Hannah Yang (third from l.) Learned About Holocaust Atrocities

Our visit to the Natzweiler-Stuthof death camp was, obviously, a profoundly unsettling experience. Student Hannah Yang writes about what she learned, thought and felt during the trip to the death camp in the Vosges Mountains.

Many of the Jews, “undesirables”, and members of the Resistance were brought to the Natzweiler-Struthof camp. The Nazis killed Resistance members by putting them in one room which had a slanted floor to the middle leading to a drain so that it would be easier to clean the blood when they shot the members of the Resistance in the back of the neck.

We also visited the crematorium which was a sad experience. To think that innocent people’s bodies were burned there because of others’ cruelty. What’s more sad is that if people wanted the ashes of their loved ones they would need to pay a price to get the ashes, not even knowing if they were the right ones. It was so sad that these things could even happen, and that they happened right in that very room where we stood.

It all seemed so unreasonable and unbelievable, what the Nazis did, that my brain couldn’t really make reasonable sense at all, but I’d rather have my brain not make sense of something unreasonable than make sense of something cruel.

I was taking pictures of the rooms and things in camp because it is my way to remember that I visited and what happened there, but somehow I felt like I was being rude and disrespectful when I was taking the pictures of the things in camp since this is a place where innocent people were killed and suffered due to discrimination, racism, and antisemitism, but I think it has to be done because this way it is documented to one more perso that something like this has indeed happened.

Jean-Louis Steinberg, An Auschwitz Survivor, Shared His Tale

Museum Without Walls returned to Memorial de la Shoah in the Le Marais, a district of Paris, to meet with a Holocaust survivor: Jean-Louis Steinberg. Students Glen Billinghurst and Stephanie Hewett, share their impressions of the encounter.

“The second Holocaust survivor we had the pleasure to meet was Jean-Louis Steinberg. He was born in Paris in the year 1922. When he spoke to us, he combined a lot of historical context with his life experiences. His story was long and detailed, but moving and very interesting. The most depressing news to hear was the passing of his wife two years ago. His entire immediate family was killed as a result of the Holocaust.

One of the most admirable traits of Jean-Louis Steinberg was his dedication and passion for whatever he put his mind to. His actions before and after the Holocaust wielded a purpose to give him some sort of advantage. An example, instead of giving his watch to the Nazis, he decided to throw it on the ground with the intention of breaking. Although a minor action, I realize that by doing so he expressed his ongoing will and dedication to the greater purpose of defeating the Nazis. Another significant action of his was when he decided to keep his name as a memorial to his father instead of changing it. His decision to keep his name reveals Steinberg’s strong sense of identity. That’s a contrast to Pauline, the first survivor who spoke to us: She had so many different names that it’s almost like she wasn’t sure of who she was.

With Steinberg, his dedication carried on throughout his interests. As a physicist, he did research for many years. He was married to his wife for 62 years. Not only is that an extremely long period of time, to be married for so long requires passion and dedication.

Steinberg doesn’t speak to garner sympathy, work as a speaker doesn’t contain the purpose to receive sympathy, his work as a speaker was to target racism within schools and just about anywhere else. Steinberg is an exceptional man, and his dedication is part of why he’s a survivor and why he’s so influential to me.: — Glen Billinghurst

The Wall of Names at the Shoah Memorial Lists Names Of Jewish Victims of The Holocaust

“We went to the Shoah Memorial Museum to listen to Jean Louis Steinberg speak of his experience during the Holocaust…. I was so honored to have heard him speak to us because it isn’t everyday students like myself receive the privilege to hear Holocaust survivors, especially when so many of them are starting to die of old age.

I became very emotional when Jean-Louis began talking about his wife. After finishing his survival story he mentioned he met his wife in 1946 and has been married for more than 60 years. The gloomy room suddenly became full of smiles and “awwws” until after a small pause when he mentioned she passed away two years ago and that he has been “a very sad man” since then. I then imagined how much struggle he’s been through from being a victim of the Holocaust and losing his family but was glad to see he had loved for so long after that.

One thing that Jean-Louis said that stuck in my head after he spoke was that the Nazis felt as if they were the superior race of the world, and that everyone who did not have blonde hair and blue eyes were inferior to them and considered “undesirable.” What Jean Louis said in relation to that idea was that when he had visited Israel most of the Jews had both blonde hair and blue eyes. I found that comparison ironic and was glad that he shared all of his experiences wit us about that horrible time in history.” — Stephanie Hewett

Museum Without Walls traveled from Paris to Alsace, a northeastern region of France, which borders Germany and Switzerland. On a cold and gray day, our group visited Naztzweiler-Struthof, an extinction camp in the Vosges Mountains.

