![\"slc\"](\"https:\/\/fromabirdseyeview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/SLC.jpeg\")
<\/a>SLC and the Wasatch Mountain Range<\/p><\/div>\n
That\u2019s what Brigham Young<\/strong> said in 1847<\/strong> after a long overland trek from Illinois<\/strong>, when standing at the mouth of Emigration Canyon<\/strong> on the east bench of the Wasatch Mountain Range<\/strong> looking over what is now the Salt Lake Valley<\/strong>. It was there that their journey would end and where the Mormon<\/strong> religion would call home as they committed to \u201cmake the desert blossom like a rose<\/strong>\u201d. It is said that there was only one tree in the valley at that time, now there are over one million trees and lots of roses.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n I was first introduced to Utah<\/b>\u00a0in 1964<\/strong> when visiting the campus of the University of Utah<\/strong> on a football recruiting trip. I was immediately taken by the beauty and majesty of the surrounding mountains. It was January and a blanket of snow covered the Wasatch Range <\/strong>as well as the wide boulevards of Salt Lake City<\/strong>. It was a spectacular winter wonderland, especially for a young man who was born and raised in California<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Tuscany entrance<\/p><\/div>\n In recent years Linda and I as well as brother, Jack and wife, Sharon have tried to get back to a Utah football game each season. This year we were joined by Mark & Kathy Johnson for the Utah-Oregon game<\/strong>. The Johnsons had an additional incentive to go to Utah as Mark\u2019s parents and a brother live there. \u00a0For the last seven years we have always had our \u2018pre-game Friday night meal\u2019 at a wonderful restaurant in Holladay<\/strong>, a southern suburb of Salt Lake, called Tuscany<\/strong>. It is nestled among cottonwood and box elder trees making it barely visible from the street and has a \u2018cozy old world\u2019 feel inside. On this Friday night we had one of the owners of the restaurant, Mark Eaton<\/strong>, eating at the table next to us. He was a professional basketball player for the Utah Jazz<\/strong> and is hard to miss at 7\u20194\u201d<\/strong>. At 59 years old, he looked like he could still play. Delightful dinner, the pork chop is to die for!<\/p>\n Rice-Eccles Stadium<\/p><\/div>\n The game was at noon on a clear, crisp Saturday, which kept us from using the day to stop by the campus of my son Jeff\u2019s and my alma mater, Westminster College<\/strong>. But it did not keep us from heading to the tailgate party across from the stadium where Jeff had alerted a Utah alum friend that we would be there and so we were invited to their tailgate party, which was no small bash! With no professional football team within 500 miles, Salt Lake is a college football town, which was easily seen by the throngs of supporters wearing red and pouring into a sold out stadium. Rice-Eccles Stadium<\/strong> was brought up to its current state-of-the-art condition when Salt Lake hosted the 2002 Winter Olympics<\/strong>. The football game itself? I suppose it was exciting, but not a good exciting, as Oregon scored the go-ahead touchdown with 2 seconds<\/strong> left in the game to win 30-28.<\/p>\n Tailgaters<\/p><\/div>\n Our \u2018consolation dinner\u2019 that night was down town at the Market Street Grill<\/strong>, which was just a couple of blocks from our City Center Marriott hotel<\/strong>. We were directed to the Main Street Grill by dear friend and neighbor, Marge Dunn, whose niece, Sarah works there. We had a delicious dinner and were able to talk with Sarah, who was bartending this night.<\/p>\n In spite of the Utah<\/strong> heart-breaking loss, which kept them from playing for the Pac-12 South championship<\/strong> the following week, the visit was invigorating. The weather was truly \u2018fall-like\u2019, which we don\u2019t get much of in Southern California and Salt Lake has to be one of the cleanest and safest cities in the country. If you\u2019ve never been there, put it on your bucket list, you won\u2019t regret it . . . and don\u2019t forget to have dinner at Tuscany<\/strong>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" by Bob Sparrow That\u2019s what Brigham Young said in 1847 after a long overland trek from Illinois, when standing at the mouth of Emigration Canyon on the east bench of the Wasatch Mountain Range looking over what is now the … read more![\"tuscany-entrance2\"](\"https:\/\/fromabirdseyeview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/Tuscany-entrance2-300x150.jpeg\")
<\/a>![\"rice-eccles\"](\"https:\/\/fromabirdseyeview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/Rice-Eccles-300x140.jpeg\")
<\/a>![\"tailgaters\"](\"https:\/\/fromabirdseyeview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/Tailgaters-300x225.jpg\")
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