Oswiecim is a town of around 45,000 inhabitants and an important local centre for trade and industry (mechanical and chemical). However most people in Poland and around the world generally associate it with its gruesome concentration camp, but there are other reasons to visit Oswiecim.

The local population underline that they live in Oswiecim, not in Auschwitz, and the organisations you can find in the town prove that apart from being a memorial to the scariest experiment in human history, Oswiecim is a place where life still goes on.

One of the most active organisations is the Auschwitz Jewish Centre, which consists of an educational centre, a museum and a synagogue that all not only commemorates the victims of Shoah, but which can also provide you with a deeper understanding of Jewish culture. The synagogue is the only Jewish temple to survive the war and the first place of worship to be given back to the Jewish community after the war. The Centre for Dialogue and Prayer is also worth visiting.

The old town is a pleasant, calm area, with several old churches and the ruins of a castle. It can be a good place to rest after visiting the camp. Visitors with more time should consider a trip to nearby Pszczyna, one of the oldest towns of Silesia; Wieliczka with its mediaeval salt mine; or maybe even fascinating Kalwaria Zebrzydowska.