Mauthausen-Gausen Concentration Camp and Vienna 9/14 - 9/16 2014

THE CAMP

Both of us knew this was going to be a difficult tour, but we felt compelled to see this camp. The day was rainy and cold, which seemed to suit the the tour.

There are not any photos but I am going to just give you a brief synopsis of the history of Mauthausen. 

Until at least 1942, the camp was  used for the imprisonment and murder of Germany's real and imagined political and ideological enemies. The camp served the needs of the German war machine and also carried out extermination through labour. When the inmates were totally exhausted after having worked in the quarries for 12 hours a day and many became too weak and ill to work. Initially, the camp did not have a gas chamber of its own and these prisoners, after being maltreated, under-nourished or exhausted, were then transferred to other concentration camps for extermination or killed by lethal injection and cremated in the local crematorium. 

The growing number of prisoners made the system too expensive and from 1940, Mauthausen was one of the few camps in the West to use a gas chamber on a regular basis. In the beginning, an improvised mobile gas chamber – a van with the exhaust pipe connected to the inside – shuttled between Mauthausen and Gusen. By December 1941, a permanent gas chamber that could kill about 120 prisoners at a time was completed.

This place was the saddest place either of us had ever been. Both of us were moved to tears many times and it seemed appropriate that it rained during our entire visit. 

VIENNA

I would love to show the photos I took in Vienna, but it appears I accidentally deleted all of them, including the pictures I was able to take of original works of art by Raphael, Rubens and Rembrandt. I cried when I realized what I had done, but have fond memories of this magnificent city. 

We toured one of the two Ringstraße museums were commissioned by the Emperor in order to find a suitable shelter for the Habsburgs' formidable art collection and to make it accessible to the general public. The inside of the building is lavishly decorated with marble, stucco ornamentations, gold-leaf, and paintings.

Madonna of the Meadow - by Raphael (from Internet)

After our Bob and I sat in a quaint cafe for quite some time enjoying a wonderful lunch, sipping coffee and people watching.

Here is the only picture we have of the glorious staircase at the summer palace.

TIME TO GO - The tour is over! 😕

On Tuesday we sadly parted company with our new friends, our incredible tour guide Fabien and each other. We had the adventure of a lifetime and is was difficult to have it come to an end. The Rick Steves tour is so much more than just a tour it is an educational romp of history. Every step of the way we were given the history of the areas in which we were in. Facts included everything from how peopLe lived, the politics of the time(s), wars and religion. We will definitely do another Rick Steves tour!

On Tuesday I took a flight to Florence to meet Margaret and Patti for our Italian cycling adventure and Bob caught a jet home. I am so fortunate to have the opportunity to ride in Italy and am grateful to Bob for supporting this next adventure. it was very difficult to say goodbye. 

Andiamo! And off to Florence!