Sachsenhausen

On Wednesday Toby, Gina and I visited Sachsenhausen, the Nazi concentration camp just 35 km from Berlin. Although our visit was necessary, it was disturbing for countless reasons. On the train we passed pristine forests, turned sinister by the memory of the death marches. Taking the short walk from the train station to the camp we passed houses that were there in the 1940s; prisoners walked the same streets to the trains and factories, passing homes occupied by families, every day.

Over 30,000 people died at Sachsenhausen due to overwork, illness, exhaustion, disease and extermination. There is a grassy area near the entrance set aside for memorials erected by families of the victims. These days the camp is somewhat sterile, with most of the buildings, including the barracks, laundry, mess hall, infirmary, morgue, prison and guard houses turned into museum-like exhibits.