ilovetotravel29

Oprah is doing a special show on Auschwitz at the moment and it made me think about those of us who do historical and spiritual based travel. For example visiting places in different countries that may represent a familial tie, or a significant place in history, etc. I can only imagine that visiting such a place as Auschwitz would be very emotional and sad and make one ponder about the horrors of history and the evils of mankind. I think that I would definately be in tears to think of such monstrocities that occured there.

How many of you on here have traveled to historical or spiritual places in Europe not just to take pictures, but as more of a spiritual or emotional journey? Did you visit a special church that symbolized your faith? Did you visit a castle once inhabited by your ancestors? Did you visit certain areas that have a strong meaning for you on an ethnic or cultural basis?

And after these trips, did you come back changed or transformed? Did the trip help you in other facets of your life?

For me, I would like to travel to Ireland and see my family's crest and see part of where my heritage begins.

P_M

Back in 1997 I visited Northern Ireland and felt a strong connection to that country. At the time I didn't know why I felt that way, I just did. About a year or so later, my sister was doing research on our family tree and discovered that both our mom and dad's ancestors came from Northern Ireland!! Maybe my ancestors were calling out to me, saying they were glad I came for a visit.

Jean

It has been 38 years since I visited Auschwitz, and the memory can still bring me to tears. Looking back, my visit was 23 years after the war's end, and the place looked like time had stopped in the late '40s. I've seen TV programs about Auschwitz in recent years, and the place now looks so neat and tidy, un-evil, almost park-like. I accept that it is sacred ground in the sense of the thousands and thousands of innocent lives that ended there, but I think my memory of a menacing, awful place is the "better" reaction. I'd be interested in the thoughts of people who have been to Auschwitz recently.

In contrast, my memory of a visit to the American Cemetery above Omaha Beach is awe in the presence of the graves of men who gave their all. The park-like, open-air-church atmosphere seemed totally appropriate.

tower

Jean...I visited Dachau, Auschwitz, and Treblinka in the early 70's and again in the early 90's...I saw Hiroshima exactly 10 months after the bomb fell
(as a 17 year old GI)...two visits to the beaches of Normandy and the cemeteries, and I walked the streets of Belfast during the height of "the troubles"...needless to say, these sights and memories are still sharp in my mind. The emotions of the time engulf and permeate even the most hardened souls.

Stu T.

rosetravels

Often - we often seek out those places that have meaning.

I went to Auschwitz 10 years ago. It was a difficult visit. Extremely hard to picture what people did to others. I've also been to the Holocaust museum in DC but it was a cakewalk compared to Auschwitz.

My husband's ancestors are from N Ireland and we found Derry to be unbelievably moving. The last two men who died in the troubles have my husband's and son's middle and last names. They have a simple but moving museum of Bloody Sunday. And the murals brought back all the news clips - extremely vivid. Especially since the guard towers are still there, still facing the Catholic neighborhood.

BTilke

We went to Auschwitz in early March, when it was still very cold and snowy. I'm glad we saw it in the desolation of winter rather than in warmth and sun of summer.
My husband and I are hoping to take a tour next year called the Roots of Lutheran Spirituality, which covers the early days (and also contemporary issues) of both the Moravian and Lutheran churches.
http://www.elca.org/Wittenberg/roots...irituality.htm

xxxx

I suppose all of our trips to Europe are historical in nature--those are the things we are interested in seeing.

We don't plan trips of spiritual nature. However, I found Dachau to be very moving. It was hard not to think about the experiences of those who'd been there.

I was surprised by my reaction to visiting Fatima. I am born and raised Catholic, but currently do not practice. I didn't say I don't believe, I'm just not active in showing it. We went to Fatima because we were nearby and had time, not out of a sense of devotion. However, once there I found myself very moved thinking about how proud my parents and grandparents would be of my visiting a place of Catholic devotion. It was a pleasantly unexpected moment.

Pausanias

As far as personal connections go, I've visited the small Italian village my grandfather left almost one hundred years ago . . . but more gripping was a visit to a hill in Germany where my father spent a few desperate hours in the spring of 1945 fighting a Nazi counterattack. I could imagine the battle easily -- bomb craters still lie under the trees.

I also visited an emplacement on the Maginot line his platoon attacked and captured -- that involved a bit of trespass and some caving equipment.

There was a sort of hallucinatory feel to stopping at both places. Even now I can recall the imagined sounds of battle. Grim business.

When I showed him some photos he exclaimed, "What were you doing there? Don't you know it's dangerous?"