Yellowstone, Zion, Bryce, Moab, Salt Lake City May 2010

We arrived into Salt Lake City around 1pm and decided to head over to our hotel and check in.  We arrived on a particularly rainy day and there happened to be a large rain storm that was hovering directly over Salt Lake City, so it was hard to enjoy a view of the city nestled in amongst the Wasatch Mountain range. 

In any case, at times it would clear up and we decided to venture out around town.  We headed downtown to check things out and ended up at the Clark Planetarium.  This is a science museum centered around a space theme.  There is a parking garage under the museum and it's a good central spot to park downtown.  The entire museum is free aside from the IMAX movies and planetarium.  Since it was somewhat of a rainy day, it was perfect for spending a little bit of time here.  We watched a show on black holes and then browsed the museum.  I highly recommend this place, especially if you have kids.  The whole time we kept mentioning how Noah (4 year old) would love it! 

Once out of the Planetarium, we walked out and were literally right next to an outdoor mall.  We didn't come all this way to shop, but we found a good place to eat called Happy Sumo (we love Sushi).  It's a pretty cool vibe, definitely trendy.  The mall is interesting because it has really cool views of the surrounding mountains. 

Enough of the mall - we decided to stroll further downtown.  We walked past the Energy Solutions Arena where the Utah Jazz play.  It just happened to be the playoffs and everyone was selling tickets on the street.  The arena is right next to the public transit.  In Salt Lake they have a good bus system and train system.  The train system is called UTA - Utah Transit Authority. 

Heading up Temple Street we arrived at the Mormon Temple Square.  The entire area is incredibly landscaped with fountains and flower beds.  The Temple is immaculate and has an ornately decorated facade.  It must be a popular wedding site because we saw two wedding parties taking pictures. 

Next to the temple is the Church of Latter Day Saints Office building.  They must own the town because the building is huge.  We kept walking and ran into a small park commemorating Brigham Young.  Nice little spot to explore and see.  We proceeded to head back downtown to make sure we rested for a long drive to Moab the next day!