An orchestra played classical music at the entrance as the workers left the camp to work in the fields.
The classification system labeled prisoners so that they were easily identifiable. This system also helped rank among prisoners who would then discriminate against those they believed were beneath them. Rivalries thus helped the Nazis maintain order in the camp.
Prisoners
came to Auschwitz from all over Europe. The first prisoners were political protesters, criminals, and troublemakers. The Nazis then targeted undesirables: Soviet POWs, Jehovah's witnesses, gypsies, homosexuals, and Jews. Jews were easy to
round up because many cities had Jewish ghettos where they were forced
to live separately from the rest of the population.
The process for Jewish deportation was simple: round them up and put them on trains headed for Auschwitz or some other concentration camp. These official photos were posted in the Auschwitz museum. I display them here to remind viewers that most of these people were killed.
Whole families were arrested and taken to a train leading to an unknown destination. They arrive as families but were immediately separated and herded into lines where they are selected for life or death.
People in line awaiting selection.
SS officers prepare for selection as a crowd of people form a line and await their fate.
An SS officer decides who lives and who dies with a mere pointing of his finger.
After selection, soldiers casually move on to their other duties. People left their belongings in a pile that was later disposed of.
These women and children were among those immediately sentenced to death in the gas chambers.
A mother leads her children to their deaths.
The shower room. The beams were lined with spickets that sprayed the gas on the people.
For me it was the most difficult place to be in. I couldn't even take photos and relied on Google Images for these photos.
Scratches
on the wall made by people trying to get out of the gas chambers. After
the gassing, the guards had a difficult time opening the door to take
out the bodies; people were crowded at the door also trying to get out.
A memorial for those who died in the gas chambers.
The Nazis collected these things, and the museum put them on display.
Empty canisters of Zyklon B, a hydrogen cyanide poison used in the gas chambers to kill 1 million people efficiently. It was originally used as a common disinfectant and insecticide.
Dishes, pots, teapots, and basins prisoners brought with them in the hopes that they would leave the camp alive.
Suitcases with people's names on them, and piles of shoes taken from prisoners. 
I was surprised that the
buildings were substantial, that is, made of brick. The camp had
formerly been the barracks for Polish soldiers, which the Nazis took
over after they invaded Poland in September 1939.The buildings housed the
workers who were spared from death although they were jammed into small spaces; several people shared the same bed. The room on the right was a bit more spacious. It was reserved for those who
performed special duties for the Nazis.
Roll
call took place between these buildings. It could sometimes take 3-5
hours while people clad only in their prison pajamas stood at attention in all kinds of weather.
Barbed wire was everywhere. You always knew you were a prisoner.
"Mother and Child"
I had long wanted to visit a concentration camp and was glad that Auschwitz was a part of this tour. It was numbing to be there and sickening to later reflect on it and to put this blog together. I'm glad I went, and I recommend that travelers visit a camp. However, I never want to go to another camp, and I pray that such camps are never built again.
Sources
The Horror of the Gas Chamber Poison -- https://www.thoughtco.com/zyklon-b-gas-chamber-poison-1779688
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