A Somber Day

Oh gosh ... a very somber day ... we traveled to the site of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp outside of Hamburg today.  A place full of such sadness and horror.

There is nothing left of the camp these days -- the liberating forces burned all the buildings to the ground when they came to free the prisoners because of the danger of spreading diseases.  Nonetheless, the mass graves remain -- a sobering sight, especially as they are now in a vast park-like area which weirdly reminded me of a golf course.  It is very peaceful now, with only the sound of birdsong to be heard, but there is still very much an atmosphere of overwhelming grief and heartache.

The memorial to Anne Frank and her sister Margot is not their actual burial site, but a stone placed there in their memory.

The extra is a photograph which is part of an exhibition in the museum building adjacent to Bergen-Belsen.  It just broke my heart to read the accompanying description.

... And more sadness upon our return to the ship to learn of the Pope's death.