We took a guided tour that left from the train station. I'll be the first to admit that the tour guide wasn't great, but the price was right and he handled all of the transportation. It wouldn't have been bad to do it on our own, but given I had a flight at 3PM it was best to be led around.
Gates into Dachau that separated the prisoners from the outside world (well, the guns, electric fences and dogs helped with that separation as well). The irony was that German phrases all over the camp implied that the centre was for rehabilitation, i.e. that hard work would set you free. In most cases, it was freedom, but in a very different sense. So many died at Dachau.
Off in the distance, there were huge thunder clouds which just seemed appropriate for the visit. The tour went through the barrack areas which had been destroyed, replicas, the special prisoner areas, the shower facilities and the kitchens. It also took a look at the crematoriums and the gas chambers there (they were never used at Dachau, but were being set up just in case). Extra ordinate numbers of people were housed at the camp with little to no sanitation. It was horrific to see and listen to the commentary in the museum.
A few things struck me:
1. How close residential housing was to the camp now and how close it was back then. How do people live there knowing what happened back then and how did people live there ignoring what was going on.
2. Apparently after the war, some people relocated to the camp and set up living quarters, including a pub. What a horrific thing to do.
3. It continues to be strange to tour WWII sites in Germany. Given everything that happened there, it doesn't seem right to create tourist sites.
After a heavy morning, we went back to Munich and grabbed Weinerschnitzel and potatoes, which is a must have for me in Germany....then I had to run for the train to the plane. Sad to leave B and M!!!
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