I know very little of Salt Lake City. This was the next stop of our two-week road trip. I was glad my wife and I participated in a three-hour guided tour of the city. The only prominent facts that I know about SLC are that it is in Utah and the city was founded by members of the Latter Day Saints church led by Brigham Young.

We toured SLC by booking a tour with City Sights Salt Lake City. We were apprehensive because of the ongoing COVID19 concerns. Luckily, because of the same concerns, there was barely any booking for the tour. Our group bus tour became a personalized van tour. Michael, our tour guide, did a splendid job! Michael patiently showed us around and kept our interest at peak level.

The streets are so wide! Our tour guide explained, Brigham Young stipulated for a street wide enough for a wagon team to turn around without “resorting to profanity”. I did come across a blog that cited the July 13, 2009 issue of the Deseret News stating the same fact.

Religion plays an important part in SLC. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (LDS) obviously plays a very prominent role especially with the founding of the city. The surprising fact was that they comprise approximately half of the religious demographics. The other half betrays the diversity of the population with the variety of religious representation. Buildings and monument about the LDS abound in the city. One example is the Seagull Monument. I learned its historical importance after listening to our tour guide and reading more about it.

The Catholic church, although part of the minority religious demographic, have their own neo-gothic designed building. The Cathedral of the Madeleine , with its high arches, tall pillars, and stained glass windows was a pleasure to watch. Our tour guide was able to get us in the church and spend some time appreciating its beauty.

The tour felt like a whirlwind but also provided as much information as we can absorb about SLC. In hindsight, it would have helped if I read ahead of time about SLC. But still, the tour was worth every penny spent.