I recently had the sheer horror of reading New York Times bestseller, Sarah’s Key which is a fictional work based on the Vélodrome d’Hiver roundups in Paris, France. It is a harrowing read, especially if you happen to have a young child. It is also an eye-opening, heartwarming story about family and history and the second world war. The Vélodrome d’Hiver roundups in France were conducted by the Paris police on orders from the Germans. They rounded up thousands upon thousands of Jewish families and sent them to the Vélodrome d’Hiver where they were locked in, barely fed, not given enough water and they waited, many committing suicide, to be taken by train to Auschwitz. Almost none returned. The most shocking part of this very true piece of history, is that a large number of the people rounded up during this time, were small children.

Whenever I read about the second world war, the concentration camps and the horrors that occurred there, I have an increasing need to go visit. I’ve always found there are different types of travelers. Some go to vacation. Some go for the natural beauty. Others, like myself, love to travel to historic places and feel the ghosts of famous dates, eras and events. The horrific second world war is not exempt. I think the most important history lesson anyone can learn, is that if we do not understand history, it is bound to repeat itself. Going to these places makes history real for me, and brings me that much closer to truly understanding it.

Here is some information on travel to historic second world war locations:

- Walking Among Ghosts: Nazi Concentration Camps
- A Trip to the Camps
- Auschwitz Memorial Tour

And some resources on learning more about the atrocities that occurred during the war:

- Auschwitz Virtual Tour

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