Auschwitz is a name that fills us with terror and it is not to be listed together with all the nice tourist sites of Krakow. Auschwitz is so much more than that. Auschwitz is a proof of the cruelty of the Nazi reign, and a place that should be visited to see, learn, understand and get a taste of what this was like. And then be filled with a pure disgust to make sure nothing like this could ever happen again!

Oświęcim was the name of this village until 1939. Then the Germans came and annexed the area, and the German name was the one to be used from then on, Auschwitz. There were several Concentration Camps in the area, but the most famous are Auschwitz 1 and Auschwitz 2 (Birkenau). If you join in on a bus trip from Krakow to Auschwitz you will in most cases visit both these camps.

Auschwitz I
Auschwitz I is what most people know from pictures and films, and this camp has the text “Arbeid macht frei” above the main entrance. According to Wikipedia around 70,000 people were killed in this camp, mostly ethnic Poles and Soviet prisoners. They also did medical experiments on “prisoners” in this camp.

Auschwitz II (Birkenau)
Auschwitz II, Birkenau, was built as Auschwitz I became too small. This is where the people came by train directly into the camp, and there the doctor decided whom to send directly into the gas chamber, and whom they should let live. In this camp, more than 960,000 Jews, 75,000 Poles, and some 19,000 Roma were killed.

A visit the Auschwitz is a must, and though it might be a dreadful sight and experience, it teaches us a lesson we will hopefully never forget.