A glittering, musical Christmas in Salt Lake City

A glittering, musical Christmas in Salt Lake City Salt Lake City celebrated its first Christmas in 1847, when Brigham Young and his band of Latter-day Saints gathered to sing hymns around a sagebrush fire.

Today, the City's Christmas is more elaborate but no less heartfelt. In Temple Square, 300,000 miniatrure lights glitter on the Latter-day Saints' temple, domed tabernacle, assembly hall, and surroundings. The lights combine with Christmas music, ecclesiastical architecture, and wintry air to create a scene as evocative and seasonally festive as a Utah version of It's A Wonderful Life.

The church sponsors a Christmas concert series amid the glowing lights.

November 24, 5:30 P.M., Temple Square. Lighting ceremony.

November 30, 7:30 P.M., Assembly Hall. Ralph Woodward Chorale and Orchestra perform Handel's Messiah.

December 1 and 2, 8 P.M., Tabernacle. Mormon Youth Symphony and Chorus Christmas concert.

December 9, 7:30 P.M., Assembly Hall. Concert by the Eleanor Kennard Chorale.

December 13, 7:30 P.M., Tabernacle. Mormon Youth Chorus Christmas sing-along.

December 22 and 23, 7:30 P.M., Tabernacle. Mormon Tabernacle Choir Christmas program.

Concert tickets are free and offered on a first-come basis. Arrive early, especially for Mormon Tabernacle Choir concerts. For information, call (801) 240-2534.

Tours on foot--or bundled up

in a one-horse open carriage

From 9 to 9 daily, free half-hour walking tours of the square start at the visitor centers at the north and south ends.

Carriage Horse Livery offers half-hour rides around the square; they run $25 per carriage load and can be picked up at the square's south gate, the Howard Johnson Hotel at 122 W. South Temple, or by arrangement at other downtown locations. The livery also offers longer tours around the city. For reservations, call early at (801) 521-0302 or 521-3331.