The Auchwitz Museum – is it worth a visit?
Traveling along Route 44 from Tychy to Krakow, we will pass through the small town of Oswiecim, with a population of less than 40,000. It is definitely worth deviating then from the main route and taking a moment to visit the town – and above all one of the most important museums in Poland, the Auschwitz-Birkenau museum.
Why is it worth coming to the Auschwitz museum?
Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp is the largest Nazi concentration camp – about 1.2 million prisoners lost their lives here. This place will forever go down in the history of Poland and beyond – it is the most moving evidence of how much cruelty man is capable of inflicting on another representative of his species. It is for this reason, among others, that this place is worth visiting. However, this is not the only reason.
This is because, emotional aspects aside, the Auchswitz-Birkenau Museum is an extremely important place from a historical point of view. After all, the concentration camp that Nazi Germany built here is undoubtedly one of the most important facilities built in the 20th century.
What can you see at the Auschwitz Museum?
During a visit to the museum we will be able to see, among other things:
- prisoner barracks
- unloading ramp
- the ruins of the gas chambers
- the ruins of the crematoria
Probably the most characteristic element of the camp is the entrance gate with the inscription “Arbeit Macht Frei” (“Work Makes Free”). You should spend between 120 and 180 minutes to visit the entire Auschwitz museum, including the Auschwitz-II-Birkenau facilities.
Who should visit the Auschwitz museum?
The Auschwitz Museum is not a facility that is visited easily and with pleasure. On the contrary – we will feel a distinct emptiness and despondency inside us throughout our visit to this place. After all, it’s hard to be otherwise, given the extremely grim history of this place and the number of human tragedies that took place here in just a few years. Therefore, this is not a place that every person should necessarily visit. This is because one should first develop the right mental attitude and prepare thoroughly. In a place like the Auschwitz Museum, even the sound of a phone call, including after the tour itself, can be perceived as a big gaffe.
So who should visit the Auschwitz Museum? This visit requires appropriate mental maturity, so it is recommended primarily for adults and older teenagers. There is no question of fooling around, or even small jokes – any such behavior will be a huge indecency. It is also not likely to be a recommended place for the youngest, rambunctious children – for they will try to give vent to their energy, and the Auschwitz museum is one of the last places where this should be allowed.
However, a trip to this museum can prove to be an extremely important experience in terms of a person’s spiritual and personal development. For this reason, a visit here should be made by mentally mature people who are passionate about history, or who want to try to understand the tragedy that happened here.