Terezin

we visited the jewish ghetto, Terezin today. we were very rushed, and i felt cheated out of the experience. we were able to watch a video about the history of Terezin, it used to be a fortress for czechleslovakia in the 18th century. we walked around in the walls and some underground passageways. the guide showed us the cells that were unacceptable for one person to live imprisioned and the SS guard would cram 6 people into this tiny space. there were also exihbits of the art work that the children in the ghettoes made to capture the everyday lives of the prisioners and the sadness and lifelessness of the people there. what a humbling experience to know that i have family, friends and a job to pay for a vacation overseas and have enough money to buy souvenirs, and these people were stripped of their humanity and dignity, and all their possessions were taken away, and the families were split apart. they lived in attics, shared beds with people they didn't know and were forced into labor and the only thing they had to keep their sanity was their art and their religion.