Sad History lesson
Oh dear Friday, our vacation is coming to an end. Tomorrow we will be celebrating my parents 50th wedding anniversary and they are having a small party. Well maybe not that small when you have a chef come in who is doing the cooking.
We are going to decorate a little but like they said “please not too much, just don’t make it look like a camp ground party”! Yeah ok, thanks so much, like I ever would.
And anyways thinking about being married to someone for 50 years makes me happy but also gives me huge anxiety. Don’t you agree it’s somewhat scary? It’s the time when you get on each other’s nerves so much that you break out into an argument over the simplest things but when you are apart you miss the other. I don’t even know how to describe my parents relationship, it’s not always a good thing, let’s leave it at that LOL.
On our way home from the alps we decided to stop for lunch in Munich (München).
And then stop at the memorial site of the Dachau concentration camp. My son has been asking to do this for a while now and I felt like he was mature enough now to handle this sad part of German history.
I had seen Dachau on a school field trip already so I only walked around the site with our daughter (who is clearly too young for it), while my dad, hubby and son walked into the main building and read about all the horrible things that happened there. It is certainly something that shows our son how good he has it and that he grows up very spoiled.
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| I don’t feel comfortable sharing the rest of the memorial site on this blog since it is just so terrible. |
My dad was a little boy during the war and my son can’t imagine having to see the things his grandfather had to see. Or having to be on the run since my grandparents were openly against Hitler. I don’t know if you remember that I started to write and translate some of the things my dad remembers from his childhood. Our son read it and he was shocked.
Our son wanted to buy a book at the site’s book store and we left with the “Diary of Anne Frank” which he is now reading.
Like I said before these vacation blog posts are mostly for our son, because he truly enjoys them and he’d love to show them in his class. That’s also why he wants to write his own post possibly next week so he can show his friends what he saw in Prague. He had an amazing time and it warms my heart to see the lights in his eyes when he talks about everything he experienced.
Next week’s posts are uncertain because there will be so much going on, including traveling back home, sending the kids to school, unpacking and cleaning and getting over my sadness of having to leave my family behind again and saying the yearly dreaded sentence of “see you next year”. It keeps getting harder and harder for me the older I get. So if I don’t post, it will be because I’m trying to dig myself out of a black hole so we can get back to normal, ok? Y’all understand, right?
Tschüß and have a great weekend.
2015 post
Switzerland: Lucerne, Küssnacht
Switzerland: Fürenalp Engelberg
Honey, my best wishes for your Parents! 50 years together is really something! 🙂 Probably you already miss them… Have a good weekend and a successful event, Julia! 🙂
wow- so proud of noah for wanting to read the diary of anne frank… what a good kid with a big heart.
Sounds like your little guy is very well rounded. You should be proud. Hope you guys have a great last party. Safe travels!
A campground party…too funny!! I can’t imagine you doing anything like that! Have a great party and a great weekend.
What an incredible first-hand account for your son to get from your dad. It’s all totally fascinating to me in the most morbid way. Hard to wrap your head around such mass evil. Safe travels home and I wouldn;t worry too much about next week. Everyone will still be here when you get back up and running 🙂
You should be so proud of your son, Julia ~ looking forward to his post, I’m sure it will be a hit! And proud of your parents 50 years, not easy I’m sure! Happy return and we’ll all be here when life calms down! 🙂
Congrats to your parents! Hope you have a safe trip home! Don’t worry we will all still be here when you get settled 🙂
It must be absolutely overwhelming to stand in front of that place. We will be sharing that experience first-hand with our children in just a few short years when we make the trip to see Oma und Opa again. I am not looking forward to it, but it’s just too important not to share. I have such respect for you for sharing it with your son. On a lighter note…Herzlichen Glückwunsch zu deinen Eltern. (Please forgive my German). Safe travels back!!!!
We visited Dachau when we were there. Very sad indeed! What surprised me most was that it was in a “neighborhood”. I don’t know why I always pictured the camps being out in the middle of nowhere. I respect your decision to not show a lot of the camp. We do need to not forget though, lest it happen again. It could have been anywhere. I really have enjoyed your trip. 🙂
I really can’t express in a “comment” all the emotions that this post has given me! Your parents, as MC and I, have grown-up together! Being a “couple” for many years isn’t hard and don’t ever believe it’s “Happily Ever After”! Every marriage has it’s ups and downs and it takes a lot of work to keep it intake….basically true Love in many forms!
The other strong feelings I took away is the beautiful relationship your son has developed with his Grandfather!
Safe trip home. We can wait for you to take a break…….
Thank you for my wonderful summer vacation!
I made a mistake in my “comment”….it’s almost funny! I said “Being a “couple” for many years isn’t hard and don’t ever believe it’s Happily Ever After!!! OF COURSE I MEANT TO SAY, BEING A COUPLE FOR MANY YEARS ISN’T EASY…ETC.
Sorry for my error. I do get ahead of myself and should proof read!!
I’ve loved following along with your vacation posts. Thanks so much for sharing the wonderful architecture, the beauty of your home country and a part of your life through photos. Have a wonderful last week with your family and a safe trip home!
lucky mommy 🙂 to have your little boy wanting to know so much about history and reading about it too. I didn’t know you wrote about what your dad went through when he was a kid but it’s amazing you are doing this and keep it for your little ones too! 🙂
I can’t wait to read his post too 🙂 & hey don’t worry about not posting, do what you have to do, we understand you & take care, be safe on your trip! Hope your parents will have a beautiful 50th Anniversary (WOW! 50 years, Congrats to them!)
🙂
So many very cool experiences for your son! There is nothing like experiencing a bit of history when you have yet to learn much about it in school. It will make it so much more important to him. Don’t stress too much about getting back into the swing! Everyone needs breaks and family time and time to focus on what’s really important in life and not just what we enjoy and what we think everyone else expects from us. Happy and safe travels!!
Laura
Have fun at your parents’ anniversary party! Safe travels back to the USA 🙂
Julia, thanks for sharing incredible photos …it’s been fun traveling along. Have a safe trip home!
What a wonderful experience for your family, especially that adorable handsome son of yours. You are creating memories that will have an impact on his life…forever. I look forward to his post, as I always do yours. Thanks for sharing about this horrible section of our history. So sorry your family had to suffer through this time under Hitler.
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I think its so impressive that your son picked up the Diary of Anne Frank! I visited Dachau a few years and am taking my husband there next month. Thank you for the reminder of how important this part of history is even if it is a terrible reminder of the damage people can do.
He is almost done with the book. He can’t imagine having to grow up like that but it is good for him to know how peaceful his life is. My dad has been to Auschwitz and he said it is totally in tact and how it used to be. With horrible artifacts and he didn’t think my son could handle that place yet. So we had picked the right place to start teaching him about this history.