Introduction: I wrote this post on 2017, and again on 2019 and in 2020, and I am writing again today. Why? Because we need to remember, and we need to remember also from the memories of the ones that are no longer with us. 80 years later, there are not so many surviving to keep the memory alive. They gave the responsibility of the memory to us, and we should be proud of that.
On January 27, 1945, the Soviet army entered Auschwitz and liberated more than 7,000 remaining prisoners.
In the General Assembly of 1 November 2005, the United Nations adopted resolution 60/7. Remembrance of the Holocaust.
Here the link to the document available on the United Nations Website
Visiting a place of memory is not always an easy thing. It shows us things that are not nice to see, it talks to us about war, death, extermination, and often we would prefer not to see and not to hear. I believe that instead we must see and hear, because “those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it”. This phrase by George Santayana is carved on the entrance of the first block of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum, on Auschwitz Extermination Camp.
Over the years I have had the opportunity to visit some of the most famous Memorials. At first, photographing was difficult for me, then I decided that I had to write about this, tell about them, just to not forget.
These are my places of memory:
- Memorial and Museum Auschwitz-Birkenau. This was my first “memorial place” visited as an adult, and intentionally so. “I suggest a visit to all the students, even if in some way it can be an uncomfortable visit, or maybe exactly for this reason. The experience is unforgettable” is what I wrote in my review
- Memorial and Museum Auschwitz II-Birkenau. In my review I said “We need to be silent when we enter these places. We need to remember what was perpetrated here, we need to invite everyone to visit places like this one.”
- Atomic Bomb Dome, where I said “It is never easy to visit a place like this, but personally I am glad I did. It is important to keep alive the memory of the horrors of the past, and I was very impressed by the many groups of school children visiting.”
- Peace Memorial Park - Hiroshima, where I wanted to highlight “a prayer for peace and a call to remember.”
- Mother and Baby in the Storm - The sculpture (I wrote in the review) refers to the protection of the mother, and has a deep meaning, as this protection was unfortunately useless in the “storm” caused by the atomic bomb. The vain and instinctive gesture should make us think, in a world where war no longer distinguishes between children and adults, soldiers and civilians.
- The Jewish Ghetto in Venice. “The museum, the restaurants and shops, the alleys themselves, will tell you the story of one of the oldest Jewish communities in Europe.”
I also wanted to talk about some of these places here in Connect, as in this post: She arrived alone and alone she left - the deepest memory I brought home from Japan
I firmly believe that this should lead us to talk about peace and friendship, instead of war, like in Friendship Without Borders - A Local Guides Connect Topic
Luckily for me, I have never lived in the midst of a war, but the area where I live has been the scene of terrible wars, and these memorials have taught me that In a war, nobody wins - we are all losers
Well, these are my most important Places of Memory, and today is the right day to talk about them.
Which are the places of memory that you want to tell? When did you visit them, and what did you feel?
Would you like to share a photo and your review?
