Prague and Munich See, after a quick readthrough of the last post, it seems that I was just on the way to Auschwitz. I took the hour and a half bus ride to the complex in the town of Osweistien. Auschwitz is actually made up of two seperate camps, Auscwitz I and II. The first camp was made in 1941 and was intended to hold political prisoners and prisoners of war, but it eventually was turned into a death camp where many jews, gypsies and other minorities were sent. Auschwitz II is located about 3km down the road from the first and is also known as Birkenau. This camp was designed for the mass extermination of prisoners, with intentionally built gas chambers and incenerators. The first camp had used gas chambers to murder the prisoners, but the chamber was adapted from an air-raid bunker.

It was amazing to see how the prisoners were treated and how vindictive their captors were. The psychological damage inflicted on the prisoners was in a way more terrible than the mass killings and physical atrocities committed. Criminals were given more authority and privilages than doctors and the educated class. Anyone suspected of hatching an escape plot or communicating with the outside would be publically executed. What suprised me the most were the variety of cells designed with different intents of torture. It wasn´t sufficient to just make cells to throw people into to die, there were cells designed with low light and little air, there were cells that would allow prisoners no room to sit or lie down, forced to stand four at a time for the entire night and work the entire day. The premeditation was evident and sickening.

After a 2 hour tour of the Auschwitz I complex, I decided not to visit Birkenau...I didn´t think I could have learned more...I already had the point: Millions were murdered. This was coldly stated, but just ´matter of factly´ upon entering the gas chamber. There was a stone engraved with the words, "Thousands of people were murdered in this very room, please be silent and solemn. Try to remember those people killed". The walls were still living. In a place that engineered so much death, walking through the buildings and touching the walls, picking up the stones along the paths, grabbing the now un-electrified barbed wire fence, all of these things bring you so close to those who lived in misery there only 60 years ago...Their energies are still alive in that place, and will not be dispelled for a long time.

Krakow to Prague I did on the night train, arriving on Tuesday morning. Prague is a beautiful city, and after a while of running around on the rest of the trip, I took the time just to hang around and read, relax. I bought the Davinci Code in Krakow before I left and read the 600 pages in 3 days. I had a few beers and lunches in the parks around Prague, and used the internet a few times to catch up on some world news. I also indulged myself a few times too many. I got on the McDonalds sundae train...I ate 5 sundaes in 4 days. They have changed so much since I was a kid. Used to be able to get penuts, then they started charging for the little bagged penuts (surly because some allergic reactions forced lawsuits to ruin sundaes for the rest), and now you don´t get peanuts. I thought we used to get cherries too, but I could be wrong. At least I have discovered that the long battle between chocolate and caramel is finally decided. Caramel it is. Sorry Jenn, strawberry has no place in this debate.

Pawel came in to Prague from Rzesow on his bike friday morning. He took the 13 hour drive straight and arrived at 3am. Friday included some relaxing and recovering for Pawel and for me, reading a new book that I bought which I have on purpose guarenteed to not finish in 3 days by purchasing a boring text. With Pawel in the city it was having a partner in crime again, so we hit up a few bars and had a few beers. Saturday mostly the same thing, and I headed out to Munich last night at 10pm. So, I will be here now for a week long conference before heading back. So far it is working up to be a fun time, with 6 friends coming in...Should work to offset some of the less interesting aspects of a technical conference.

I will have to put a bit more love into these posts...in the next few days I would like to get creative again, given more time to expediate the message.

P  ¶ 04:19