Weimar, Buchenwald

The mountain-top memorial to the people who died in this Concentration Camp, was visible from miles away, so we just headed cross-country, toward that memorial. The road was rough and twisty, and after a wrong turn we found ourselves in the middle of a large Soviet Army Camp. The very friendly guard, from Kiev, Ukraine, gave us instructions as best he could, but we could see he was just as frustrated as we were not to be able to communicate beyond the name of our hometowns.

At the Buchenwald memorial, on the top of the hill, there are three large areas marked as mass graves. The Soviet Government had erected huge concrete markers, called the Street of Nations, depicting, the sign said, each of the 18 European countries whose citizens were killed here. However, we found a sign in the main camp that said people from 35 different countries were killed here. We should have checked, perhaps the Street of Nations are only countries dominated by the USSR, and do not include Western countries!

These memorials were high on a hill overlooking the town of Weimar, and miles of farm land. It is hard to believe the horror that occurred within just a few miles of such beautiful, tranquil scenery.