We first learned of the town of Solvang, California back in 2005, after the movie Sideways came out. Based on a book, which I didn’t read until after seeing the movie, Sideways is about two middle-aged men who embark on one last hoorah before one of them is set to get married. They spend a week in Santa Barbara wine country. The soon-to-be-married friend is intent on getting laid one last time before he walks down the aisle, and his buddy just wants to drink lots of good wine and eat fine food. It’s a somewhat dark comedy-drama, and Ray and I loved it – so much even that we took our own Sideways road trip, a map of all the film locations as our guide! That was such a fun trip, and that’s when we were introduced to Solvang, as much of the movie was filmed there.
Solvang was founded in 1911 by a group of Danes, who sought to establish a Danish colony. Today, it’s a pretty neat town with Danish windmills, lots of nods to Hans Christian Andersen (a park, a museum, a statue), and Danish-style architecture. One can also taste some Danish treats in town.
The first time we visited the area, over a decade ago, we were primarily concerned with hitting the wineries. This time, with the children on board, we paid more attention to the uniqueness of the town.
We ate breakfast at Solvang Restaurant, where we had a hearty meal; then we topped it off with some Danish Aebleskiver, a cross between a pancake and a popover, sprinkled with powdered sugar and drizzled with raspberry jam.
We spent some time just strolling the streets and popping into some shops.
On the way back from visiting Solvang, we stopped in at OstrichLand USA, where we got to feed Ostriches and Emus. I knew that ostriches were big, but being so close to them really showed me just how massive they are. They are huge birds! The biggest, in fact. They can get up to 350 pounds. They can also run at speeds of up to 45 miles per hour, and they can live to be 75 years old. That’s an old bird! I think feeding these giant creatures was the highlight of the Solvang visit for the girls.
After our visit to Solvang, Ray decided that he and I needed to watch Sideways again. He put it on around 10 last night and fell asleep halfway through. I watched it to the end. Man, that is an excellent movie.
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