Sightseeing in Salt Lake City

 

On our way to the MTC (Mission Training Center) we stopped off for some sightseeing in Salt Lake City.  We took lots of pictures but I will only post a few for those of our family and friends who have not been here.  The temple was gorgeous as always.  You can't take a bad picture of the temple.

There were flowers everywhere



Some of the statues on Temple Square:

Seagull Monument

Handcart Pioneers

Joseph & Hyrum Smith (and me)



Restoring the Aaronic Priesthood

Restoring the  Melchizedek Priesthood



Conference Center

 

We took a tour of the Conference Center because we had never been there.  We took some pictures but they really do not show how expansive and beautiful the building is.  Our tour guide said that it is the largest public building of it's kind in the country except for sporting arenas.  It holds 21,000 people in one room and you don't even get a good idea of how big it is when you watch conference on TV.   That huge room where conference is held has no supporting pillars so there is nothing to obstruct the view from anywhere in the room.  There is even more on each side than I was able to capture in the middle.



This was taken from the balcony


The pulpit was made from a tree in President Hinckley's yard.  We were not able to see it up close because there had been some water damage recently because of a leak and it was being repaired.  No wonder!  Look what is positioned directly over the pulpit (on the roof)



There is beautiful artwork and sculptures throughout the building.  All of the original Book of Mormon paintings are huge.  We learned that a primary president had commissioned the paintings so that primary children could understand the Book of Mormon stories more easily.  I've seen those pictures so many times but never realized that there is so much detail in them.  There are also busts of each of the Presidents of the church and there are gorgeous fountains everywhere.

On the roof there are gardens and trees, fountains, and these cool sky lights.  There are nine of them and they are over the conference room and cause rainbows to appear on some of the chairs.



There is also a mural made of Brazilian marble.  The picture is sandblasted onto it.



David O McKay is the little boy sitting on his father's lap in the right bottom corner.

There is so much more to see but I'll end for now and show you one more picture.  This is the view of temple square from the top of the Conference Center.

What an AWESOME place!!!