36 Hours in Salt Lake City

THERE’S a new party in Salt Lake City. Utah liquor laws were normalized last year for the first time since 1935, allowing patrons simply to walk into a bar and order a drink, as if they were in any other city. Add to that a budding film scene (a spillover effect from the nearby Sundance Film Festival), a fresh crop of indie galleries and boutiques, and an open-door stance toward refugees and immigrants, which has made the city more cosmopolitan. The city even passed an anti-discrimination law last year that protects lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender residents — and with backing from the Mormon Church.

By JAIME GROSS

Full Story: http://travel.nytimes.com/2010/06/06/travel/06hours.html?hp