Salt Lake City

From Washington we crossed the Columbia River into Idaho.

 It was one of our longer driving days, crossing into Utah about eight hours later.

Road trips can be entertaining with the ever changing landscape, 

but these days even more so with wifi/bluetooth music and pod casts to log into.

We checked into a hotel in Salt Lake City 

and booked a bus tour for the next day. 

Something we have rarely done.

This really was the best way to spend our time there.

The bus driver was funny and quite entertaining - 

we hopped on and off as he told us stories.

Salt Lake City was founded in 1847 by a group of Mormon pilgrims,

facing the many hardships of pioneering as they began their life there.

Unbeknown to them at the time, 

was that they landed on what today is still the largest copper mine,

making the railroad line a most welcome part of the trasportation needed 

not only for personal benefits, but also for commercial mining.

The Union Pacific Depot was built in 1908 and, if this building looks familiar

it may be because you have seen its replica in CA's Disneyland.

At least, this is what we were told. =)

A prominent and stately building we noticed as we looked for our hotel was the State Capitol,

Of course the bus stopped here for some time.

We walked the grounds and saw some of the amazing architecture inside.

The view from the steps.

The interior of the dome was truly awe inspiring in every detail.

Murals such as we've seen in Europe

but depicting the history of the city. 

The tour bus was to drop us off for a live recital at the Mormon Tabernacle,

but due to a major seismic upgrade taking place we missed out on that. 

The main tabernacle was not even visible for an actual photo

as it was covered by a construction screen.

We passed by other churches, which there are plenty of.

We had to laugh when, at one point, we saw at least six different denominations

of churches all side by side.

We entered this large, ornate Cathedral where there was a wedding in progress. 

When the tour was done, we walked to the City Creek Center Mall.

We had lunch under a canopy of golden trees ...

and enjoyed some shopping time.

No surprise there.

Macy's Department Store was one we had passed on the tour,

being told that Macy's purchased the ZCMI Department store founded in 1886,

known as "America's First Department Store".

We got our car and drove around the city for a while,

just admiring the historic homes.

I'm always amazed at the beauty and the detail that went into buildings,

especially with more limited tools. 

The handiwork is worth admiring. 

It was a wonderful day in Salt Lake City, 

relaxing, informative and fun!