it took two hours for them to be processed and exterminated by Zyklon B gas. It is mind boggling to think that we spent four hours at Auschwitz, which is enough time for two trains, full of people like me, to be killed.

We left breathing and with our hearts beating, and with an immense gratitude for our guide who was so thoughtful and empathetic. She probably gives this tour everyday, but she still showed so much passion, and was so genuine and moved by the sights.

Now my mom and I can return home to tell the story of those left behind and what we saw. I do not write this blog post with the intention of making the reader sad. Instead, I hope you understand how moving this trip was. I learned many new facts about the Holocaust, which I had not been taught in Hebrew school. For example, seven Polish villages and 300 homes were destroyed to make Birkenau. Unfortunately, discrimination, war, and genocide still exists in our world today. I wish for a more peaceful world where people are no longer judged based on their religious, ethnic, gender, sexual, nor racial identity.

Entrance to Auschwitz I - "Work Makes You Free"

There is no escape...

While it is the Jewish tradition to leave stones and candles, it is the Polish tradition to leave roses at grave sites. There were roses throughout both camps.