Temple Square and the Capitol

This morning we got up bright and early to go to United Diesel, where we had an appointment to get our brakes looked at. When we got there, it turned out that the man who made the appointment had misunderstood and thought we had a motorhome--they don't work on fifth wheels. He recommended another shop and called to see if we could get in. So now we have an appointment tomorrow with D and A Truck Equipment and Trailer Repair.

Meanwhile we checked in to our campsite at Pony Express RV Resort. It's very conveniently located and a well-kept park with nice level paved sites--but it also has lots of freeway noise and a petroleum refinery across the street. So far we haven't heard any trains, but we probably couldn't hear them over the freeway noise.Once we got settled and had lunch, we decided to visit Temple Square, the center of the city and the headquarters for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Mormons). We parked a few blocks away, near the Energy Arena and walked over. Within a block, a pair of Mormon missionaries had greeted us and tried to engage us in conversation, but we told them we were headed to Temple Square. The Square is surrounded by a high stone wall with several entrances. We walked into the South Visitor Center and inquired about tours.

To our surprise, we found that visitors are given individual tours (although groups are also accommodated). The tours are led by pairs of women, called "Sisters," who are apparently on mission. Each wears a name tag and a flag indicating the country they come from. The two young women who led our tour were from Japan and one of the Scandinavian countries--but both spoke English very well.

Giant organ in the Tabernacle, where the Mormon Tabernacle Choir sing.

Christ in the Universe on the upper floor of the North Visitor Center

The Temple, with the Angel Moroni

After our visit to Temple Square, we decided to walk to the State Capitol, which looked quite close. Although it is just over half a mile, it's an uphill half mile in the heat, so we were glad to walk into the air-conditioned capitol building. We were lucky enough to join a tour that was just starting, and the only other people on the tour were a pleasant couple from England.

We learned a bit more about the history of Utah and its politics (generally quite conservative). The capitol building was restored recently to its original glory-lots of marble and gold leaf and the usual ceremonial rooms etc. The one surprise for me was a statue of Philo Farnsworth, a Utah man credited with the invention of the first all electronic television.

We started playing Rummikub outside this evening to take advantage of the cool breeze, but the mosquitoes soon chased us indoors. I won two of the three rounds again.