Pacific to Atlantic, Days 2 & 3

Fourth of July 2016

What a beautiful country … God bless America!

Sonoma and Napa vineyards announce that you’re in the heart of California wine country. Signs for wine tastings are everywhere. There was an old-fashioned parade around Sonoma Town Square with thousands of happy spectators and lots of hotdogs. Unlike the cold, foggy weather across the bay, the valley is sunny and hot. We stopped at Sebastiani Vineyards but didn’t take the whole tour.

Back on the road, it was about a 4-hour drive to Lake Tahoe where we spent the night on the California/Nevada border. The town seems geared for skiing in the winter and lake sports in the summer with gaming on the NV side year-round.  We sat at one of the many outdoor cafes and listened to live music, enjoying the warm weather and holiday mood. After dark (about 10 PM) there was a big fireworks display for Independence Day. The days are really long here and it doesn’t get dark until after 9:00 which tells me we’re significantly further north than Virginia Beach. Driving from Lake Tahoe to Salt Lake City was evidence that America still has a lot of undeveloped land. We passed mile after mile of brown hills with an occasional house and some green vegetation near a creek. The closest neighbor would be miles away. There were even no gas stations for long stretches. As soon as we got to the Utah border, we noticed the salt flats on both sides of the highway. How odd to see acres of white ground when it’s 85 degrees.

After about 9 hours, we arrived in Salt Lake City so we parked the vehicle and headed out to walk around Temple Square. The temple is closed to the public but there were bridal couples all around having their pictures taken. Volunteers are happy to provide tours and assistance. A young woman explained that the building in the picture below is the Tabernacle. It’s where the famous Mormon Tabernacle Choir performs when they’re in town but they’re currently touring in Europe.There are about 5 or 6 other buildings with various purposes. One is a memorial to Joseph Smith and another is a welcome center. A large high-rise is for management/operations.

The city seems clean and safe and everyone’s friendly. There were hardly any people on the streets after dark although we saw two professional basketball players from the Utah Jazz at the cafe where we got dinner. The arena is promoting Cold Play, Maroon 5 and big groups that don’t come to Virginia Beach so there must be a lot people hiding somewhere.