Solvang–Danish in California

Did you know that there’s a little bit of Denmark, right in the middle of California? The town of Solvang is located in between San Francisco and Los Angeles and entering this tiny village you can’t help smiling. It’s bizarre and surreal – you see Denmark all around you (and a little bit of the Netherlands too, for some reason).

Copenhagen road, Arne’s Aebleskiver, Danish bakery, Julehus, Hans Christian Andersen, Runde Tårn and the little Mermaid are some of the sights. Houses built in old Danish style are dominating the city picture and people smiling everywhere, welcoming you as a fellow Scandinavian. It just so happens that I’m half Danish and I visited Solvang back in 2005. It would have been a crime not to, since we drove right through it, more or less.

Solvang means “sunny fields” and seing the picture below you get the idea. It suits both this field and the yellow ones you find all over in Denmark.

The town was founded back in 1911 by theologist Benedict Nordentoft,  pastor Jens M. Gregersen and lecturer Peder P. Hornsyld, wishing for a colony somewhere warm, far from the Midwestern Winters. The population today is just over 5000 and it became a city in 1985.

When I visited, the third weekend in September, the traditional “Danish Days” was celebrated, as it’s been since 1936. They have eating competitions, processions through the downtown area with floats, marching groups, dancing, and singing. During these “Danish Days” you can have a couple of Danish delicacies, Medisterpølser and Æbleskiver.

Buildings in the half-timbered style of Danish rural houses dominate the town, even though Scandinavians point out that these have nothing to do with the original immigrants, but rather make for a huge tourist attraction.

As mentioned, there are many copies of Danish sightseeings. One is Runde Tårn, that is orignially located in the middle of Copenhagen and is Europes oldest observatory, built in 1637. The tower situated in Solvang is 1/3 of the one in Copenhagen, and houses a pizza place.

The little Mermaid has it’s place, of course.

H.C Andersen, the great Danish writer.

Solvang

Christmas whenever you want.

Image source: flickr.com and google.com

So, do you want to have a bit of Danish extreme, Solvang is the place. Enjoy!

I’m at the end of the line. Or at the beginning..

Is this route 66? I imagine it is. I come to think of all of those “road trip” movies I’ve seen and this is what I remember most; the long, never ending roads in stone deserts. I really, really want to travel that road! I’ve heard it’s not what it was, but who cares.

I’ve driven California 1. It was a-a-amazing. Nothing less. Hearst Castle, Carmel, Monterey, Santa Barbara, the beautiful Bixby Creek Bridge. And the view.. oh, the view of the Pacific Ocean!

Route 66 doesn’t have that view. Nevertheless, it’s on my list.

This photo makes me think of something else too. I’m standing there. By the rocks. I’ve put those miles of roads behind me now. I’ve finished my Swedish course and I’m ready for the University. I don’t know what road to take, though. I can’t see it yet. And I know that as soon as I pass all of those rocks there’ll be miles and miles of more road ahead. I guess I’ll just have to put my walking boots on and start marching.

Happy Wednesday to you!

Impressive handwork

Does this look like snow and ice?

Well, it’s not. It’s the Pamukkale – the Cotton Castle of Turkey.

It is a natural site in Denizli Province in south-western Turkey. The city contains hot springs and travertines, terraces of carbonate minerals left by the flowing water. The ancient Greco-Roman and Byzantine city of Hierapolis was built on top of the white "castle".

The unique formations of travertine (calcium carbonate) shelves, pools and stalactites, which hug the ridge above town like a white scar, were created by the area’s warm mineral water, which cools as it cascades over the cliff edge and deposits its calcium. It’s a strange piece of landscape unlike anything else you’ll see in Turkey, and it now appears on the Unesco World Heritage list.

Images: flickr.com