We Enter Natzweiler-Struthof

Museum Without Walls visited Natzweiler-Struthof, an extinction camp located in the Vosges Mountains in the Alsace region of France. Natzwieler-Struthof was in Germany during WWII. It became part of France after the war. Sydney Patrick imagined what it would be like to be an inmate of Natzweiler-Struthof and shares some thoughts.

Entering The Camp: As you walk down a little hill from a modern building with landscaping to the entrance,  it feels like a different universe. It makes your stomach and heart form into knots. There is a tall, thin structure with a couple of windows at the top. Imagine a hawk watching your every move, waiting for your most vulnerable moment before attacking…. We moved into the camp, through the same entrance as the deportees although they were shoved through. There were a few single-story buildings in view. While walking down a long, progressive hill to the crematorium and prison house, I could picture being in the deportee’s shoes. Imagine the feeling you’d have upon entering a place where you have an extremely good chance of dying. You have  to say goodbye to family you may never see again because they have a good chance of dying also.

Cruel Games: The so-called  ”camp” — although my definition of camp is fun and happy — is surrounded by two barbed wired fences. If  a deportee stuck a hand through the fence, they were shot. The Nazis used this fence as a game — they would ask inmates to pick something up off of the ground outside of the fence, so they could have the thrill of shooting the target to death.

Burning Bodies: Once you’ve entered the crematorium, you see the oven that they called “inefficient” because only one body was able to be cremated at a time. The room with the “urns” (a flower pot) in which cremated bodies were kept was untouched. so was the room where medical experiments were conducted.

Evil Experiments: Doctors would experiment with viruses and war gases on random deportees. One doctor who was experimenting at this time was close to winning a Nobel Prize. How cruel to experiment on human beings.

The trip to the camp was very overwhelming, but it was good to make my ideas about the camp to come alive.

Charlotte Porter Had Doubts About Parisians

Student Charlotte Porter heard some initimidating stories about what to expect in Paris. She braced herself for hostile conditions. So what happened? She shares a tale.

“Dude you’re going to France? Steer clear of the locals — they hate us Americans.” These were the words of caution bestowed on me as I left the United States and they now echoed in my head as I timidly made my way down the Champs-Élysées in Paris.

In my haste to leave our apartment that morning I had left my watch on the nightstand; So there I was: in a foreign country, completely unaware of the time and petrified of most everyone around me. I finally decided to ignore my fear and tip-toed up to a woman wearing what looked like three-inch stilettos and smoking a cigarette. As I approached her, the voice of one of my best friends rang through my ears: “The Parisians — they’re stuck-up, they’re snobby and they want nothing to do with you.” “Pardon Madame” I asked her in French “Do you have the time?” She smiled brightly and told me it was half past noon. I thanked her, and walked away amazed. She had not been snobby or stuck-up; and seemed completely willing to interact with me. After this pleasant exchange I began to communicate more and more with the local Parisians. I found that almost every conversation was equally delightful. Most everyone was sweet, polite and extremely patient with my rudimentary French. Many of them engaged me in polite small talk about where I was from and how I was enjoying my stay, and a young couple even took me by the arm and led me to a Cathedral I was looking for.

The stereotypes of Parisians that had filled my mind left no room for a basic human truth: When you are nice to people, they are usually nice to you. So for anyone who sees a trip to Paris in their future I would not suggest that you avoid the locals. I would instead advise that you treat them as you would treat any other human being — with courteously and respect.

Hannah Yang Has An Eye For Photography

Shortly after arriving in France, our Museum Without Walls group received an orientation of the city via a scenic boat tour. Student Hannah Yang shares what she enjoyed about the experience.

Scene on The Seine

On our second day in Paris we rode on a boat ride on a river that goes through Paris, the Seine River. It was a round trip that was a one hour trip on a two-story boat. I enjoyed it because I got to sit on the end of the seat, and it was a good seat to take pictures as well. The tour guide, who told us the names and histories of the monuments, was a very thorough speaker. Her presentation was delivered in both French and English, but unless you were actually paying attention, it was very easy to not be alert to what she was saying. (At least for me because I was taking pictures.)

