ATVing to the Salt Mines in Maras, Peru & Last week in Cuzco

This week we visited the salt mines in Maras, which is in the Sacred Valley about a half an hour from Cuzco. We toured the area on an ATV! Mike was the driver. :) Since it's the rainy season here in Peru, it was quite muddy, and there were lots of fun puddles that Mike loved to drive through! You can't beat the scenery!

The salt mines were constructed during pre-Incan times. We were amazed! The way they work is through a system of channels that lead into hundreds of little ponds. The source of salty water comes from the Qoripujio spring. The water feeds into the ponds, and then as its water level is controlled, it eventually evaporates, and is harvested by the salt farmers. Since it's the rainy season, the ponds were over saturated and appeared to be muddy, but we got the idea! I love how they are still using this system. 

It was our last week volunteering at San Judas Chico hogar. :( We had a great day today! We celebrated a few birthdays from the month, and invited the boys and the girls from the other two orphanages for a party! We combined it with a carnival celebration, and we had a huge water balloon fight and singing clowns! The girls also made some beautiful masks and necklaces! They are so creative! 

Here's a video of some of the girls talking about themselves a bit...We are going to miss them soooo much! Time flew by way too fast! 10 more days until we're back in Wisconsin.