We are all on a clock. Time to get up, time to go to work, time to go home, time to fix dinner, time to walk the dogs, time spend with the family, time to go to sleep, time to repeat. Seems like a never ending cycle.
This one's a visit to the past. I always find my life story is much better looking in the rear view mirror. Back in the 80's, we were young and full of energy. We lived in Germany and traveled all over the country when I wasn't on duty. Every weekend, we made it a point to get away from the post and explore the countryside. Of course, on a 2nd Lieutenant's pay, we didn't always travel in high style, so we drove a lot and explored the local towns/villages "on the economy" as we called it. We had a great time and I wouldn't trade it for any nights in a first class villa on the Mediterranean (OK, maybe a few nights in a nice place on the Med). One of the places we visited was Triberg, Germany. You know, in the Schwartzwald (Black Forest)? Home of some the tallest waterfall in Germany, the forest trails, the old Black Forest Museum, and, oh, yeah, the world's largest Cuckoo Clock. There are lots of shops that sell hand crafted items, but their big claim to fame is clocks. Back before there was the Internet and you had to look up things in the library, we got wind that this was a really excellent place to visit and explore for a family or young couple. Since we were only 1.5 hours north in Stuttgart, we spent a weekend down there exploring the ares. According to the "Let's Go Europe" website: Triberg is the most visited destination in the Black Forest and for good reason. The town plays host to a line of souvenir, cuckoo clock, and craft stores several hundred meters long. Cafes, bakeries, and restaurants all display signs offering "authentic" Black Forest cake to visitors. Make sure you taste this exquisite chocolate cake while you are there--you won't be disappointed!
We did Triberg on our own dime. Lots of things to see/do. Of course, if your are going to do Triberg, you absolutely must visit one of the tourist shops like Haus der 1000 Uhren (House of 1000 Clocks). There are a plethora of shops in Triberg that sell clocks and we visited a number of them. After multiple trips to Triberg with family, we came away from there with a Cuckoo Clock, an Anniversary Clock and a full blown Grandfather Clock. The Grandfather clock was a planned purchase - it breaks down into three sections that would fit into our POS Dodge Omni so that we could carry it back to our apartment and reassemble. This clock has made the trip from our apartment in Germany to our house in Dallas and finally landed here in Houston. The Cuckoo Clock has long since been retired, the Anniversary Clock is spinning away atop our piano and the Grandfather clock is still chiming away in our foyer. One of my minor chores every weekend is to wind the grandfather clock. It' a wee bit reassuring to hear it go off every 1/4 hour.
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| FYI - if you get one, go for an 8 day clock. The one day clock is a PITA to wind every day. |
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| Not bad shape for a 25+ year old clock. |
4 comments:
Your story brought back many of my own memories! My dad was Air Force and we were stationed in Wiesbaden, Germany. I never went to the Black Forest, but my parents did. We had many cuckoo clocks and a grandfather clock from there as well! Seeing your pictures brought back many memories of my childhood home. I'd love to know where else you were stationed and what other trips you've taken. I may share some of mine as well! :)
Your grandfather clock is beautiful - a real work of craftsmanship. I didn't realize all of the clock trivia from Germany. Makes me want to go there!
That grandfather clock is gorgeous. And what a lovely story to go along with it!
You've convinced me to add yet another place to the list of places I want to visit someday when I'm able to do some real traveling.
I love the grandfather clock. I was thinking that the chiming every quarter hour might be slightly annoying, but I suppose it becomes part of daily life, and as you said, reassuring.
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