Manti Temple Open House

The Manti Temple has been closed and undergoing renovation for the past several years. The open house is happening and Mikayla and I had planned to go with Mom and our kids to see the temple. We made plans a couple of months ago, but as the moment approached for us to actually attend, I had a complication. Our reservation was for tomorrow, Thursday, March 28th, but my boss, Alvin, has a mandatory training all afternoon tomorrow, so I can't go then. I asked if we could rearrange the schedule and go today, and while Mom, Brandt, and I could all do that, it was going to be really rough for Mikayla. She told us to just go without them and that they would try and go tomorrow, maybe.

We had heard the lines for the open house were ridiculously long. We even saw a picture posted on Instagram of the line snaking around the temple. Some people without a reservation waited four hours to get in. We hoped that would not be the case for us. We had a lovely ride down, chatting as we went. We got a good parking space and couldn't see a line, so we thought we might be in good shape. Turns out, we were wrong. We got into the standby line because although we technically had a reservation, it wasn't until the next day. We were talking about the line and the people in front of us told us the wait in the standby line was two hours. TWO HOURS! We didn't have two hours to wait. We only had two hours total. They suggested we just go get in the reservation line and pretend ignorance when we got to the front if they asked to see our tickets. 

We took their advice and went to the reservation line. That line seemed longer as it serpentined just like a line at Disneyland. But those with reservations were being let in more regularly than those in the standby line, so after only 45 minutes, we were able to enter the temple. 

The standby line with entrance at the white tent.

It doesn't seem that long except those in this line were not being admitted

as quickly as those in the reservation line.

Looking happy before we realized the wait was an hour.

The reservation line, also huge but moving faster than the standby line.

A VERY close up of someone with a bit of a Paco-stach

At the end of the tour, a volunteer offered to take our picture.

From the vantage point of the shot, 

you would think the volunteer was shorter than Freya and Thea.

We took a selfie for a better perspective.

A volunteer told us that very little had been done to the interior of the temple. The furnishings, paint, and general decor was unchanged. While Mom and I had both been to the temple previously, it was exciting to see parts of the temple we had not been in. There are murals all throughout the temple, many of which had been restored. There is an amazing spiral staircase and an assembly hall across the top of the temple. My parents were sealed to each other, and I was sealed to them in the Manti Temple, and we were able to see the room where that happened. It is a tiny sealing room within the Celestial Room, with the altar on a raised portion under an arched ceiling. I love how colorful the temple is, from the carpets to the ceilings.

We were delighted to be in the temple and pleased we were able to pause as we went along and answer questions Brandt had. We also were there exactly the amount of time we had.

The Chapel

I love the ceiling and the picture of Christ with children at the front.

The Baptistry

I like the oval font and think the murals are so unique.

Creation Room

How about that green carpet and the murals!

I love that there are dinosaurs in the bottom picture.

The Garden Room

The murals in the World Room were painted by Minerva Teichart.

They were restored during the renovation.

The Celestial Room.

So elaborate!

The Sealing Room where my parents were sealed and

where I was sealed to them when I was two.

Mom told me screamed through much of it.

How reverent.

The railings are not very high.

Peering over the edge made me nervous.

The staircases rises five stories.

The temple has an Assemby Room.

I asked a volunteer how often it is used.

She said rarely.

It will be used for the dedication, of course,

and is used for the ordinance worker Christmas devotional.