Schwarzwald: The Place I Never Saw

 Our first stop was the Black Forest in Germany, where we hoped to see some beautiful scenery, spy some cuckoo birds, and shop for clocks in a cozy woodland town. Well, spoiler, but we didn't see much at all. We aren't really sure why, but most of the shops in the town we were at were closed, no cuckoo birds sang, and when we went out to explore the national park, a deep fog rolled across the hills and we couldn't really see past our hands. It was still really fun to explore and the fog was its own type of beauty. 

With the fog settling thick between the emerald green trees, and the moss covered stones and leafy ferns dripping with pearly mist, I could see how cautionary tales like Little Red Riding Hood and Hansel & Gretal could have been first conceived in the quiet woods and then renewed with new life each time a darkness settled over the dense forest. 





Nothing to see here, clearly.


   It was nice to once again be putzing around a National Park with my parents instead of being confined to the cities. Going on a side quest into a catholic church doesn't quite live up to finding a boardwalk that weaves through a lonely bog and seeing where it leads. 




   We also took a trail past some waterfalls that lead to an old monastery in the woods that had burnt to the ground. As I will talk about later on when I recount my time in Greece, there is something about finding ruins in the woods that adds a sense of serenity and mystery to them that is otherwise lost. This was an unexpected, but very special find. 



   While we were driving, a semi that was approaching us tipped over. We were the first people on the scene. I was the first out of the car. I ran to the window to see if he was okay, and when I confirmed that, I ran back to my parents to get a phone. Well, none of knew the number for the German 911, so while my parents tried to figure out how to get the man out, I tried to communicate with a few other individuals who'd arrived and ask them to call the police. 

   My mom climbed up the bottom of the semi to try and get to the man's door, but when she got to the top, the door was locked. Another man climbed up to help her. Turns out that it wasn't locked, mama was just sitting on it. Once they figured that out, they were able to open the door and cut the man's seat belt. Nobody was hurt. The man was more concerned about finding his phone then getting out of the semi, which tells you everything you need to know. I guess, at the end of the day, none of us were very helpful, but at least we tried. It was definitely an adventure. 

We left the Black Forest without having heard a cuckoo bird, having tried German food and black forest cake, or having browsed authentic cuckoo clocks, and unsure of what would come next. Our hope was just that we would see something. 


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