We wandered along the main street of Triberg, and found a couple of shops open today during Karnival. One is a large Cuckoo Clock shop boasting a salesroom with more than 1000 clocks!
It was fun to take a look inside where we enjoyed not only seeing, but also hearing the ticking of the clocks all around us.
Each cuckoo clock is unique and hand crafted. There were clocks in every price range, but the nice ones are quite expensive–$500-$2500 and more.
These clocks tell the stories of life in the Black Forest. We have a beautiful cuckoo clock hanging in our Sundance cabin at home.
We loved looking at the enamel faced clocks in the museum. Here are some reproductions, “modern vintage.” They were also quite expensive. The small one we liked best (in the lower left) was over $800.
I LOVE the traditional German clothing.
Here’s a display showing how the clocks are made:
These clocks feel a bit like doll houses, each with a story to tell.
Upstairs was a Christmas shop, with many of items from the Erzgebirge Mountains by Seifen (in northern Germany).
These pieces are also beautiful, but instead of handcrafted work, they are laser cut by machines.
We continued down the street. The largest woodcarving shop wasn’t open.
Karnival decorations in the bakery window:
We bought sandwiches and a pastry for lunch.
Next we drove a few kilometers out of town to visit what is called “the FIRST largest cuckoo clock in the world.”
A lady poked her head out of the neighboring home (we were in a residential neighborhood) and said she’d be right down to let us in. We paid her 2 Euro each to see the workings of the clock inside.
The lady explained that her father-in-law had made this clock. The workings inside were fashioned in wood made 50 times larger than a small clock he used as a model. It took him 3 years to build the clock, 1977 to 1980. There was a little gift shop and a nearby playground. A fun family enterprise and tourist attraction.
After she explained the inside workings, she invited us to go outside and she activated the cuckoo (see the video below). It was fun.
This new farm home/barn was next to this first world’s largest cuckoo clock. It looked like it was also being prepared for the tourist season.
The playground area.
The next stop at the now largest clock was up the mountain a ways. It was similar. There’s a little competition going on here! We didn’t pay to see the inner workings, but stopped at the gift shop to look around and use the bathroom. It’s fun to see all the variety in the cuckoo clocks.
I’m guessing these attractions cater to busloads of tourists passing through.
We enjoyed wandering through the shop. We were the only ones there. Below is another representation of a traveling clock salesman/peddler.
Then back to the car, our sandwiches, pastries, and we were on the road again, to drive deeper into the Black Forest.
Our Frankfurt Germany Mission 