Baseball Origin? In Pittsfield?

If you're a big baseball fan (like me), then you might have heard of Pittsfield, Massachusetts.  Several years ago, a document was discovered in the town that have helped it stake a claim as the birthplace of baseball.  Apparently, the document was dated 1791, which would put it well ahead of the more popular myth that Abner Doubleday wrote the rules for baseball in Cooperstown, NY in 1839.  Other cities like New York City and Hoboken, New Jersey also claim to be the city of baseball's origin, but the history of baseball remains clouded with influence from England and variations of the sport.

Nevertheless, while driving through the scenic Berkshire Hills up to Vermont, we passed through Pittsfield, and I was hopeful we would find some type of historical plaque or monument devoted to its baseball claim.  While Pittsfield is the largest city in the county, the downtown area is not too big, so we quickly found Wahconah Park, located among a few local businesses in town.  The ballpark was built in the early 1900s and has been the home of a variety of minor league and independent league baseball teams.

Solvang, Danish Capital of the US

I never heard of Solvang until a few years ago when a few relatives visited the place.  Since then, I have heard it come up in conversations and even saw it on an episode of the TV show, Psych.  If you've never been there, it's considered the "Danish capital of the US."

While staying in the Santa Barbara area, we drove up through the scenic mountains of Route 154 to spend a good portion of the day in Solvang.  It's a quaint little town with Danish-inspired village structures and windmills along the local blocks along with the old Spanish Mission Santa Ines, one of several California Missions that can be found up and down the coast.

Danish Aebleskiver

While browsing several shops around town, we stopped for brunch in Solvang Restaurant, where we chowed on some typical breakfast foods - pancakes, eggs, bacon, sausage - supposedly prepared in a Danish style but not too unique to take note.  The main dish to try though is of course, their famous Danish Aebleskiver, traditional Danish pancakes that are shaped into a ball generally with apple slices inside and topped with powdered sugar and jam.  Ours had a raspberry jam on top - and was a delicious compliment to our brunch.  These were definitely worth trying, and many were lining up outside the restaurant to just order some Aebleskiver.  You certainly should not leave without at least picking up a few.

Bakeries around town offered several things to try - from cookies to pastries to cakes to chocolates.  We picked up a bucket of Danish cookies at The Solvang Bakery for ourselves and for some family members.  If you've every gotten one of those Danish cookie tins for Christmas - don't be turned away!  I expected the cookies to be like the ones in those tins I grew up with, but they were far from it.  These cookies were better - melt in your mouth and tastier than anything that came in one of those tins.  I recommend picking up a bucket to bring home.

The walk around town was easy and you can probably spend a few hours here and be satisfied.  Along with a tour of the Mission, we were probably there a good 5-6 hours, but I'm sure most can stop here for 2-3 hours as a drive through to another destination.  But if you love food (like we do), then be prepared as you can easily gain some pounds walking around town and trying all the goodies to eat!

Pin Stops Ranking: 3 Pins

3 pins easy for Solvang.  This place lived up to what I heard about it and was definitely worth checking out for a few hours.  Getting to gobble up some of the goodies around town certainly helped, too! :)

For more on my Pinstop Rankings, check out this post.