Dachau Nazi concentration camp

A few hours in a the first Nazi concentration camp from WWII furthers the haunting image of what is learned in school and depicted by movies back home.

The Dachau concentration camp seems somewhat peaceful given its terrible past. The main building on the camp is now a museum which provides a sobering account of its history and contains stories, photos and details about what had occurred there to over 200,000 people sent there. From the beatings, overcrowding, medical testing and experiments conducted on the prisoners and unfortunately much much more. The crematorium houses a chamber capable of gassing to death up to 150 at a time, in the next room is the large ovens used for cremation that can fit 3 bodies.

"Arbeit macht frei" is a German phrase meaning "work brings freedom" or "work shall set you free/will free you" or "work liberates" and, literally in English, "work makes (one) free". The slogan is well-known for being placed at the entrances to a number of Nazi concentration camps.