Germany Debates New Life for a Behemoth of the Nazi Era

Once again, modern Germany cannot escape its past:

"PRORA, Germany — Three years before the outbreak of World War II, Adolf Hitler’s lieutenants ordered the construction of what was portrayed as a remarkable perquisite for the toiling masses of the Third Reich — a vacation complex along the Baltic coast with 10,000 sea-view rooms in eight identical six-story blocks of steel-reinforced concrete, each one the length of five football fields.
"Even by the standards of Nazi monumentalism and social engineering, the plan was ambitious. Every block would have its own restaurant, catering to 2,500 people per meal, divided into two sittings. Every week, 20,000 workers from the industrial powerhouses of Nazi Germany would be brought here under a program called Strength Through Joy to prepare themselves mentally and physically to fulfill Hitler’s dreams.

"With some justification, people still call the five surviving blocks — strung along a pristine sandy beach — the Colossus of Prora."

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/21/world/europe/21germany.html?_r=1&hp

 

That is something! By the way, I remember a Hogan's Heroes episode where they made a sauna and Klink made their motto "strength through water"

 

Pretty recent images of it here.

Prora - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The official site here, if you click on the virtual tour link you can see images of the various parts of the structure. Haven't looked into it much but it looks like the northern part of the structure is in ruins, the central part is in decay, and the southern part is in use.

Documentation Centre Prora - information

I don't see any point in tearing down the structure since it seems it can provide quite a bit of use. At the same time I can also see how turning it into a resort/hotel can make some people feel uneasy. I do like the fact though that part of the structure has been turned into a museum which focuses on aspects relavent to the complex.

 

Wow, I didn't know the place was that much of a wreck(I didn't read the whole article).

 

They could make a massive casino out of it too. Either that or a enormous housing project for all their "guest workers".