We were able to see the Notre-Dame, The Eiffel Tower, the Golden Flame, and more. It was also interesting to see all the many different bridges and hear a little about their histories. Although it started to get a little chilly from the wind, I enjoyed the overall experience on the boat ride

The Eternal Flane At The Shoah Memorial

On a visit to Memorial de la Shoah in the Marais district of Paris, we learned more about the atrocities. Student Kevin Mason reports.

On Friday we visited the Shoah memorial in Paris. “Shoah” is a Hebrew word which means “catastrophe”. The word “shoah” is used to describe the atrocities committed against the Jews during World War II, while the word “holocaust” is a general term for all groups of people that were victims of hatred during the war.

The most powerful and moving part of the memorial sits right at the entrance. It is a simple wall engraved with the names of 76,000 Jewish people deported from France between 1942 and 1944. People of all ages were deported. Some were over eighty years old and some were less than a year old. Of course, the very young and the very old are not capable of hard labor, so they were sent off to be killed. It might make one wonder what these people did to deserve such horrible treatment. The only thing these people were guilty of was being Jewish.

Included on the wall are several unnamed infants. Since those children were separated from their parents and were unable to tell anybody their names, their identities have been lost to history. Who know what these children could have done with their lives. They had so much potential to make a difference in the world. However, hatred and intolerance removed them prematurely from this world and took away their opportunity to live a long and fulfilled life.

We are extremely fortunate to have this memorial as a tribute to the innocent people who sacrificed so much and were so strong in the face of hatred, intolerance, and racism. The Shoah memorial ensures that we will never forget.

For Chesney Pettett, Paris Comes To Life

There is so much to absorb on a walk through the streets of Paris. The culture and architecture made an impression on student Chesney Pettet, who shares her thoughts.

Even though we came to Paris to study the detailed and intriguing stories of the Holocaust, I cannot seem to get over the natural beauty of the city. Everywhere that I look I see beauty all around me. From the people, to the buildings, to the smells coming from the restaurants. The more that I take in, the more that I begin to really look at the city for something other than what I have seen in books and pamphlets.

It’s much more of a complete story when you are actually here. As you walk through the streets, you see the buildings that have been standing for years and years. Buildings that the French families have walked by for generations after generations. When I smell the food, I’m reminded of the thought that went into creating it. I also wonder about who ate this first and made it become part of the food that France is known for.

Since I have been here I have seen the culture that is represented so boldly in this city. The pride and the colors of it all around. Do a full 360 and the images that go into your head are images that some people can only dream to see, while I get to see them for real.

Stephanie Hewett Is All Smiles After The Louvre

We’re learning about history, culture and also ourselves. Student Stephanie Hewett was inspired by a trip to a the Louvre, which holds such iconic works as Mona Lisa and the Venus de Milo.

As soon as we walked into the room that held one of the most famous paintings of all time, I was hit with the realization that I was almost halfway around the world from my home in New York City. Upon my arrival to France, I felt a little homesick due to the fact that I could not use my cellphone to call my loved ones and had no computer access to let them know I had arrived safely. Although I had the biggest knot in my stomach, my jet lag wouldn’t allow me to dwell on it. As soon as I sat down on the chair of the hotel room, my eyes slowly began to close on me. I’d find myself fighting to keep my eyelids open because I didn’t want to go to bed after just meeting Museum Without Walls Director Suzzanne Lacey.

The next two days were a little better because I got to meet everyone else who arrived from Washington State. What really made me feel more at home was visiting the Louvre. I know it may sound strange because it isn’t everyday that I’m surrounded by thousands of beautiful paintings and sculptures, but somehow being in the midst of such strong and creative artwork made me feel strong myself. I thought, “You can do this, Stephanie. You can be miles away from home and still enjoy yourself.”

Before entering the museum, I noticed how beautiful the Louvre looked from the outside. Most of the architecture in Paris is out of this world, but the Louvre was exceptionally beautiful. After viewing more and more art pieces it began to feel more real. It then hit me that I was in one of the most fascinating museums in the world, and I felt honored. The most important thing I rediscovered that day at the Louvre is that art brings me to life. Whether I am creating it by dancing or being inspired by the look of pain on the face of a naked lady in a work of art, I am becoming more comfortable with being myself in a country so foreign to me.

The homesickness quickly withered away after that visit to the Louvre. I no longer had that immense knot dwelling in the pit of my stomach nor worried about being missed at home. I felt like myself again and am excited to see what else I can rediscover about myself being miles and miles away from home.