Back for a third time (for me, 4th for my wife), we’re visiting the (clink link for slideshow) city to participate in RootsTech 2017, a family history convention. With upwards of 20,000 attendees depending on the day, it has to be the largest in the world. There is a broad offering of seminars on a range of interests to genealogists. and some computer labs, each day, Wednesday thru Saturday.

The convention actually starts on Wednesday in the enormous Salt Palace Convention Center. The convention center website states it has the Internet capacity to handle 10,000 simultaneous devices. I think the convention is going to overwhelm their network. 

Friday 2/10 PS. When you try to connect to the RootsTech AP, you’re not able to connect, so guess the number of connections are  maxed out .

But prior to that, we’ll use the resources of the Family History Center library (5 stories). The Mormon Temple and Tabernacle are nearby. This section of downtown is dominated by the Salt Lake Mormon Temple, library, multiple office buildings. TheTemple is quite impressive from the outside, as if you are not Mormon, that’s as far as you get.

Every time I’m in downtown Salt Lake I’m struck by how wide the streets are, with many two lanes each way plus a parking lane on each side.

Being Sunday, the library isn’t open, but one of our favorite little restaurants Bruge Waffle & Frites, is. It’s a small place, with six seats inside and a few tables outside and rooftop seating. Their Freakandel special, which is a sausage with curry ketchup, onions and Frites and a full order of Frites. Their Frites are nominally french fries but have been fried twice making them crispy and as in any Belgian dish with Frites, mayonnaise for dipping.

There’s desert to follow, which is a “torpedo”. The Torpedo is a hot Belgian waffle injected with Begian chocolate.

Just across the parking lot is Caputo’s Market, a combination of a restaurant and ready to eat gourmet foods, with two cheese cellars.

There are a few remnants of snow in some places along the street, so it’s been a while since they had any snow; it’s 52°. We saw some people at the airport with skis, but there doesn’t seem to be a lot of snow on the mountains. That heavy coat I brought? Guess it will stay in the hotel.