We heard that the Joseph Smith Memorial Building, which was originally built as a hotel, had a restaurant near the top, called the Garden Restaurant. Much of the building still feels like a hotel and though it is (I think we were told) 100 years old, it has been immaculately rstored and maintained. The lobby … Continue reading
The first church building the Mormons built was the Tabernacle, built while the rest of the USA was involved in the Civil War. Utah was a territory at the time, not a state, so the War did not affect the Mormons to any significant degree. The Tabernacle has a very distinct dome-like appearance. The roof … Continue reading
It took the Mormons 40 years to build their Temple in Utah. Most of the building was constructed from hand-hewn granite, hauled from over 20 miles away on ox-carts. It is a very impressive building. That,s the front of the Temple behind us. The Temple is only open to members of the Mormon Church. Several … Continue reading
Salt Lake City is the home of the Mormon Church. The Mormons own a 35 acre complex in the heart of the downtown, known as Temple Square. The most impressive buildings in the Square are the Temple, the Tabernacle, the Assembly Hall, the Church Office Building, the Conference Center and the Joseph Smith Memorial Building. … Continue reading
We enjoyed our stay in the Utah mountains. Part of the reason we like home exchanging is that we don’t have to eat all our meals out while we’re traveling. Iit’s nice to have a kitchen and the comforts of (a) home. The kitchen at this exchange was really something special. Look at the view … Continue reading
We had thought about taking today off from skiing, but the weather report called for it to be really cold tomorrow, so we went skiing in Park City today, thinking that we’ll stay indoors tomorrow. It was relatively warm today. Since the holiday weekend ended yesterday, the slopes were pretty empty today. The Park City … Continue reading
Yesterday we drove to Robert Redford’s ski resort, Sundance. It’s about an hour from where we’re staying, on the way to Provo, Utah. We were expecting a quaint village with shops and restaurants since we thought this was the venue for the famous Sundance Film Festival held every January. It turns out that there is … Continue reading
We have no idea what “shredding the gnar” means, but that’s what Trevor says when he has a good day skiing. Our ski destination today was my favorite ski resort, Deer Valley, for a couple reasons: they don’t allow snowboarders; it’s less crowded than the other resorts (probably because it’s more expensive); and, it is … Continue reading
We’ve seen about a dozen deer in the last 24 hours. They are all over the mountain we’re on. We also see them along the roads. Today we drove into Park City and on the way we came upon this sign, which was just too good to pass up. I hope the deer can read. … Continue reading
The house we’re staying in is convenient to three ski resorts: Park City; Deer Valley; and, Canyons. And at the base of the mountain we’re on is the Rockport State Park which surrounds a lake that is frozen right now to a depth of 18 inches. As we were driving down the mountain this afternoon, … Continue reading
We had a nice flight out to Utah with a short layover in Chicago. O’hare is a very nice airport. We landed around 3:30 in Salt Lake City and had no trouble finding our home exchange hosts’ car that was left at the airport for us. It was about an hour drive from Salt Lake … Continue reading
We’re used to seeing seagulls and pelicans in the Keys, but the Royal Tern is not a bird that I recognize from our part of Florida, though it appears to be indigenous to the Gulf coast. Here’s one (foreground, right) from our beach walk this morning. We had fun watching the birds. This gull was … Continue reading
We’re not big fans of contemporary art, but there was one contemporary exhibit at the Ringling Art Museum that we really enjoyed. It was by an artist named Zimoun. You won’t be able to get the full experience from my blog because the exhibit was as much sound as it was visual, as evidenced by … Continue reading
I can’t get over the Ringling Art Museum. It was built by John Ringling in the 1920s and early 1930s to house his personal art collection after he finished building his mansion house. Keep in mind that there was virtually no one living here at the time and no way to get here except by … Continue reading
John Ringling made his first fortune in the circus business, but he also made a few more fortunes in railroads, oil and real estate. Apparently, like Henry Flagler on the east coast of Florida, John Ringling had high hopes and extraordinary vision for the future of the west coast of Florida. Before there was much … Continue reading
Ladies and gentlemen, step right this way! Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey present The Greatest Show on Earth! The six Ringling brothers were famous for their circus in the early part of the 20th century, and it made at least one of them, John Ringling, a very rich man. John Ringling had a 60 … Continue reading
Thursday we decided to ride bikes to the north end of Anna Maria island to the Rod and Reel Pier for brunch. It was 5 or 6 miles to the pier, for a round trip of around 12 miles. The restaurant sat at the end of the pier. We rode the bikes around the north … Continue reading
We are early risers. Most days, we get up around 6:00, grab a cup of coffee, and sit on our balcony reading our iPads as the sun rises over the Atlantic. It’s a very relaxing way to start the day. At the end of the day, it’s traditional in the Keys to look west over … Continue reading
I bet you would look too. We’re in Sarasota today. I left my only sandals at Tom and Leanne’s house, so we went shopping for replacements. Dale got a pair too. And I love this picture that Kelly took of me in her room when we visited her last week in Gainesville.
We’re on Anna Maria Island now, our home for the next nine days. We’re staying in a quaint beach bungalow right on the Gulf. Here’s the view from just outside our cottage where we’re having our morning cup of coffee.
Tom gave Dale a present as we were about to leave their house for Anna Maria Island. I don’t think he really expected her to hold it. It’s a dog’s life in Micanopy. Tom and Suzie taking a nap.
Every now and then, Kyle throws a fantastic music party. Nearly everyone that attends performs – anything from classical to rock and roll. This year, Kyle’s party, which he called Classical Cocktails, coincided with the end of a week of celebrating the end of Kelly’s 21st year; it’s been a week of Kellebration. Sunday is … Continue reading
After our morning hike with Tom and Leanne, we drove into Gainesville to meet Kelly and go with her to her African Choir class. It was a lot of fun singing with the choir, even though the Swahili words were nearly impossible to pronounce and even harder to remember. We gave Kelly her birthday presents, … Continue reading
We left the Keys just before noon Thursday and drove to Micanopy. We’re staying with our friends, Tom and Leanne, on the edge of Payne’s Prairie, just south of Gainesville. Their house is deep in the country and, lucky for us, the weather is wonderful right now. Friday morning we went for a hike through … Continue reading
Who knows this guy? My dermatologist tried to skin me alive today! He took out two skin cancers and had to cut from my forehead to the tip of my nose. But who knows, this might just make me movie star material. He did a great job repairing the incision and taking as little tissue … Continue reading
The Road Less Traveled 