A Sideways Weekend

Mike and I just celebrated our third anniversary together last week (insert hurrahs here). We decided to jet out of town and spend a long weekend together in Solvang. Many of you may not have heard of this town-- and trust me, I'm not surprised. Solvang's one of those places that, if you didn't grown up in CA (which I did), and aren't German/Dutch/Danish in heritage (which I am), you would have absolutely no reason to go. Up until recently, you only passed through Solvang if you were on your way somewhere up the coast and wanted to eat good pancakes before you made the drive. Today's Solvang, however, although still a relatively sleepy town, has garnered a strange cult fanbase of people who liked the 2005 movie "Sideways" with Paul Giamatti. Almost the entire film was filmed either in Solvang or in towns/vineyards in the area. It's funny- Solvang is still as quaintly Danish as always, and you can still buy wooden clogs and watch the windmills turn. Now, though, alongside picturesque wooden signs touting, "Jule Hus" and "Mortensens' Bakery" there are signs that read "taste wine just like they tasted in Sideways!"
At any rate, Mike and I do enjoy the kitsch, and the countryside is really beautiful on the coast. It was absolutely breathtaking with all the recent rains, and there were wildflowers sprung up on every hillside. Hundreds of poppies and lupin, wild mustard, and the greenest rolling hills you could imagine. We drove up Friday and checked into our hotel which had a giant windmill spinning out front. Unfortunately most stores/restaurants closed that night pretty early, so we just got a chance to enjoy a good German sausage dinner at the Heidelberg Beirgarten. I think we were one of two couples dining that night.
After a quiet Friday, we decided to take Saturday by storm. We got up and walked into town for breakfast at Paula's Pancake House which literally made Danish pancakes larger than the plate they were served on. Absolutely delicious (but not as good as Mom's...wink wink). Then we took the car and drove out to a state park a few miles out of town. We hiked on a short trail to a waterfall and took some pictures and goofed around. Then, we drove through the Santa Ynez valley to check out the local vineyards. We stopped at Fess Parker's vineyard (yes, Fess Parker of Davy Crockett fame) and did our first tasting in a winery. It was a very enjoyable experience, and we ending up buying three bottles of wine to try. While everybody else was buying cases of stuff, we just had our tiny bag-- gotta work our way up to being winos!
Next, we drove back towards town, passing through Los Olivos. Stopped in a few goofy art gallery/gardeny shops and took some surrealist pictures of plants with garden gnomes (see below). We headed back into town just in time to grab some lunch (Mike tried Ableskeivers for the first time- and liked them- no surprise there!) and check out the local scene before the "Taste of Solvang" descended upon the town.
The "Taste" was a special event happening during the entire weekend where you could purchase tickets for a Friday dessert night, all day Sat. smorgasbord fest, or Sat. wine tasting evening. We went for the wine tasting. Three hours, 12 wine rooms. Awesome. Mike and I got just a wee bit tipsy as we sloshed around town with our wine glasses out and ready for the next pour. I realized I should not buy wine while drunk- I didn't splurge too much, but probably bought one bottle too many considering I was in no shape to determine the value of the wine by the end of the night. I don't think I've ever heard so many adults giggling in one night before. The streets of Solvang were definitely filled with some happy, happy drunks...us included. We slowly made our way back to our hotel room where I proceeded to get a fit of giggles for about an hour. Unfortunately, when we both tried to go to sleep, we had horrible dreams of being sloshed around in giant wine barrels. Alas, perhaps we'll have a little less to drink next time...
Oh, and here's a fun little "Sideways" bit of trivia Mike told me just before our trip. For anyone who knows the film, I'm sure you can remember a particularly large and hairy naked man running after Paul Giammati. Yes, everyone remember? Well, guess where you've seen him before...he's Mr. Tom Friendly, the Other, as seen weekly on LOST. Enjoy THAT bit of trivia! Bet you can't watch the show now without thinking of his angry nakedness smushed up on Giammati's car window. At least I can't..... THANKS, Mike.