56th Stop - Solvang, CA

May 25, 2026

Blog Post #67 - Written April 28, 2026

Stay: September 28-30, 2025

We weren't planning on doing too much in Southern California, since that's where I grew up and where my parents still live. So my parents lovingly said they would meet us up in Solvang, CA, a fun Danish town. We found a cool campground that had cabins and RV spots that let us all stay together.

The kids loved the cabin, since it had an upstairs loft with a little window, perfect for lobbing stuffed animals down at unsuspecting couch dwellers. It was also perfect for doing puppet shows and other various theatrical acts.

My parents introduced us to a new game series called 'Unlocked', an escape room style game with clues dependent on a deck of cards. I might be a little obsessed. And Z asks to play them all the time, although most of the games have some deduction skills that are a little above his understanding. But they are still fun to play.

We spent our first day together in the old city of Solvang. The streets are full of cottages and windmills, transporting you to a small Danish town. Our favorite shop was the clock shop. They sell beautiful wood carved cuckoo clocks: ones with bears, or taverns, or birds, or pretty much anything you can think of. They also had a fabulous artist studio with sculptures, art, and figurines. We weren't allowed to take pictures, so I don't have much there. But a must see in Solvang.

My mother loves Christmas Nativities, so a stop at the Christmas Shoppe was in order. They have so many fun decorations and nativities. Z especially loved this walrus one, which now sits on my parents mantel. And is Z's only inheritance.

We also stopped at the Hans Christian Andersen Museum. The kids read some of his original stories while we walked through the small displays.

A day in Solvang wouldn't be complete without eating Æbelskivers. An Æbelskiver is a spherical pancake, cooked in a special pan. You have to cook half the batter, then flip it with a toothpick so the rest of the batter falls into the pan, forming a little ball. And more importantly, absolutely delicious.

We ended the day back at the campground, scouring the campground for a functioning hot tub. We finally found it (at the hotel next door, since the campground's hot tubs were under repair). D was so happy to have her 'hot pool' again.

Our next day was at La Purisima, a 240 year old mission settled by the Franciscan Monks. They worked closely with the Chumash people. We toured the museum and learned about the amazing building reinforcements that were made over the years. I am constantly amazed at the work the Civilian Conservation Corps did under FDR's New Deal. We have seen their renovations and conservation efforts all across the states. The CCC used the original methods to restore the mission to its current condition, which still seems incredible.

The mission had a field, which used to be full of sheep and cattle, but now only had a couple of cows and a horse. We also found enclosures for these intense looking turkeys. And the kids spent plenty of time hunting lizards. The grounds also sported a couple beautiful fountains, where fetching water and bathing would take place. There was also a compound for the Monks and another for the Native people.

But our favorite spot was the chapel. It was a large, open room with amazing echoic capabilities. One half of the room was where sermons were given, the other held the choir loft. We had a very special moment singing the song "Gethsemane" as a family.