Facing History & Ourselves in Europe 2008

 Today we headed for Krakow and the bus ride took seven hours. Many of us had to finish reading I Promised I Would Tell by Sonia Weitz. Sonia is a survivor of the Holocaust who, along with her sister and brother-in-law, was the only member of her family to survive. As we continued through Poland, we noticed the land was very flat. We realized that was a big reason why it took the Germans only one month to take over Poland. Sonia’s book talks about the hardships she had to go through while she was staying in the camps. She created bonds with her sister Blanca and three other prisoners in order to survive. When her sister got typhus, Sonia and her friends helped Blanca survive by risking their own lives to take care of her when she was sick. They later did the same for Sonia when she was sick. She spent time in five camps and she was in the march of death days before Auschwitz was liberated. Before Sonia went to any of the camps, she promised her mother that the world would know what happened as her mother was being taken away.Sonia’s father planted a tree for her when she was born and we were lucky enough to stand by it to take a picture when we reached Krakow. When the Germans took over Poland using their blitzkrieg strategy they destroyed the Jewish section of town. When Sonia came back after the Holocaust, she went back to her home and found that the tree that her father planted for her still stood. Sonia believes that the tree symbolizes her survival because they both lived through the Holocaust. In honor of Sonia’s resilience we took this picture and hope to send it to her.

So far in our Facing History class, we have been studying how people throughout history have misused their power for their own selfish reasons and how past examples have influenced others in acts of mass murder. For example, we know that the Armenian genocide influenced the planning of the Holocaust. It is important for people today to learn from the mistakes of the past and educate those who do not understand. Today we took a walking tour of Prague, which is the capital city of the Czech Republic. We learned that the Jewish Quarter in Prague was left completely intact because it was supposed to be a museum to an extinct race. This tour was closer to home because it was led by a teacher named Ms. Neuschlova who once taught alongside one of our own, Ms. Powell. Ms. Neuschlova was accompanied by a group of 12 high school students in her class. Though it was raining uncontrollably, Ms. Neuschlova’s knowledge of this medieval city brightened up our day. We met the students near their school and introduced ourselves to each other. We then walked alongside the Vltava River in the Podoli region which overlooks the city. It was there where we learned that Prague is also known as “The City of 1000 Spires” because after every five houses there is a Romanesque styled Basilica. The city’s evident gothic architecture, which has been well preserved, stood out from all the other cities we have visited. We made our way to the Rotunda of Saint Maarten and then ascended 700 steps to the Castle of Praha. We concluded our tour at famous Charles Bridge, which was created in the 10th century, thus making it oldest bridge in the city. Throughout our walking tour, we visited many sites that were related to significant themes explored in our class. For example, we were led to a very interesting structure known as the Lennon Wall. What was once an ordinary wall in Prague is now covered with John Lennon inspired graffiti. This wall is a haven for anonymous youth and allows them to express their ideas, beliefs, feelings, and morals.  Many lyrics from songs by the Beatles were written on this wall. The quote that stood out the most in the center of the mural was “Some may say that I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one”. During the time of Communist rule, many young people needed to express their views on important issues, including their limited rights. This made me think about the youth in the United States and how many freedoms we have. Some of us even left our own names and messages on the wall. The highlight of the day was meeting with the students from the Czech Republic. Meeting with these students gave me a glimmer of hope. Though we all came from different cultures, and completely different countries, we found a common ground just being normal teenagers, trying to find out more about ourselves and the world we live in. This shows that things can change in our world for the better if we all use our words and actions for good. 

Tour of PragueOriginally uploaded by fhaotba Overlooking the “city of 1000 spires.”