Salt Lake City

I immensely enjoyed my time in Salt Lake City. I was badly in a need of a respite from the road so I stayed two nights in Utah's capital. The city's skyline impressively rises up before you as you approach on Interstate 15, but what's even more impressive is how the buildings are dwarfed by jagged mountains looming ten times as tall in the background.

I spent Sunday chilling out, exploring different parts of the city, and, late in the afternoon, hiking up Olympus Cove in the shadow of Utah's Mount Olympus. The mountain's name is appropriate because its flat gray face looks like a prime location for mythological Gods and Titans to wage battle. Opposite Olympus is another peak covered with gnarled, rocky horns that might be an entry to Hades. If you look closely at the photo of sunset taken from Olympus Cove, you can see the city and the lake between the two trees.

On Monday, I visited Temple Square and the State Capitol in downtown Salt Lake. Both are architecturally stunning. A fountain in the square resembles the Mormon Temple's sharp steeples and white walls. I learned the Mormon church, which has a tall business office and modern convention center near the Temple, owns much of the land in Salt Lake City.

The Capitol--heavy and grand and atop a steep hill--is distinctly Utahan. It features beehive sculptures representing industry (as in industriousness as opposed to factories) in tribute to early pioneers, a dome painted as a blue sky with seagulls taking flight, a hulking, striding statue of political and religious leader Brigham Young, and paintings in the Senate Chambers depicting the state's natural beauty.

I left Salt Lake late Monday morning and started towards southern Utah where I would begin my pilgrimage to the National Parks. On my drive to Cedar City, where I stayed Monday night, I stopped at Cove Fort. In the late 1800s, the fort served as a rest stop for pioneers traveling between Coalville in the north and St. George in the south. Today, it's run by the Mormon church. Elder Merrit gave me a personal tour of the fort (private guides are given to all groups) which laced proselytizing in with the area's history. After the tour, Elder Merrit gave me a copy of the Book of Mormon.