Solvang, California

I always love visiting the, “Danish capital of America,” because it reminds me of Germany–my ancestral homeland–where I have visited several times. Yes, I know that Denmark is not Germany, but something about the Danish architecture, food, decor, and design transports me back overseas to Bavaria and so many things I loved about being there. And, I think it is wonderful to be able to get a taste of Europe just two and a half hours north of Los Angeles!

I have been to Solvang several times now, and it just doesn’t get old. The first time was for my birthday several years ago–Dan chose to take me there because he knew I would love it–and he was right. (He is usually right.) I am already looking forward to going back next spring when we visit our kids in California.

I will start this “photo dump” by showing you several street-views, so you can get an impression of Solvang’s overall feeling, energy, and atmosphere.

The architectural style reminds me of the distinctive Fachwerk that I saw throughout Germany–especially in the smaller, rural towns.

And, I spy an egret standing in a nest in my next photo–how about you?

We noticed there are SO many windmills in Solvang! (I guess Denmark is known for their windmills!) You can even go on a self-guided windmill tour if you want to!

You could even take a trolley to see the windmills if you wanted! I like taking the tours sometimes because they often have a guide who tells interesting stories about the history of the town.

There are lots of unique restaurants to choose from in Solvang–many featuring Danish and Scandinavian cuisines. Some of the businesses are housed in historic buildings, like this old college-turned-restaurant called, “Bit ‘o Denmark.”

Since I’m on the topic of restaurants, I’ll mention that we really like the soft pretzels in Solvang. They’re definitely not as good as the “Laugenstangen” or “Bretzeln” in Germany (or even Philly Pretzels in Philadelphia), but still probably the best pretzel you can get in the American West! And, as far as Solvang goes, our favorite place to get a pretzel is the Old Danish Food Farm Fudge Kitchen. Although, they are very buttery–so we wipe them off with a napkin (or five), and then, they’re much better! 🙂

There are two things we always try to eat in Solvang:

(1) Abelskivers–A yummy Danish pastry that sort of reminds me of a pancake-y donut ball with raspberry jam and powdered sugar (Highly recommend):

(2)Sausage and sauerkraut from the Copenhagen Sausage Garden. In past experiences, this was a place that we visited up to twice daily when in Solvang. Unfortunately, this time was a bit of a disappointment because they did not have our favorite sausage–Bockwurst–the only one that tasted like the Germany sausages I remember. So, we got a Bratwurst. It was just meh, and I could’ve gotten the same thing at the grocery store. Sigh–guess I will have to go back to Germany for the good stuff!

They tried to soften the blow by giving us some free German potato salad. But, it didn’t taste German to me at all–in fact, it was super spicy and we couldn’t eat it. Boo!

Mortensen’s is one of our favorite Danish bakeries in Solvang. They are famous for their butter cookies–which they sell in cute tubs. They have a wide variety of offerings, though, and it is always a difficult decision!

We decided to go with this delicious raspberry flaky pastry–which we shared. It was more than enough for the two of us, and it kept us sugared-up for the next couple of hours–Yum!

We also got ice cream a little later at Ingeborg’s–a well-known chocolatier in Solvang. Don’t worry–we ate a salad in the van to make up for it! 😉

The ice cream was pretty good–I think it’s actually Thrifty’s–but the atmosphere is really where it’s at. We sat on barstools at the counter and enjoyed the art and scenery–not to mention the scent of freshly-made chocolates all around–which is what Ingeborg’s is famous for.

Speaking of delicious scents—a walk around Solvang smells not only of homemade chocolates, but also of freshly baked breads. I wish I could make my blog posts scratch-and-sniff for you (anyone else remember those stickers in the 80’s?), but I guess that kind of tech hasn’t been invented yet. 😉

Click on the video below to see the cute bakers at work!

Something else I love to do in Solvang is window shopping. You can find some really unique treasures here! Edelweiss is a favorite of mine…does anyone else know the song? Click here to sing along!

I think I’d like to collect all the miniature musical instruments below! I could probably even fit them in the van!

Oh my oh my–Do you think I could fit a dollhouse in the van, too? I love this furniture and all the tiny food and decor!

These clocks REALLY remind me of Germany–I love all the moving parts and pieces!

We also visited the Hans Christian Andersen museum this time. They have many old manuscripts and books and sketches. It was so fun to see–and inspires me to write children’s stories.

We even found a mermaid! Wait a minute, what was she doing there? A fun spot for a selfie, I guess!

We also found some new construction in this little old town. Maybe next year, we will see what this becomes! Tiny homes? Shops? Restaurants? What do you think?