Scale

The wooden barracks section of Birkenau, with the train ramp to the left, and the ruins of the gas chambers and crematoria at the treeline in the distance, seen from the tower of the Death Gate.

Strangely, this was the most impressive part of the entire Auschwitz-Birkenau tour. I knew enough about the camps that the museum exhibits and buildings were already familiar - but what you don't get from reading books is an appreciation of the vastness of the place. In this case, the camera isn't exaggerating -- it really is as big as it looks here. It stretches all the way to the trees in the distance, and this view only shows about 2/3 of the camp's area.