Going California Dutch!

What’s up everyone?

What comes to mind when you think of California: Hollywood glamour, warm weather, sandy beaches with half naked people running in the ocean, over crowded streets, smog, Disneyland?  I could go on and on.  Yeah, these things definitely come to mind when thinking about California but that’s not always the case with me.  I think of myself as a amateur historian, I guess I can call myself that, so I tend to look back farther into the past than most people do.  I picture Zorro running around the California countryside cause trouble for the Mexican powers to be and becoming a hero for the masses.  Zorro May or may not have been a real person but you can’t deny the influence that Spain and later Mexico had on California.  Just look at the names of most of the cities.  They tend to be Spanish in origin.  But there’s a small town not to far from Santa Barbara that has a slightly different origin story from that of its Spanish neighbors and that’s the sleepy little Danish town of Solvang.

In the later part of the 1800s Denmark was suffering from a poor economy.  With no foreseeable upturn insight many Danes began to migrate out of Denmark.  Some chose to stay within Europe but many headed for the U.S. to start their new lives.  At the time the most desired location were: Illinois, Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota and Utah.  There were those that did not want to have to deal with the cold winter that those states had to offer.  Boom!....let’s head to the the sunny west coast of the newly acquired California territory.  Late 1800s, early 1900’s Danish settlers started to flow into the Santa Ynez Valley and in 1911 Solvang was established.

Today the town is flooded by tourist coming to experience the Danish charm of this little community.  Many of the buildings near the center of town have been built in the Danish architectural style.  Bakeries, shops, and restaurants line the streets.  Many of Denmark’s landmarks have been recreated.  A scaled down version of Copenhagen’s Rundetårn or Round Tower (for us English speaking folks) and a replica of the Little Mermaid Statue.  There is also a tribute to the Danish writer Hans Christian Andersen.

We had a wonderful time exploring the town.  There are a lot of cool shops to fit everyone’s taste.  I would have to recommend stopping into the clock shop.  I don’t remember the name of it but you can find any style of clock that you can think of.  From standard to cuckoo, they have them all.  Everyone in my family has walked out of that shop with a one and in some cases two.  Next to the clock shop is an oil shop.  This is another shop that I would suggest stop by.  Here you can find a variety of infused olive oils and vinegars.  Anyone will add an interesting flare to your next meal.  Sweets!  Sweets galore.  I can’t describe the numerous decadence that can be found around town.  All the bake goods look and smelled good.  There were too many option to choose from.  In the end I went with something simple, I tried some freshly baked butter cookies and they were most excellent.  Ten times better than anything I found in stores.  Unfortunately I didn’t try anything else, which was probably a good thing. Don’t wanna ruin my girlish figure, if ya’know what I’m sayin’.

After all the fun of shopping we decide to stop for lunch.  They have the usual fast food places but we wanted something a little more authentic to eat.  We grabbed our town guide and look at the map to see if anything would pop out.  After a few minutes of back and forth, we decided on The Mustard Seed Restaurant.  The Mustard Seed is a quaint little place with a very homey atmosphere.  The service was great and they seemed to really enjoy having us there.  The menu is full of Danish delicacies and for those less adventure some standard American dishes.  Most of us went with the more adventurous route.  Everything was good and cooked the way we liked it.  After lunch we had one last that we all wanted to see.

Even in this modern town, the old Spanish influence can still be felt.  Not far from the city center lies the Old Mission Santa Ines.  The Mission was founded in 1804 by the Franciscan monk Father Estevan Tapis.  Spain built many missions throughout California to covert the Native Americans.  Santa Inés was built to help easy the overcrowding of Mission Santa Barbara and Mission La Purisima Concepcion.  The Mission has had its fair share of hard times.  In 1812 the church was mostly destroyed by an earthquake that hit near Santa Barbara, but was rebuilt with thicker walls to make it sturdier.  During the Chumash Revolt of 1824, a blaze was set in the church.  The fire nearly destroying the complex once again.  

You can still attend mass at the Mission at select times throughout the week.  The other big draw to the Mission is the self guide tour.  Oddly enough, you start off from the gift shop and work your way though the Mission and grounds.  As you make you way you will learn the history and see many artifact.  I have always found it interesting to see churches and other places of worship, especially those that have a lot of history.  It was very peaceful and serene to sit in one of the pews and take it all in.

We had a lot of fun exploring Solvang and learning about its history.  Through out the year Solvang host many events, so there is always something to do.  If your just passing through, stop and have a pastry or two and enjoy the California sun.  You will not be disappointed.

Until next time.  Thanks for stopping by.

Josh.

After completing this post, once again California had been struct by disaster.  Our heart and thoughts go out to all those that were affected by the mudslides in Santa Barbara and it surrounding communities.