05.29.2015 - Entry #20: EuroTrip #3 | History Lessons Outside of Prague

USAC gang walking along a path in Lidice

So it's been a week since my arrival to Praha - and according to the HON 410 guidelines, that means it's time to make another post! I know a lot of people are expecting something about how exciting Prague is - how the food is, how the people act, what it's like living here. These posts will come in time - I'll probably do a more lighthearted video post after this actually. You can also follow my Instagram @number2guy for more immediate updates!

But yeah, returning back to the matter at hand; this post won't be particularly happy and its focus isn't in the happy metropolitan area of Praha but instead, the tiny village of Lidice. Above is a wonderfully scenic picture of the gaggle of USAC students (and I, off camera) heading towards our destination of Lidice. Of course, the problem with the picture is that no town can be visibly seen.

Hitler's Orders

This is because the town of Lidice no longer exists. Or at least, the original village no longer does.

During WWII after Czech paratroopers assassinated a high ranking German official, Hitler gave out an order for the nauseatingly efficient and brutal destruction of the town of Lidice, home to about 500 people. Every man was killed (classified as anyone over the age of 15 and totaled about 180 deaths), women were sent to concentration camps, and children were separated and examined - 16 or so children were given to German SS families for adoption while another 80 or so were gassed at a separate location. After the war's end, around 150 women returned to Lidice along with the surviving 16 children. The destruction of the village was incredibly thorough and complete, with every building completely destroyed and almost every trace of the town of Lidice wiped out. Throughout the execution and obliteration of Lidice, the whole process was documented through film and other mediums for use in Nazi propaganda.

Visiting the museum and walking through where Lidice once stood was a very somber trip. While violence does happen back in America (and probably more so than here in Europe), we don't seem to remember it. It might vary a little bit depending where in the U.S. you exactly reside, but nevertheless when I think about my home state of Nevada I can't recall memorials like this that are actually built on a land where an atrocity has happened. It's an entirely different experience to visit a city museum about World War II and the Holocaust and another to visit a site where men were murdered in front of their neighbors, all of them knowing that there was no hope for their continued survival.

In America, we're blessed in the fact that most of the wars and conflicts that we've engaged in, especially in the past century or so, have been outside of our borders. Even though my country has technically been "at war" for the majority of my 20 years of life, I've never experienced the hardships or struggles that come with it. Nor are there any echos of it around me - in the Czech Republic, even though World War II was many years ago and before the births of most living citizens today, there are definitely people here today that grew up during the Communist Regime. A regime that in many ideological ways was very similar to Nazi Germany and was only overturned in 1989. People here vividly remember a time without democracy and full of stagnation - a stark contrast to what I can recall from my own upbringing.

Fortunately, the Czech Republic nowadays is just that - a republic. It's been a week since I've landed here and thus far, Praha has been an amazing and fascinating host city. And while many Czech citizens today, and now myself, have not forgotten the hardships of the past, I am excited to say that this country has definitely made amazing progress in moving past their struggles and in striving towards a better future. As I continue to spend the reminder of my now increasingly short time in Prague (only 25 more days! D:), I will definitely be focusing and posting more about all the wonderful adventures I'm experiencing here in the Czech Republic while simultaneously immersing myself in all the history and culture that Praha has to offer.