My name is Robert Desmond, I’m 24 and I recently completed a bike ride, alone, from Kentish Town to Auschwitz in Poland.
The trip took 25 days to complete from outside my flat (above Jews for Jesus on Kentish Town Road) and I travelled 1350 miles. Unsupported, I took two large bags with me containing everything I needed for the cold and wet weather.
But first, a bit about me. I’m a dyed-in-the-wool north Londoner: grew up in East Finchley, school in Highgate and, since graduating from university, I live in Kentish Town. I work as a freelance software developer and – throughout my epic ride – even managed to stay on top of work with my laptop throughout. (I remain grateful to the many fast-food restaurants of Europe for their free wifi.)
The inspiration for the adventure was my first visit to Auschwitz a few years ago with my father and cousin; moved by the whole experience I returned to London with a sense of duty to encourage as many friends as possible to make the journey themselves. The events of World War II happened incredibly recently – fewer than 70 years ago – and it suddenly seemed strange to me that not many people had either visited, or had a desire to. And, of course, it’s such a short hop by plane.
My route would follow the Path of Liberation taken by soldiers during World War II, stopping at places of interest along the way, and travelling through six countries.
1. England
2. France
I followed the Normandy beaches where the D-Day landings took place, visiting memorials commemorating the lives of the many fallen soldiers. I pushed through to Paris where I had my first day off the bike, taking in even more museums; in the Palace of Versailles I learnt about the crucial role it played after WWI, cycling through Verdun to visit the forest where significant fighting took place.
3. Luxembourg
4. Germany
Crossing into Germany I met a friend of a friend who lives in Frankfurt and showed me a local eatery and a good night out. Like most encounters with Germans, when I mentioned that I was ending in Auschwitz he didn’t really know what else to say. I also visited the trial rooms at Nuremberg where Nazi criminals were prosecuted after the war; moving through Bavaria I stopped at the first concentration camp of my trip, Flossenberg.
5. Czech Republic
Reaching Prague, I spent a day off the bike visiting Terezin, another Nazi camp for Jews and Polish prisoners. A much-needed rest day followed; my Mum and friend had flown out to meet me.
6. Poland
What did I learn?
1. It’s all so far removed from our comfortable lives in north London. I was constantly reminded that it’s all to easy to forget how lucky we are. Approximately 6 million Jews were tortured and killed during the Holocaust – simply because they were Jewish. These numbers are impossible to comprehend.
2. The trip was emotionally tough and I missed home – not least because nowhere else in Europe makes a decent curry. I longed for the Bengal Lancer and Gulshaan; my craving for Chicken Shop and Los Pollos swelled. But of course it wasn’t just food: being away from family and friends and all normal comforts was challenging.
3. I glimpsed Kentish Town Road replicated all over Europe. Many towns and cities reminded me of where I live. I truly believe that almost all humans are identical: families having lunch together in pubs, visiting libraries and bookshops, fishmongers and bakers selling fresh produce. Yet the further east I pedalled, the less diversity there was.
4. Exercise makes you live in the moment. It was rainy to start, but halfway through the trip, the sun came out as I pedalled down a hill. An immensely happy feeling swept over me as I began to process what the whole trip meant: my freedom had allowed me to take on the challenge of this journey. I couldn’t have been more grateful to the brave people who risked and gave their lives for what we have today.
If you are interested in more details about Robert’s trip read the full account on his blog or follow @Dezzymei on Twitter
3 thoughts on “Cycling to Auschwitz: one man’s inspiring story”
Great story about a fantastic trip!! Not sure if you knew but there was a professional road race that actually took in some of the route you did, it only stopped in 2006, aptly called the Peace Race. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peace_Race
Its one of my favourite little stories about cycling that make me love the sport.
Well done!
I think the Peace Race is now just called the Tour de Pologne, and takes place, if I remember correctly, after the Tour de France and before the Vuelta a Espana, so in August sometime. It’s never a very entertaining race, for various reasons, (maybe partly because I’ve been watching pro cycling all year and have had enough of it by then) but I watch it because I lived in Poland in the 90s, and it visits places I knew and didn’t get to know.
Robert Desmond’s achievement is fantastic, I should add here!
Thanks for the great response! There were a number of races or rides that take place on parts of the route which I only found out about after really!
The Voie de la Liberte is one of the “routes” and there are km markers from the Normandy beaches to Verdun! It was really fantastic to ride next to them as it made the whole trip much more real next to these remembrance signs. (http://dezco.co.uk/fitness/london-to-auschwitz-day-10-sainte-menehould-to-esch-sur-alzette-luxembourg-115km-today-1000km-total/)