Vienna’s Zentralfriedhof (Central City Cemetery)

On Wednesday, January 23rd, we made the most of our first full day in Vienna. The first thing we did was visit Vienna's Central City Cemetery. Built in 1863, it is Europe's second largest cemetery (second to Hamburg), stretching over 590 acres with 330,000 graves and 3 million interments. The only possible American comparison to the cemetery could be Arlington Nation Cemetery, but that is reserved for military personnel. The Zentralfriedhof is unique because it is non-denominational burial ground, with sections for Christians, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, and unaffiliated.

It was an important stop for us because of the Jewish sections. There are two sections, at gates 1 and 4. The first gate suffered extensive damage during the Kristallnacht (Night of Broken Glass). The second gate is still used today. In Judaism, it is believed that the God sent savior has yet to come. When he does, the dead will ascend into heaven. Because of this, Jews must have a proper burial and remain at rest and peace. This is why the Holocaust was a rape of the Jewish faith - most of the individuals murdered were lost. They were burned or thrown in mass graves. There was never a proper burial and most of the people to remember the victims were killed too.

The concept of a permanent resting place is very important to Judaism, which is why both gates at the cemetery has and will remain in existence for many years. In contrast, the Christian graves must be renewed every 33 years, or they will be reused. This saves space at the cemetery and makes sure there are living individuals that still care about the graves. This also helps pay for the upkeeping of the cemetery.

As we walked through the main part of the cemetery, we were in a well maintained area. We first walked through the beautiful cathedral in the center of the cemetery. Afterwards, there was a "VIP" section, with famous people including composers such as Ludwig Beethoven, Franz Schubert, Johannes Brahms, and Johann Strauss II, all masters of composing and decomposing. There was a memorial for the beloved Mozart, although his actual burial site is unknown. There was also a military section for the Soviet Army, who liberated Austria at a high cost during WWII.

We then took a trolley down to the Jewish section of the cemetery. This section stood in stark contrast to the first part of the cemetery. The front part looked decently maintained, but as we walked farther and farther back, the gravestones turned into faded, crumbling blocks, covered in overgrown vines and ivy. I noticed most of the graves dated before the outbreak of World War II. It was completely silent, an eerie stillness hung over the cold ice and snow. Animal tracks covered the ground and deer walked ahead in the path; like walking through a forest, we felt isolated from the city. I understood the Jewish struggle. There was no Jewish community, no one left to care, no one to pay for the maintenance of the cemetery. I thought to myself - "Time is a force of continuation - it has no memory, no history, no good, and no evil. Humanity within the context of time is just that. Time heals the evils of humanity, but it is up to us to remember consequences of our evils, so we never forget to love."

Arrival in Vienna

On Tuesday, January 22nd, our group boarded a plane and continued our journey to Vienna, Austria. We arrived at our hotel, put our stuff away, and immediately went exploring in the city. Vienna is absolutely beautiful. It is much more of a classic, romantic European city. Berlin is great, but much more modern, like New York City. As I walked, the old architecture enveloped me as I walked down the cobblestone streets past coffeeshops, bakeries, and all sorts of little shops. The pastries and coffee here are incredible!

PLEASE NOTE: Our hotel internet is terrible and I have to use the McDonald's wifi next to the University when I can. I understand I am behind on posts, but I will try and keep the blog as current as possible. AND McDonald's have chicken cordon bleu sandwiches...

                            THIS PLACE IS AWESOME!

The Oranienburger Straße Synagogue

On Monday, January 21st, we visited one of Berlin's last standing Synagogues. Before WWII, it was one of Germany's largest and most prominent synagogues, with a Jewish school and research center. It was burned and destroyed by the Nazi's before the war. It sat in East Berlin as a pile of rubble for forty years. At the end of the 1980's, the Soviet government decided to rebuild the synagogue as a symbol of resurrection. After the fall of the wall, the city of Berlin assumed the project and the rebuild was completed a decade later. The city salvaged as much of the original synagogue as they could. The building is only partially its original size, due to other buildings being built around it after the war. It is not a place of worship, only a museum and a monument. The reality is that there is not a Jewish community in Berlin to worship at the synagogue. The building stands as a hollow reminder of a community that once was an intricate and prominent part of the city only 70 years earlier, but is now nonexistent.

It was very sad to visit this place. There were policemen posted outside the building because antisemitism is still a very serious problem in Europe. After going through metal detectors, we walked through the museum filled with old artifacts and documents from before the war of the Jewish culture. This is what got to me. All the things I was looking at, I thought, shouldn't be in a museum. Jews still use these things and practice with this stuff every day. This is still relevant! And then it all clicked. It isn't relevant here, anymore. In America, we are removed from what happened during the Holocaust. We learn about it, but we live in communities with Jewish families. Jewish communities are still strong parts of American society. There are no real Jewish communities left in Berlin and many parts of Eastern Europe. Just hollow holes where they were, lifeless and silent imprints.

Berlin at Night - Food & Landmarks

This is a compilation of our delicious food and walks around Berlin after dark... sehr romantisch!

The German Transportation Museum

On Sunday, January 20th, our group toured the German Transportation Museum. This was one of the coolest museums I had ever been in. It was like the Air & Space Museum, but it had all forms of transportation - trains, cars, planes, and boats. It was fascinating to see the technological development of Germany (which was quite impressive) because I could compare it to America's history. The main reason we were there was to examine the involvement of the railroad corporations in the Holocaust. On display was a giant steam engine used during the late 30's through the war. Next to it was a typical cattle car that was used to transport Jews to ghettos and concentration camps. In a single car, the Nazis would cram roughly 100 people. Standing in the dark confines of the car, I was terribly disturbed by the thought of this. The cars were small and very dark. The only light came from one window, which would be covered up with barbed wire. Sometimes, when people realized what was about to happen to them, they would resort to tearing at the barbed wire with their bare hands to break it. If anyone made any sort of loud disturbances or were caught attempting to throw things out of the cars, soldiers would shoot the car. The journey from Berlin to the concentration camps in east Germany or Poland could take hours, if not days. People had to go to the bathroom and sleep standing up. In the winter, it was bitter cold. In the summer, the heat was choking and the smell was unbearable. It was very important to visualize this; it is impossible to imagine otherwise.

The East Berlin Tower

On Friday, the 18th of January, we went back into East Berlin and went up in the East Berlin Television tower. This had been built by the Soviet Union during the late 1960's as an impressive landmark of east Berlin. It is 290 meters tall. As Dr. Moser put it, they wanted something impressive to compete with the West. As we walked through security, it was the first time I noticed a difference between east and west Berliners. Dr. Moser has mentioned there are subtle differences in mannerisms and cultural values, but the personnel working the tower made those differences quite apparent. I felt like I had unfortunately traveled back in time to the Soviet Union of the 70's. The people were nice, but very serious. The security checkpoint was pointless; they searched our bags, made us throw out all liquids, but never screened our bodies. I'm convinced that they just wanted us to buy drinks at the bar in the top of the tower. We crammed in this tiny elevator that took us up 290 meters in under 30 seconds. I was the last person to squeeze into the lift and I accidentally stood in front of the buttons that go up. The woman working the elevator, a middle-aged woman with short brown hair in a uniform fit for a flight attendant, turns to me and sternly says "You go there; that is my place." That moment, in itself, captured East Germany in the 70's. It has been a running joke of the trip since. We are so very nice and pleasant in the east, but that is your place and this is mine. It was a nice piece of the old school. At the top of the tower, we had a 360 degree view of Berlin. It was beautiful!