Attractions of the SL Valley

The day before Grandma and Grandpa headed home, we decided to head for sightseeing in Salt Lake. Our first stop was the Cathedral of the Madeline. Since they are devout Catholics, Barbara and Melvin wanted to see it and we thought it would interesting. It was absolutely beautiful. The light coming in through the stain glass windows shone magnificently. I asked Melvin and Barbara many questions about the symbolism and what different things represent. I really enjoy learning about religion and how people view God from their own view - not third parties. I disliked on my mission when people told me what Mormons believed from what a Baptist or a Pentacostal had told them. It was skewed greatly. Cadence really enjoyed the Cathedral. She sat down on a pew and started to read one of their books they use at mass. She just kind of mumbles nonsense words when she reads.Our next stop was to the Hogle Zoo. Cadence and Cooper had never been there before, but they've seen plenty of pictures in books and on movies of zoo animals. One of Cadence's favorite movies is Madagascar. My next post will be just about the zoo. Needless to say, Cadence loved the zoo!

We ate lunch at a chinese food restaurant named Sampan and headed off for our last outing. We drove across the valley to the Kennecott Copper Mine. Wow! This was incredible. When I was in elementary school, we went on a fieldtrip there. All I remember from it was the big trucks and a big pit. Some things just get better when you are older. This was one of them. The open pit mine was amazing, as was all the information I learned. Unfortunately, we didn't plan enough time for this activity. All of us could have stayed another hour or two before it closed. It only costs $5 a car. There is an information/visitor center which has a ton of displays and facts and shows a 20 minute movie, a gift shop, bathrooms and a look-out point to watch the "going on" of the mine activities. I think that next time they come back, we might head back out to finish learning all we can about that mine. It seriously was so cool!
For example, this is one of the tires on the trucks that hauls the rocks to get processed. There are six of these tires on each truck. They cost $25,000 each and get replaced every year! Holy cow! I'm grateful that we only replace tires once every few years and it costs a couple hundred dollars. When I asked Melvin what he thought of the mine, his reply was, "it should be one of the seven wonders of the world." It was that spectular. I highly recommend taking your family to see this- especially if you have inquisitive children.

Salt Lake can be a lot of fun!