I traveled from Bratislava to Poland by bus, crossing the border with that mix of curiosity, nerves and respect you feel when you know you’re about to visit a place that has marked the history of humanity. I had read about Auschwitz and Birkenau in books and seen them in films, but nothing compares to standing there in person, walking through those spaces and realizing that the past is much closer than we think.

The experience was intense and deeply emotional. Seeing the original railway tracks where the trains once arrived makes the weight of history feel very real. Inside the museum, I saw personal belongings of the victims like glasses, shoes, suitcases, prosthetics, everyday objects that speak of real lives and stories interrupted too soon. Standing in front of those displays is powerful, not because of what you see, but because of what they represent.

Many of the preserved buildings and walls carry a silence that feels almost physical. You don’t need explanations to understand the atmosphere; being there is enough. I walked through areas that once witnessed tremendous suffering, and everything is maintained today as a place of memory. Entering the preserved gas chamber brought a heavy, indescribable feeling, a quiet weight that makes you reflect from the heart, more than from the mind.

On this trip, I found out that visiting places like this is called dark tourism or thanatourism, which means traveling to sites linked to hard parts of history. For me, though, it wasn’t about curiosity. It was about remembrance, a personal way to honor the victims, recognize what happened, and remember why it should never happen again.

After that emotional visit, I went back to Warsaw, the capital, and saw a whole new side of the country. The city felt modern and lively, with lots of cafés and simple moments that made it feel alive. I tried pierogi for the first time, traditional Polish dumplings that reminded me of Tibetan momos and the Khinkali I’ve had in Georgia. They were warm, soft, and comforting, just like homemade food. Accompanied by a classic Polish vodka, typically enjoyed during meals and celebrations, the pairing was complete. Warsaw brought me a lighter, everyday kind of happiness, which was a nice balance after such a meaningful experience.