Thanksgiving weekend found us back at one of our favorite campgrounds, Flying Flags RV park in Buellton, California. Buellton is right on highway 101 about halfway between Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo. It also sits just 4 miles or so from the tourist trap of a town called Solvang. We love the area up there and go back as often as possible. We usually spend at least one day in Solvang, going through the shops and eating a pancake like desert named Aebleskeevers. At least I think I spelled that right . . . Of course, there are a lot of foreign tourist in the town and quite a few immigrants that are manning the shops. In one such shop, on a previous visit, we heard a conversation between the shopkeeper and one of our fellow Americans. To make a long story short, the American lady was basically apologizing for being American. NOT ME BROTHER!! I WILL NEVER APOLOGIZE FOR BEING A PART OF THE GREATEST COUNTRY ON THE FACE OF THE EARTH!! Can you see that I am rather passionate about this? Sandy and I are PROUD AMERICANS and will never apologize for being patriots. Regardless, there are stupid people all over the world. We ignored this particular dim-wit and continued to enjoy our trip, shaking off the dust from our clothing as we left that shop. Really, truly, Solvang is worth seeing.
However, the real bright spots in what's known as the Santa Inez valley, are the little towns that dot the valley. The towns of Santa Inez, Los Alamos, Los Olivos, etc., are wonderful destinations. All three of these towns are very historic. I won't go into a long history here, but you can Google any or all of these to find the history of the towns.
While in Los Olivos, you may want to check out the old gas station on the corner. Which corner? Well, I think there's only one corner in town, so it's a little hard to miss. This station opened in 1901, one of the first gas stations in the state of California. It operated continuously until 1999, nearly 100 years. They were finally forced out of business because of the cost of complying with the new environmental laws. Lousy tree huggers ruined this guy's business and destroyed a historical landmark in the process. The building is still there and is now a trinket shop. Here's a pic.
Right kitty-corner across the street is a very cool tack shop (saddlery). We love to browse through their collection of bridles, saddles, clothing, bits, etc. Everything you would need to take care of your horse, you can still get in this place. Here's a pic of the saddlery.
Up the road a ways, there are numerous wineries. Even non-drinkers would be interested in seeing some of these places. The Firestone family, of tire fame, has a place up there. Fess Parker, the actor who played Davy Crockett in the 50's and Daniel Boone in the 60's has a place up there. He is sometimes there, signing autographs for his customers. Sandy and I were not fortunate enough to run into him on this trip. Also, at one of the places along the road, there is a giant chess game. The board probably measures about 15' x 15', maybe a little more. We happened to chance upon two women who were losing badly to their husbands. Well, after watching for a few minutes, I could see that, although the women were not very good chess players, their husbands were only slightly better. So, I jumped in and helped the women. Yup, we whipped the husbands in about 6 moves. The ladies were so excited, jumping up and down over their win. However, I don't think the husbands were all that thrilled . . . Anyhow, here's a pic of Fess Parker's place.
Next, we visited Los Alamos. Los Alamos dates back to the 1880's. You can do a Google search if you would like to know more about the town. Suffice to say, since Sandy and I love all things historic, we were thrilled to find this little hamlet. There is a hotel in town that was built in 1880, then burned to the ground and was re-built in the early 20th century. It now serves as a bed and breakfast. Here's a pic of the hotel. 
As in Los Olivos, there is an old gas station that has been shuttered for who-knows-how-long. We had to take a picture of the prices on the pump. Notice that it is in liters. Also notice that it is leaded gas. Must have closed sometime in the early 70's. Here's the station. 
And here is the gas pump showing the price.
37 1/2 cents per liter. Hmmmm . . . that works out to about a buck and a half a gallon. Hmmm . . . Of course, gas is getting pretty close to that number around here over the last couple of months. But, slObama hasn't taken office yet. Stock up on all the gas you can before that lib-dem taxes it up to 9 bucks.As always, we had a wonderful time in Buellton. We barbequed a steak for Thanksgiving dinner, had a nice dinner out at AJ Spurs one night, sat around the campfire every evening and, in general, just relaxed. We can't wait to go back next year. Who knows? Maybe Chris and Florica will go next year!!
Happy Trails!!
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