BLACK FOREST or SCHWARZWALD 9/22/12

We left Freiburg in the rain with the surrounding hilltops covered in clouds.... climbing into the hills we were soon in the clouds!  But the dark pine forests and green meadows were lovely and reminded us of Oregon along the Columbia Gorge in the rain clouds;)  In the rain we saw the longest waterfall in Germany... a cascading stream in the mossy forest and visited the Clock Museum with barrel organs in Triberg.   This is the land of the Cuckoo Clocks and though the one in Wiesbaden is much older, there is a new "Worlds Largest Cuckoo Clock" in Triberg.  The rain had stopped and the clouds were just starting to lift as we walked through the open-air museum.  Here old farmhouses and sawing/ milling/ baking and distilling building were brought to this site to join the original 1612 Vogt farm house pictured above.   The straw roof was over a foot thick and reminded us of the old farmhouses in Japan:)  Driving toward Baden-Baden we saw the largest covered bridge in Europe at Forbach... a symbol of the Murg Valley.  Baden-Baden was a great spa town with Kurhaus  and Casino, walking streets, outdoor dining and in the sunshine very FUN;)  Departing the next day early to miss the Sunday afternoon Autobahn "Stau" or stopping.... we made it to Sachsen in 2 hours!