Let’s make like a banana and split!

There is just so much to see and do in Berlin that just two days is nowhere near enough. For this reason we decided to split up on our last day in Berlin, with Brad and Cara heading out on an alternative tour of the city, while I opted for the day trip to Sachenhausen – the concentration camp which all the others were modelled on.

Obviously my day was considerable sombre so in order to not leave everyone feeling depressed, I’ll kick off, with Brad taking it up the rear (ha-ha).





Day two – Kylie’s version

When the Nazis came for the communists,
I remained silent;
I was not a communist.

When they locked up the social democrats,
I remained silent;
I was not a social democrat.

When they came for the trade unionists,
I did not speak out;
I was not a trade unionist.

When they came for the Jews,
I remained silent;
I wasn't a Jew.

When they came for me,
there was no one left to speak out.
Martin Niemöller, 1946

A trip to a concentration camp doesn’t seem like the most light-hearted way to spend a day and I know some don’t even want to hear about things like this on account of it being too sad and difficult to deal with; nevertheless I believe it is crucial that people see these sorts of things and spread the word as a reminder of the suffering humans are capable of inflicting upon one another. Turning a blind eye and not wanting to know was exactly what happened during the times such camps were in operation, and it’s through continuing to speak about what happened that helps to avoid atrocities like this from happening again in the future. Ignorance is bliss but sometimes ignorance is just ignorance.

As you can tell my trip to Sachenhausen had quite a profound effect and the entire experience was somewhat sombre, but very moving. Sachenhausen was the model concentration camp – the camp that the Nazis used as a model for their other camps across Germany and Europe. While it was predominantly a working camp and not a death camp like Auschwitz, a great deal of death occurred here through murder, disease and malnourishment. I can’t imagine what sort of emotions would be stirred up from visiting a death camp, but when in Poland I will most definitely go and see one – as said earlier, I really do believe it’s our duty.

I won’t share some of the awful sights we saw or the terrible stories we heard, other than to say it is overwhelming and well beyond comprehension. The day I was there it was five degrees, raining and with an icy breeze – I was freezing wrapped in a winter coat and scarf. The prisoners of Sachenhausen suffered through -30 degree temperatures in thin cotton pyjamas on next to no food. It defies belief.

When arriving at Sachenhausen you are greeted with wrought-iron gates which bear the sign ‘Arbeit Macht Frei’, or ‘Work shall set you free’- something which never actually occurred as the only way you would be free from Sachenhausen is if you left through what the guards referred to as ‘Tower Z’ – the cremation chambers. Not one person ever escaped from Sachenhausen.

It was also interesting to learn that the concept of concentration camps wasn’t new to the Nazis and many other groups have adopted these internment camps in the past – including the Russian Red Army who took over Sachenhausen for five years where they interned Nazis and other prisoners of war, after liberating it in 1945.

I’ll leave you with some food for thought that our guide mentioned to us... ‘I ask that you exercise your democratic right to speak up as it’s through your voice that we can help prevent atrocities like this from happening in future, because danger can creep up on you when you are silent.’

Day two – as experienced by Brad
Cara and I went on the ‘alternative walking tour’ which basically showed the underground culture and street art in Berlin. Much to Kylie’s disappointment I’m sure, we ended up with the female Jim Carey as our guide. In reality she was okay as a guide as long as you didn’t get stuck up the front walking beside her where she would say random things and crack up to herself.
The tour started in a ‘squat’ (which is a place where people live illegally as they don’t pay rent), which if you were not on a tour and just walked past you would have crossed the road (not in the way Sharon does to get to a sale, but more like Rob avoiding a small dog on a leash) as it was an old building covered in graffiti. Inside you were greeted by even more graffiti, and upstairs there were rooms converted into art studios, by street artists making everything from jewellery to prints. It was a very cool place and apparently it is bustling at night time with tourists and locals aplenty.
To keep it brief, the rest of the tour we looked at some art galleries, a lot of different street art where we learnt how to identify a few famous (in the street art world) artist’s work, and some murals that covered the sides of four storey buildings. It was definitely an awesome experience to see behind the scenes of a city that is so rich in culture. All in all a fun day of sibling bonding (haha Kate).

So that’s it for us and our time in Berlin – what a city! Our next adventure is to Amsterdam during the last weekend of October, so watch this space!

xx