Salt Lake

Well, it turns out I started eating solid food too soon (last night). My stomach just can't take it. I feel great otherwise and someone managed to walk a mile and back to visit Temple Square and take a tour of the Great Salt Lake and the Kennecott Copper Mine, while only drinking gatorade and water all day. And I still have a ton of energy and really want some pizza, but I dare not eat today. I may take another day to rest here before heading to Arches National Park and Mesa Verde because I really can't see visiting either of those places just subsisting on Gatorade.

Now that those gory details are out of the way, I did indeed visit Temple Square today, and even took a tour led by two very earnest missionaries from South America. The tour was mostly about getting people to request more information on Mormonism but occasionally they slipped in a fact about a building or so. Here is a picture of the tour guides praying or something in front of a statue of Jesus with a mural of the universe in the background:



A picture of the temple:



A couple of people left the tour in disgust, but I stuck with it out of curiosity. And I have never seen so many missionaries. They were everywhere. I wonder how you land that job for your mission? I guess I could have asked, but I have to admit I did not want to encourage them. Anyway, I'm fascinated with religious history and religions in general, so I looked at this as a learning experience, though I have to admit the whole setup is...weird. It is a beautiful area and I respect the Mormons for moving out to a desert after being persecuted, but I'm not going to understand the whole be with your family for eternity, including dead relatives that they have to save or something. Among other things.

I'm glad I took a tour instead of having to drive today, though the people on the Great Salt Lake tour were mostly annoying middle aged women who would spend hours in the gift shop buying copper jewelry. There is nothing wrong with this, and I will be middle aged before I know it, but I was reminded why I generally hate taking tours--slow moving people who actually buy the junk in gift shops--I've been wondering this entire trip who buys this stuff, now I know. I know, I should be nicer...but...anyway, the Great Salt Lake was pretty cool:







After that, the tour went to Kennecott Bingham Canyon Mine, a huge copper mine that can be seen from outerspace. The museum emphasized their environmental stewardship which is hard to believe, but then again who doesn't use copper every day? The mine was huge:





A few remaining trees: