A Few Hours in Salt Lake City - Perusing Sam Weller's Bookstore

Snooping through Salt Lake City is one of my favorite layover rituals. First off, Salt Lake City is clean. There is no gum on the sidewalk. The view of the Rocky Mountains is pristine because there is no smog. The grass is green. There are fantastic works of public art. Salt Lake is just plain beautiful.

As a flight attendant, I rarely have the energy or the luxury of going out and seeing the city I'm staying in. Short hotel stays, 11 hour workdays, and the increasing agitation the passengers' experience make my job as quite exhausting. Inevitably, our crew hotels are in the middle of nowhere... or they're right next to a mall. The same mall that's in every city in the western world. I often wonder why I even bother going out.

Salt Lake City is an exception. I can always put my exhaustion aside for an urban trek. From my hotel, I navigate towards the Temple along Main Street. Along the way I'm always sure to make a stop at Sam Weller's Zion Bookstore. Sam Weller's has been a Salt Lake tradition since 1929. The first time I was there I was agog at the quantity of titles they had in stock. I thought I'd died and gone to literary heaven. Their website says they have well over one million books in the shop, and I don't think they're kidding. Sam Weller's even has a whole section dedicated to assassination books. Not only did they have books upon books, they had some awesome novelties too. Where else have you seen bacon luggage tags?

After browsing and admiring and taking things off the shelf, only to return them in a bold act of self-restraint, I proudly refused to give in to lit therapy. I got a chai and a chocolate chip cookie from the coffee guy and carried on with my walk.

I came across two cops writing tickets to four 13ish year old boys on skateboards. I was a little upset to see that because I don't think skateboarding is a crime. But it turns out they stole a barricade. Put 'em in the clink, I say! There ought not be scallywags like that loose on the streets of Salt Lake.

And therein lies the charm of Salt Lake City. From great bookshops to kids getting harassed to magical scenery. It's too bad more people aren't making Salt Lake a tourist hotspot - but then again, I wouldn't want everyone else to spoil it for me.