by Anna Ferguson-Sparks for Solvang Danish Days | July 10, 2018
Solvang Village Band atop the Carlsberg Beer Wagon, Solvang Danish Days 2017 {Photo Credit: Theresa Gingras Photography}
California’s premier Danish heritage festival, Solvang Danish Days, will hold its 82nd run this year with a three-day event weekend lineup Sept. 14-16.
The 2018 Solvang Danish Days theme, “Beautiful Denmark by the Sea,” will be celebrated during this year’s event, which honors the 1911 establishment of Solvang by Danish-Americans. The 2018 edition of Solvang Danish Days will continue to offer attendees a total Danish immersion experience while helping preserve Solvang’s authentic Danish heritage.
Danish Days guests looking to “live like Vikings” throughout the event weekend will have the opportunity to purchase a “Dane for a Day” VIP ticket bundle (only available online), while those looking to gain quicker entrance to Saturday and/or Sunday’s Aebleskiver Breakfasts, may now purchase tickets for either day’s breakfast. All advance, online tickets are available by clicking here.
Since Solvang Danish Days’ modest beginnings in 1936, when the festival debuted to commemorate the village’s 25th anniversary, the event has set out to celebrate Solvang’s Danish heritage with authentic food, music, dancing, parades, live entertainment and family activities. In 1946, a reporter from then-influential The Saturday Evening Post visited Solvang during Danish Days, and the resulting article, which appeared in January 1947, put Solvang on the proverbial map. The article stated, in part, “Solvang…a spotless Danish village that blooms like a rose in California’s charming Santa Ynez Valley. Old country charm and customs have been successfully fused with the American way of life. Nowadays…the quaint village is busy living up to its affectionate name, ‘Little Denmark.’”
As Danish Days nears its 82nd birthday, the festival continues to mesh “old country charm and customs” with a more modern “way of life” through its varied activities, which blend present-day Danish practices with traditional ways while still exemplifying everything Danish. The weekend’s numerous offerings, encompassing activities for all ages, range from fan-favorite food events surrounding Aebleskiver, the iconic Danish pastry rounds; to a Danish-style beer and wine garden serving Danish import, Carlsberg beer, alongside local brews and wines; to a historical reenactment in the form of a Viking Encampment; to interactive history lessons at the Elverhoj Museum of History & Art; to chainsaw wood-carving demonstrations, and an Old World artisanal crafts marketplace.
Solvang Danish Days boasts plentiful free entertainment during the weekend with three parades, Danish folk dancers and musicians performing in spots scattered about the town, plus an afternoon and evening of free, live concerts on the Midgaard Pavilion Stage in the middle of downtown Solvang, adjacent to the Viking Beer & Wine Garden.
Returning to Solvang Danish Days this year is a townwide restaurant promotion; participating Solvang eateries and bars will be “cooking up” something special just for Danish Days weekend.
Solvang Danish Days also aims to please the next generation of Danish Days fans with family-friendly pastimes, including storytelling sessions with Randel McGee as Hans Christian Andersen, and a “Kid’s Korner” in Solvang Park featuring LEGO.
As history would have it, 2018 also marks the 75th anniversary of the Danes helping to rescue Danish Jews from the Nazi regime, by ferrying them across the sea to neutral Sweden. In honor of this brave act, the Santa Ynez Valley Jewish Community will host a special facet of Danish Days weekend.
Since the 1960s, Solvang Danish Days has been presided over by each year’s Danish Maid, a tradition that remains an honorable accomplishment for each of the young, local women appointed by the Danish Days Foundation board members, to become a specific year’s Danish Maid. The 2018 Danish Maid is high school senior Christiana Heron, a fifth-generation Santa Ynez Valley resident whose Solvang roots stretch back to the town’s founding years. Solvang’s Danish Maids serve as a sort of goodwill ambassador during their year of service, making public appearances to promote Solvang and the city’s spirit of hospitality.
Danish Days has a long-standing family history for Heron. In 1961, her grandmother, Ann Nielsen, was the first to hold court as “hostess” for Danish Days, a precursor to the Danish Maid role. Heron’s older sister, Angelique, was named 2014 Danish Maid; older sister Gabrielle was 2017 Danish Maid; their mother, Betina, was Danish Maid in 1988; and Heron’s cousin, Natalya Nielsen, served as the 2016 Danish Maid. Heron’s great uncle, Don Nielsen, was chairman of the Danish Days board in 1953 and her grandfather, Roger, was chairman in 1971. Also in 1971, Heron’s great-grandparents, Axel and Margaret Nielsen, were the Danish Days Parade grand marshals, and in 2010, her grandparents, Roger and Ann Nielsen, were the grand marshals. Heron’s uncle, Rodney Nielsen, has volunteered for Danish Days for the past 30-plus years. He has served on the Danish Days Foundation board for the past 13 years and served as co-chair of the board in 2013.
One of Danish Days’ continuing traditions is the weekend’s pair of Aebleskiver Breakfasts, served right in the middle of town — a tradition that began with Heron’s great-grandfather, Axel Nielsen, who was in charge of the breakfasts for many years until Heron’s grandfather, Roger Nielsen, took the helm. Heron’s uncle, Rodney Nielsen, is the breakfast chairman.
