World War II Museum

This was by far my favorite excursion on the trip so far. Which maybe is a little morbid considering it's the saddest. And once again, I accidentally posted the pictures starting with the end, so maybe start from the bottom here, which is where I will start my text.

The taking of Berlin. 

Now some depressing information you may not know and maybe don't want to know:

The Nazis had the idea that they would exterminate the Poles, the Jews, etc. Russians, however, they wanted to keep alive as slaves. They thought that Russians would be great workers as long as the Nazis could control their natural instinct to oppose. Many Russians were taken to camps as science experiments. German scientists thought they could find and "turn off" the part in the brain that controlled rebellion and opposition. They thought they could do this with Belorussians as well. However, they opposed so much that it was decided that they would be exterminated as well.

Children were kept in separate camps. As hard as it is to say, they were used for blood transfusions by the Nazis and... discarded.

Resources were so used up throughout the war, that hair was used to stuff pillows and mattresses. Gold teeth were pulled out. Skin was used as lamp shades. Occasionally the most sadistic of the Nazis (if you can really say that) would use bones to 'decorate' the skin lamp shades.

Well, it's not like I was going to have a lot of cheerful things to say about the museum. It's important to know even the most morbid things in order to truly understand and appreciate the extent of suffering.

German forces were entering from either side of the Central Front. It was crucial that Russia won the battles, lest they be surrounded.

Edgar Cayce is one of the most researched and documented psychics in history. Many were skeptical, but he continually proved himself. People flocked to him for medical diagnoses, which he was documented to always be correct. When people learned of his ability, they began to ask about horse races and games they could bet on. However, when he made predictions pertaining to money, his health deteriorated. His wife announced that he would stick only to medical predictions. However, one day he was asked about who would win the war. At the time, he could not predict this. Cayce said that the light and the dark were too conflicting to see clearly who would win. However, he gave a date, and said that the outcome would be determined on that date. Years later, a researcher looked at the date he gave. It seemed completely insignificant in terms of the West. However, in the East, on that date in Sirskaya, Russia defeated Germany in one of the fiercest battles of the war. The Battle of the Tanks. (above)

The chunks of metal tied together were one of the first inventions in the war to prevent tanks from passing through.

As the war progressed and allies joined Russia, the weaponry advanced. This is a replica of a T34 tank. The "miracle" tank. It was the fastest of its time and was designed with sloping armor, which deflected  shells. Germans couldn't understand why they could never hit it. Pretty badass.

When the war was over, all the Nazi banners were thrown to the ground and rubbed in the dirt. The ultimate sign of shame.

Winston Churchill, Roosevelt, and Stalin.

Uniforms of ally soldiers.

Actors would go to the front to boost morale amongst the soldiers.

Women and children worked in the factories to create weapons. They worked 12-14 hour days.

This is an example of what it was like having shrapnel flying through the air from all the blasts. Terrifying.

A general's table with a map...I didn't get the name.

A poster of people listening to Stalin's announcement that Russia was going to war. Stalin did not originally believe news that Germany would attack.

Posters promoting the beginning of the war depicting smiling soldiers, completely unaware of the extreme devastation to come. The direct translation is "On the domestic war".

Weapons they used. They were extremely underdeveloped compared to Germany's weapons.

Once again, sorry for the quality. The engravings on top, with the lights shining on them, are the names of cities which fought the hardest and sacrificed the most to protect against Germany. You can also see the huge lists of heroes.

Lighting was difficult in here so I apologize for the quality. I really wish I could've captured better how great this room was. This hall is for the greatest heroes of the war. In order to get a name on the wall, for example, you would have to sacrifice your life or come close to it to save fellow soldiers. For example, in the war there were Точки "dots", which were weapons in the ground that would unleash massive amounts of bullets so that soldiers would be incapable of getting past them. One of the soldiers jumped on top of the weapon in order for his comrades to rush past.

The statue of a mother mourning over her fallen son.

This is the ceiling of the entrance of the museum, The Hall of Memory and Sorrow. They represent the tears of the mothers of fallen sons, there are about 2 million of these. To put it in perspective, every single Russian family lost at least one member in the war.