Facing History & Ourselves in Europe 2008

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

Today we visited King Ludwig’s famous Neuschwanstein Castle. This structure served as the inspiration for Walt Disney’s castle. To reach the castle, we had to climb up the mountain on which it sits. Our hike took about 30 minutes and included incredible views of the town below. Some students decided to take a horse carriage ride up the hill, while others chose to run.When we reached the top of the mountain and started our tour of the actual castle, we had to climb 134 stairs to the third floor. This floor was the only level of the castle that was ever completed. We learned that the castle had 64 rooms and only 16 were finished. King Ludwig really didn’t spend any time in the castle. In fact, he only lived in his castle for a couple of months. During his stay he spent most of his time in the dressing room, which can only be entered through a secret entrance door from his bedroom. We noticed that there were a lot of sculptures and portraits of swans. The swan holds significant meaning in Bavaria and also serves as a symbol of loyalty. We were surprised to hear that King Ludwig died at the young age of 40 and left behind no wife or children. His death came before the completion of his castle.After visiting the castle we began an eight hour bus ride to Prague in the Czech Republic. The scenery during our drive was amazing. From the windows on the bus, we could see beautiful mountains, some covered in snow, and landscape unlike any we have ever observed in America. We even noticed that one of the small towns had a ski lift. Another highlight of our day included the group discussions on the bus. We talked about what we experienced in Germany and our thoughts on the country, the culture, and yesterday’s visit to the concentration camp in Dachau.After eights hours on the bus, we finally arrived in Prague. Right away, we noticed the difference in the architectural styles from Munich. We were also reminded that after WWII, the nation of Czechoslovakia became Communist. At first they were encouraged by the propaganda spread by the Russians. They believed that Communism would be the best thing for them. Later on, they realized that they were lied to. They finally won their independence by marching in Wenceslas Square and demanding control of the government. Since there was no bloodshed it was called the Velvet Revolution.

Czech Republic Hostel

Originally uploaded by fhaotba

Our rooms at the Czech Inn are huge! We have clean comfy beds and some of us even have full kitchens. We leave tomorrow morning for Krakow on our bus. It’ll be a long drive so we are appreciating our accommodations tonight!

Click here to watch our students react to their experiences at Dachau.

Tags: dachau

As I walked through the gates of Dachau, it sent a chilling sensation down my spine. Written on the gate are the words “ARBEIT MACHT FREI” which means “work will set you free”. This is a motto I’ve heard so many times and now I am seeing it. The countless notes I’ve taken in class on the Holocaust, Hitler, and Germany have become even more real. Reading memoirs and biographies is a lot different from standing in the same spot where pure evil resided. We toured the whole camp and saw that there were only two barracks accessible out of the 60 that originally existed. This means that 58 of the barracks were destroyed because of disease infestation. The unbelievable part was that each barrack was used to house thousands of prisoners. The living conditions in the barracks were unfathomable and fit for no man. It makes you wonder what kind of sadistic individual would want to create hell on earth.We visited the crematory and learned that the building consisted of several rooms. In the first room, prisoners were told they would be given showers. The next room was where the prisoners removed their clothing for the showers. It was the third room where we saw the gas chambers. To stand where thousands and thousands of people were killed was extremely difficult. My heart dropped as I attempted to walk through the doorway. I actually couldn’t do it, but many of my classmates did. A significant part of our tour was walking through the museum on the camp grounds. I was struck by the pictures that I saw of the prisoners. Just looking in their eyes I could imagine all the things that these people could have become. They could have been doctors, lawyers and maybe even the next scientists who discovered the cures for the diseases that plagued the camps.

iChatting

Originally uploaded by fhaotba

At about 6:00pm in Munich, and noon in Boston, we used the MacBook’s video ichat tool to say hello to everyone at TechBoston Academy. Mr. Noguera walked around the school with his mac while Maryam walked the camera around our hostel. Ms. Mcpherson’s and Ms. Henderson’s classes could see us wave and they could holla back at us! We miss you too!!

When I first heard that our plane ride to Paris was scheduled to be six hours, I initially thought it would be boring. To my surprise the plane ride wasn’t at all boring, in fact, it was fun because I was with my friends and they made it very entertaining and we were fed constantly. What surprised me the most was I had left Boston in the morning and entered Paris in the morning. It was only dark for about three hours.When we arrived in Munich we started to explore the city. Mr. Malanga guided us through a walking tour . The most memorable part of the tour was seeing the places where Hitler made his plans . Mr. Malanga mentioned that the same buildings, such as the Hofbrauhaus, had been there for centuries. It looked really beautiful and elegant from the outside and to think that so much history took place there. I learned that Hitler used to make speeches there and that thousands of people could fit in the building. When I went inside I was amazed by the lively atmosphere. The people felt so exuberant and ready for a celebration. I loved the music that was playing that made the room more lively. I find it amazing that the people of Germany are still able to make this place come alive even after all that they’ve been through.The town is really big, and has a lot of of statues in front of the Feldernnhalle. At the same spot we saw was a plaque that remembered three courageous cops that tried to take down the Nazi party. During the Beer Hall Putsch, Hitler tried to take over everything in Germany. Although he tried, he was arrested and tried for treason. Ironically, he was given a few months in prison. A charge like this was a death sentence to anyone else.

Tags: dachau, munich, travel

The Wombats HostelOriginally uploaded by fhaotba We arrived at our hostel at 4:00 in Munich on Wednesday after a looooong journey from Boston. We flew 6 hours to Paris, endured 6 hours in the airport, and then finally landed in Munich after a short flight. We were all very happy to check into our hostel, the Wombats Hostel, and get a good night’s sleep!

(sorry for the multiple posts but the video embed code from Flickr is not working – admin) Please click here to view a video about our travel to Munich. 

Get on the bus!Originally uploaded by fhaotba We boarded the bus from school at about noon for Logan.