Erfurt, 11:00 pm
Wittenberg was a rushed three days with a great host family and very little free time. I was catching up on sleep from the time in Berlin when I wasn't running around with my host sister, but I think I'm doing pretty well by now.
Today we took a day trip to Weimar by train, about a 20 min trip or so. We had a tour of Buchenwald concentration camp, which was...well, effective to say the least. I've read dozens of stories about the Holocaust and such, but being in the actual place was a heavy experience. The sheer expanse of it is amazing...the fact that the Nazi regime had such a huge effect on the population. Our tour guide said there were 50 different countries represented among the inmates of Buchenwald. The camp was built purposely on the most weather-beaten side of the mountain it's on. Today it snowed while we were there, and the wind was bitingly harsh. The whole time I could only think about the prisoners who were made to stand outside in such weather for up to 18 hours at a time, wearing far less clothing than I had on, and I was shivering. It was hard to look at, but I'm really glad I got to see it.
The rest of the day in Weimar was more cheerful. For once during a city tour it was sunny (we seem to bring rain and snow with us wherever we go in this country). We saw the famous Goethe and Schiller statue and went through Goethe's house. I liked Weimar a lot. It's relatively small, and the atmosphere was similar to that of Lübeck. Lots of history, and especially a history of good literature, of which of course I'm a big fan. At the same time though, the history is so mixed, because Weimar was one of Hitler's favorite cities, and he visited it a lot. The shadow of Buchenwald, so to speak, hovers over the rest of the city.
We've seen so many old churches here, but they never cease to amaze me. Someone was practicing the big organ when we went into the Thomaskirche in Leipzig, where Bach directed the choir. Big organ music in a big church is great, really. And the cobblestone streets are everywhere..I'll miss that when I get back to the States. But I definitely can't wait to see all of you...love you all!
