My family were long time members of the danish brotherhood and we went to Solvang every year for convention from here in San Diego. Always stopping at Andersens Split Pea soup.
Solvang was my Mexican mother’s favorite town to visit in California. I lived in southern California the first 18 years of my life, but never went. Interesting that her half Dutch/half Mexican daughter is now a practicing Norse pagan.
Looks a bit 'hipster'. If you're looking for some home town style Scandinavian legacy, you need to head to the upper Midwest. Plenty of small towns that still have Syttende Mai parades & celebrations and traditional dishes on local menus (as well as in their grocery stores).
Bu what about the aebleskiver?!?!? On my mother's side, we are 100% Danish, with all of my Great Grandparents born in Denmark. I was born and raised in Long Beach, CA, and I am now 58 years old. My family came to California by way of Elkhorn/Kimmelton, Iowa. I was always told that Solvang was founded by people mostly from Kimmelton. For my sister and me, Solvang was just a boring place we went to visit relatives. We HATED it! It was just a bunch of old people sitting around a table speaking Danish, drinking pots of coffee, and eating sausage and aebleskiver. I can tell you that Mortensen's bakery has been there longer than I have been alive, but that for our family it was just for the "tourists." Hilarious. In the 60's, when we were there the most, there wasn't much "Viking" or even "Norse" in Solvang. I guess that was mostly because the original settlers were Lutheran Danes -- Harald Bluetooth was a great hero to them. Times have indeed changed, though. That being said, I did buy my sister an aebleskiver pan there about 25 years ago. (I inherited my grandmother's pan, which is now over 100 years old, and I still use it.) So, the more things change, the more they stay the same... Thank you for highlighting this little piece of California!
p.s. Long Beach, nicknamed "Iowa by the Sea," had an enormous Danish population at the turn of the last century. My great-grandmother, Besta, lived here nearly 40 years without ever learning to speak English, and she got along JUST fine. :)
Was your family ever involved eith the Danish Brotherhood? Mine was, they held the San Diego branch and when it folded i think they became members with a branch either in Long Beach or Orange County. But youre right Solvang was boring as a kid. Went every single year for the Danish Brotherhood conventions. Now that im older and appreciate the stuff, I wish so much to go back in time and enjoy it! Its funny your comment about the old people sitting around drinking coffee and eating æblekivers - how damn accurate!!
My family were long time members of the danish brotherhood and we went to Solvang every year for convention from here in San Diego. Always stopping at Andersens Split Pea soup.
Solvang was my Mexican mother’s favorite town to visit in California. I lived in southern California the first 18 years of my life, but never went. Interesting that her half Dutch/half Mexican daughter is now a practicing Norse pagan.
Sweeeet.. grew up riding dirtbikes at Zaca station just up the road ..loved that town. Anderson’s split pea soup is legendary!
I visited there in 2019. I loved it!
I went there for my birthday back in 2014 and I loved it
I live in CA so this would make a good road trip. : )
Awesome place! 👏🌱🌳
I am also a Blacksmith and Bladesmith, & Forged a Seax and Axe for a man living in Norway.
Man Mortensens is amazing, I live right next to Solvang
I wish I had seen this video before I had visited
You must need the alcohol to love it! 😄 I had to go there every year with school and back then it sucked. Nice to see they got more diverse shops.
(I still gave ya a 👍)
Thats a nice school that takes you there!
Looks a bit 'hipster'. If you're looking for some home town style Scandinavian legacy, you need to head to the upper Midwest. Plenty of small towns that still have Syttende Mai parades & celebrations and traditional dishes on local menus (as well as in their grocery stores).
Are you from the US?
Norway. Living in US :)
Bu what about the aebleskiver?!?!?
On my mother's side, we are 100% Danish, with all of my Great Grandparents born in Denmark. I was born and raised in Long Beach, CA, and I am now 58 years old. My family came to California by way of Elkhorn/Kimmelton, Iowa. I was always told that Solvang was founded by people mostly from Kimmelton. For my sister and me, Solvang was just a boring place we went to visit relatives. We HATED it! It was just a bunch of old people sitting around a table speaking Danish, drinking pots of coffee, and eating sausage and aebleskiver. I can tell you that Mortensen's bakery has been there longer than I have been alive, but that for our family it was just for the "tourists." Hilarious.
In the 60's, when we were there the most, there wasn't much "Viking" or even "Norse" in Solvang. I guess that was mostly because the original settlers were Lutheran Danes -- Harald Bluetooth was a great hero to them. Times have indeed changed, though. That being said, I did buy my sister an aebleskiver pan there about 25 years ago. (I inherited my grandmother's pan, which is now over 100 years old, and I still use it.) So, the more things change, the more they stay the same...
Thank you for highlighting this little piece of California!
p.s. Long Beach, nicknamed "Iowa by the Sea," had an enormous Danish population at the turn of the last century. My great-grandmother, Besta, lived here nearly 40 years without ever learning to speak English, and she got along JUST fine. :)
Was your family ever involved eith the Danish Brotherhood? Mine was, they held the San Diego branch and when it folded i think they became members with a branch either in Long Beach or Orange County.
But youre right Solvang was boring as a kid. Went every single year for the Danish Brotherhood conventions. Now that im older and appreciate the stuff, I wish so much to go back in time and enjoy it!
Its funny your comment about the old people sitting around drinking coffee and eating æblekivers - how damn accurate!!