Reflections on Warsaw, Tykocin and Treblinka

Sophie Kanter:
“Today was othe second day of our trip. First we went to the deportation place or the umhschalplatz in Warsaw. This is where the Jews of the Warsaw Ghetto waited for the trains that took them to Treblinka. We heard stories of people being deported. We held a ceremony there and reflected on the names of those who went to their deaths. After this we went to Tykocin; my group was responsible for the ceremony in the Forest. It was very, very sad and we reflected on those who were murdered in this forest. It was very sad and we lit candles. This was very interesting for me because this was what our group had researched before we went on the trip. We also sang Hatikvah as this was the song the Jews sung as they marched through the Forest to their deaths. Following this we went to Treblinka. It is a huge memorial filled with thousands of stones representing little villages, towns, and major cities in Europe where Jews once lived. We saw the monument that represents the town where Sarah Warren’s family was from. In the middle of this rather peaceful and somewhat beautiful area is a huge monument that represents where the gas chambers once stood. We all gathered there and had a lot of discussions about what was lost and our feelings about the trip. This was probably the saddest part of the day. It was a really interesting day but it was very sad.”

Lauren Marmer:
“Today we went to the three mass graves in the Forest which was pretty intense. It was really beautiful in the forest but it was so sad to see where mass murders occurred in this beautiful forest. We also were on the bus forever today! We went to Treblinka and saw the huge monument representing the gas chambers and we saw the stone representing Sarah’s family’s community. It was so sad hearing the stories and talking about it. It was really emotional for me; I almost walked away. I cried and was very emotional. I was surprised I would react this way. I think the Polish people can be somewhat rude but I think the country is beautiful. Believe it or not I am having fun, too!”

Jeff Spitz:
I am calling on our first full day of Poland. I have enjoyed our trip so far even though we have had some long bus rides and long waits. Today we saw Treblinka, the concentration camp, and it was pretty intense and there were just monuments; no remains of the gas chambers. But even with that it was pretty cool to see. Something I learned from this trip is that before, when I thought about concentration camps, I would think dry land, cloudy skies and no trees. But, when I got to Treblinka it was really beautiful, birds chirping, forests and it was so weird that all these people could be killed in such a beautiful place. That shocked me because I always thought concentration camps were barren places.”