“Not only will my serving as Danish Maid carry on a wonderful family tradition, but it will be a learning experience that will help me to truly appreciate my heritage and where my family came from … and it’s the perfect opportunity for me to share Solvang’s Danish history and culture with all of the people who visit annually, to get a taste of California’s ‘Little Denmark,’” Heron said.
The preliminary 2018 Danish Days event weekend schedule is available at www.SolvangDanishDays.org; event weekend highlights are as follows*:
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 2018
4:00 PM: Free Concert featuring “The Rincons”, in the Solvang Park Gazebo (Mission Drive and First Street).
4:00 PM: Chainsaw Carver, George Kenny, will begin carving his wooden creations on Friday afternoon; spectators will be able to view the progress of his work throughout the weekend.
5:00 PM – 10:00 PM: Viking Beer & Wine Garden – Outdoor beer and wine garden; supports the Solvang Danish Days Foundation. Viking Beer & Wine Garden continues on Saturday. (Guests must be 21 years of age or older to enter the Viking Beer & Wine Garden and to purchase alcoholic beverages.)
7:30 PM: Torchlight Parade – Free for participants, all ages welcome, candles will be provided. Route begins at Alisal Road and Laurel Avenue, strolling south down Alisal and ending at the Midgaard Pavilion Stage (in Parking Lot 2, downtown Solvang, adjacent to the Danish Days Viking Beer & Wine Garden).
8:00 PM: Opening Ceremonies in Solvang Park introducing 2018 Danish Maid, Christiana Heron. Velkommen Street Dance follows with Danish dancers performing to live music, and a short story narrated by Randel McGee as Hans Christian Andersen.
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2018
8:30 AM – 12:30 PM: Aebleskiver Breakfast on Copenhagen Drive and First Street, just $7.00 per person (with Danish sausage, $8.00). Tickets available on-line in advance, or at the event entrance. Aebleskiver Breakfast also featured on Sunday, same times.
10:00 AM – 4:00 PM: Kid’s Korner featuring LEGO® and a supervised Play & Rest Area, in Solvang Park. Kid’s Korner also featured on Sunday, same times.
10:00 AM – 4:00 PM: Viking Encampment – Visit the Ravens of Odin, Norse Educational Group, as they bring Viking times to life through historical reenactments. Features a Viking Age Weaponry demo on Saturday. Viking Encampment also featured on Sunday, same times.
10:00 AM – 5:00 PM: Living History Festival at Elverhoj Museum of History & Art (1624 Elverhoy Way; www.elverhoj.org). Free, interactive activities for all ages, plus artisans, craftspeople and storytellers. Living History Festival also featured on Sunday, 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
11:00 AM – 10:30 PM: Viking Beer & Wine Garden – Outdoor beer and wine garden; supports the Solvang Danish Days Foundation. (Guests must be 21 years of age or older to enter the Viking Beer & Wine Garden and to purchase alcoholic beverages.)
11:30 AM: Free Aebleskiver Eating Contest – Corner of Copenhagen Drive and First Street. All ages welcome for this five-minute competition. Contest also featured on Sunday, same time.
2:30 PM: Danish Days Parade – Includes the Solvang Village Band atop the Carlsberg Beer Wagon, floats, equestrians, Village Dancers and more. Line-up starts at 1:30 PM on First Street, between Molle Way and Oak Street; parade begins by turning east on Copenhagen Drive, then north on Alisal Road, west on Mission Drive, south on Fourth Place, east on Copenhagen, south on Second Street, finishes at corner of Oak Street near Solvang City Hall. NO CHARGE to participate in the parade; applications are available at www.SolvangDanishDays.org.
5:00 PM – 10:00 PM: Free Concerts featuring live performances by the “Danish Playboys Revisited” and the “T-Bone Ramblers” on the Midgaard Pavilion Stage in Parking Lot 2, in downtown Solvang, adjacent to the Viking Beer & Wine Garden. All ages welcome (must be 21 years or older to enter Viking Beer & Wine Garden). Concerts are free and open to the public.
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2018
8:30 AM – 12:30 PM: Aebleskiver Breakfast on Copenhagen Drive and First Street, just $7.00 per person (with Danish sausage, $8.00). Advance tickets available for sale, at solvang-danish-days-2018.eventbrite.com.
10:00 AM – 4:00 PM: Kid’s Korner featuring LEGO® and a supervised Play & Rest Area, in Solvang Park.
10:00 AM – 4:00 PM: Viking Encampment – Visit the Ravens of Odin, Norse Educational Group, as they bring Viking times to life through historical reenactments.
10:00 AM – 4:00 PM: Living History Festival at Elverhoj Museum of History & Art (1624 Elverhoy Way; www.elverhoj.org). Free, interactive activities for all ages, plus artisans, craftspeople and storytellers.
11:30 AM: Free Aebleskiver Eating Contest – Corner of Copenhagen Drive and First Street. All ages welcome for this five-minute competition.
2:00 PM: Children’s Parade – Begins at Atterdag Square (corner of Atterdag Road and Copenhagen Drive) and meanders down Copenhagen to Solvang Park. All children and families are welcome to join this event; no charge to participate, and costumes are encouraged.
2:45 PM: Danish Days Closing Ceremony in Solvang Park. Danish Days Maid Christiana Heron closes the festive weekend.
* All events listed here, are subject to change or cancellation.
Read the original article, here: noozhawk.com/article/solvang_danish_days_returning_in_september_for_its_82nd_run_20180710
