Fear the Crab

On Wednesday, 9/15, the foggy overcast morning in Solvang started off with breakfast at the nearby Paula’s Pancake House, not even a minute from the Kronborg Inn. It was early enough that we beat the crowd and immediately found parking and a table. I had the Dutch pancakes topped with warm cinnamon apples, and it was very tasty. I ate that so fast I forgot to take a picture of the food, but trust me when I say that I was quite pleased.

The day got warmer and brighter, nice weather for wandering about the town. We tried to visit the Elverhøj Museum, but they weren’t going to open until 13:00. Our schedule had changed last night to include a visit to the nearby Chumash Casino and onward to Simi Valley (to visit someone), so we reserved the museum for a timeslot somewhere between “after wandering” and “if it’s open by the time we leave Solvang.”

Our next step was to cruise down the main street and visit the shops. We found a Christmas ornament at Jule Hus, a dedicated holiday store convenient for the vast population of tourists looking to decorate trees with mementos. Our first choice was an eggshell painted with a view of Solvang’s main street, but ultimately we opted for a sturdier boxed set of 3 hand-made wooden ornaments.

We also enjoyed some of the danishes and other pastries available at the many bakeries. These pastries were so sweet that bees would swarm in the trash cans. We boxed up a few for the journey ahead, and spent the remainder of our stay driving around the town, off the main road.

One of the interesting things about Solvang, besides the Dutch theme, is the apparent close-knit community presence. The biggest indication of this were the student backpacks left outside the classroom in plain sight, unsecured, at the elementary and middle schools. That was something I had never seen nor experienced back home, and while I don’t think a school backpack ranks up there in terms of black-market value, the fact that the access is still left open says a lot about the place. At least, that’s how I look at it. I’m sure unsecured personal belongings are hardly the best scientific representation of social courtesy, and I certainly don’t mean to imply that Solvang is a place where they still don’t lock their doors at night. It’s just a nice feeling when you come across something that seems… well, nice.

By the end of our tour of the community, the Elverhøj Museum would not open for another hour. Solvang did have a number of wine-tasting rooms, but I wasn’t sure how well I’d hold up if our intent was to drive east afterward, so I passed on going to some of them. The decision was made to move on, and we headed east along the CA-246 towards the Chumash Casino.

Some in the group had wanted to visit a tribal casino that wasn’t just a big poker/pai gow room, and by all indications the Chumash Casino is full-service resort offering all kinds of games. Personally, my taste for casinos has dropped dramatically over the past few years. Not much in it for me anymore, and since smoking is still allowed inside it becomes very uncomfortable for me and my allergies to stay there.

However, that’s just me. The casino was full of people, and appeared to be an active touring location for musicians; I recall advertisements for concerts from popular artists. While my mother-in-law and her boyfriend gambled, Maile and I spent our time in the cafe, researching a motel in Simi Valley to spend the night. Given our previous experience, I decided to call ahead and see if I could reserve some rooms at Extended Stay America. Figured a successful, albeit last-minute, reservation would be much better than showing up at the doorstep only to be turned away.

The 2-hour drive to Simi Valley started with a hairy trip on the CA-154, over the mountain and through the woods, before merging back onto the US-101. That was almost a full bag of ginger chews, with apologies to the driver (who, it turned out, didn’t want to drive, but thought they should volunteer because they felt bad).

Passing through Santa Barbara, Ventura, and Oxnard was uneventful, except for the momentary detour for someone to get their cigarette on. Once we arrived at Simi Valley we checked into the Extended Stay America and discovered that it was a pet-friendly hotel; a large chow was lazing about the window of one of the first-floor rooms, watching people come and go. There were a few more sightings of smaller yappy dogs leading their owners down the hallways.

Dinner was at the Olive Garden nearby. I’m sure the general reaction to Olive Garden is a hearty “Wha..?” but for people who don’t have one in their hometown, it’s a chance to dine in someplace “new.” Some of the group wanted Italian food, and while Olive Garden isn’t necessarily the first choice in Italian it was a convenient-enough reason to partake in the large servings of salad and pasta.

Our evening ended at the Extended Stay America on-site laundromat, costing us over $5.00 per load after factoring in the washer, dryer, and detergent. But we were starting to run out of clean clothes, and didn’t feel like hunting around for cheaper places at night.