Category Archives: Holocaust
Mauthausen
Zur deutschen Fassung dieses Berichts. My hosts in Linz are exceptionally gracious hosts. On the morning of the farewell, they cook, bake, puree, flambé and prepare food as if I weren’t a humble little fellow, but a horde of a … Continue reading
Wannsee
Zur deutschen Fassung. Once again, I am on the train from the capital of culture to the capital of politics, from Chemnitz to Berlin. As I make this journey rather frequently, and because the Deutschlandticket limits me to local and … Continue reading
For the mass graves, turn right in 300 meters
Just a regular marker in Central and Eastern Europe: I stumbled across this one as I was walking to Europos Parkas from Vilnius, while looking for the geographical center of Europe. But more about that in a separate report, hopefully … Continue reading
Deportation
Rather somber moment, opening the e-mail from a citizenship client, and it says: I have also attached the transportation records for my great-great-grandfather’s 1941 deportation from Hamburg to Lodz and his 1942 death record. That really puts into perspective some … Continue reading
Remembrance with Kebab: Babi Yar
I don’t know what exactly I expected when I went to the site of the largest mass shooting in the Holocaust, but this I didn’t expect. Continue reading
Why is German reunification celebrated on 3 October?
Today, Germany celebrates the 30th anniversary of the reunification of East and West Germany on 3 October 1990. The history buffs among you will know that the Berlin Wall fell almost a year earlier, on 9 November 1989. So why … Continue reading
“East West Street” by Philippe Sands
As a lawyer and budding historian, I found Philippe Sands‘ idea of telling the story of international criminal law through the biographies of Hersch Lauterpacht and Raphael Lemkin interesting. But the book East West Street is overloaded with the irrelevant … Continue reading
Kyiv – Day 18/21 – Snow
Recently, many readers were jealous because of the mild Ukrainian winter. You needn’t be jealous any longer, for it finally snowed and became slightly colder. But before you say “oh, how pretty”, I should point out that the photos were … Continue reading
Kyiv – Day 10/21 – Babi Yar
There is so much to say about this place, but before I do so, I need to spend more time there, read more about it and think more. As you see from the photos, it got dark too early for … Continue reading
The Happy Hermit 