Then we went to check out the University of Utah's campus. It was near downtown, and nestled in the mountain side, down to the valley. We stopped into the campus store and picked up a shirt for Britton, then drove around a little more.
Then we decided to check out the Mormon Temple. Even though we don't subscribe to the radical theology that is LDS (Latter-Day Saints, which everyone calls "Mormon" in Utah), we wanted to see the temple. It was stunning! It sits in the middle of downtown, surrounded by historical buildings and gardens. And we started to notice a pattern of the skyscrapers and shopping centers downtown - all owned by the Mormon Church. That kind of thing makes my brain hurt and my libertarian side come out in full force.
That is not a rainbow in the top right part of the picture, as it was cloudless and sunny when we were in Utah. I can't explain it. Maybe the Mormons can...
We stumbled upon a couple taking wedding photos outside of the temple. Then another couple. Then another couple. Then some bridesmaids. It was so odd, all these couples basically stacked in a check-out line of sorts to get married at the temple. Now, we couldn't go into the temple because it's secret and all, but nothing (not even courteous behavior norms) stopped me from getting up on a rock wall and snapping a shot of all these brides, grooms, and wedding guests milling around.
As we were walking to the other side of the gardens, some woman told us that an organ concert was about to begin. We decided to check it out since it would only last 30 minutes. This is the Mormon Tabernacle Organ, and it sounded beautiful in person.
As we were high-fiving each other that no missionaries had approached us (they can see a lost cause, you know?) we decided to check out the Church History Museum. It was interesting, but wasn't especially pertinent to us. But then we found the quilt exhibit upstairs! These quilts were fantastic, and I took a ton more pictures than I'll share here.
Made entirely of clothes labels. The creator's son was getting a bone marrow transplant and was in the hospital for five months. Over that time he collected labels from other patients and the hospital staff and put this together with his mom.
This one made me laugh! The pattern is the Texas Star. But the funny thing is - the sign said that it came from the local asylum. Seems the asylum's director found that the mind works better when the hands are busy, so the patients at the asylum made this quilt. The pieces are tiny as all get out, and the entire thing is sewn by hand. I can appreciate the therapeutic benefits of quilting, being a quilter myself. But with the work this one took, those patients must be cured!
Later that night we went to dinner at the Copper Onion, and let me leave you with this - if you get a chance to try juniper berry cheddar cheese, do it. We had an easy trip back home, and all in all loved our little vacation. Here's hoping the next one isn't five years away again!
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