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Maras Salt Pans

While we were in the Sacred Valley (between Cusco and Ollantaytambo), we went to the Maras Salt Pans. I had never been to a salt mine before and wasn't sure it was going to be that interesting but it actually was.  First we drove up this twisty turny road which often times didn't think the van was going to make. Then the salt pans came into view.
Yes all that white stuff are the "salt ponds"
 The "salted" water comes from a natural spring which was not so impressive in size:

But the amount of pools was definitely impressive:
This is only looking in one direction
High-Tech operation
They dam up the water into pools and let the sun evaporate the water. Real high-tech stuff going on here. The top layer is used for eating (yum), the next layer for medicinal (meaning soaking in a hot tub of salted water), and the bottom layer is use for industrial purposes (yeah salt licks - I guess?). They work at night because during the day the brightness of the reflection off the salt causes blindness. Most of the town is asleep during the day for this reason.

So this side trip definitely gave new meaning to the expression of "working in the salt mines" to me.
Looks like a glacier but no it's just salt

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