38 | SUNRAYS FEBRUARY 2014
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past, and, today, it is a relished stop for
over 100 cruise ships each year.
In Riga, we also learned more about the
Jewish genocide under the Germans in
World War II. While the Germans were
initially seen as liberators, after the op-
pression of the Soviets, it quickly became
evident that a new terror was beginning
for the Jews. Rumbula Forest was the
site of the mass murder of more than
30,000 Jews―mostly women, children,
and elderly. A memorial menorah tow-
ered over us there, surrounded by broken
stones, each inscribed with the name of
a murdered family.
Nearby we found Salaspils, a German
concentration camp inWorld War II, and
the final destination for Riga’s Jews after
the main ghetto there was closed. A large
slanting stone slab, symbolizing the
boundary between life and death, marks
the entrance to the site, with the words
“Beyond this gate, the earth groans.” In-
side, there is no remnant of the previous
camp, but large stone sculptures with
names like “The Humiliated” and “The
Unbroken” dominate the grounds, and a
metronome inside a block of stone gives
the place an eerie and eternal heartbeat.
estonia
Tiny Estonia, with a population of less
than 1.5 million people, arguably has
had the most success in its 22 years
of independence. Like the other Baltic
countries, it went through five years of
“shock therapy” while it struggled to set
up political structures, initiate private
enterprise, establish a currency and
social support systems, and deal with
crippling increases in energy prices from
Russia. Inflation was 1,000 percent in
those years, and the average wage was
about $40 a month.
But Estonia decided early on that it
needed to focus on a global economy,
tourism, and on its intellectual resources
to be successful. Today, they are play-
ers on the world stage of computer ap-
plications and electronic solutions. We
The Hill of Crosses in Lithuania.
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