Andean Explorations – 19: Moray and Salinas
Previous post: Sacred Valley | Next post: The road to Machu Picchu
“Middle of Nowhere”: You might have heard this phrase, but I have actually been there!
I wanted to go to Moray and I asked my driver to let me off at the appropriate spot. He did. I got off the bus and he sped away in no time. I looked to my left:
Middle of Nowhere -1
Then I looked to my right:
Middle of Nowhere -2
Thats right, I was in the middle of nowhere. All I could see was a side road going to the middle of nowhere else. 
Clearly, it was fruitless to panic, so I sat down on a big rock enjoying the views. Since there was nobody around, I started singing loudly in my unbearable sweet voice to my iPod music and reading my guidebook and lazily searching for any sign of human presence. After waiting for a while I saw a bus arriving and a Spanish-French couple got out. They had the same puzzled look on their faces that I had 20 minutes ago. – haha, amateurs!
Moray – The Agricultural Laboratory:
Moray site
Crazy Incas. Moray is noted for a large complex of unusual Inca ruins. These include most notably several enormous terraced circular depressions that were perhaps used to study the effects of different climatic conditions on crops. The depth of the pits creates a temperature gradient of as much as 15° C between the top and the bottom. As with many other Inca sites, it also has a very sophisticated irrigation system for providing the plants with water. These guys built a natural greenhouse-slash-botanical research laboratory!
That’s me at the center
Yes that’s me, and the picture is not even taken from the top. I gave my camera to the couple I met and sped down while they took the picture. It took a while to climb back, but I didn’t like the picture, so I jumped down again for the second time. pheww! Later I thought that it was futile to do this exercise anyway (I could have done it in photoshop.)
The sites are gigantic and this is only one of them. Civilizations usually construct towers, but Incas dug and went inside the earth. Thinking out of the box?
Stairs, Inca architecture, prevalent at most sites including Machu Picchu.
Salinas – Salt pans on a mountain:
Salinas
Bizarre. A spring with salty water was discovered in the mountains surrounding the valley. The Incas built salt pans to harvest salt from them. And guess what, these salt mines are still operational! There are about 3000 odd cubicles where water is evaporated to get salt. This salt is iodized and sold as specialty salt to North America and Europe. When I asked what was special about the salt, the guy at the desk answered, “Very good salt.” hmm.
Salinas
These sites were my last activities in the Sacred Valley. This was the last native Peruvian thing I saw and what a fantastic way to end this trip These are off beat locations and the standard tours don’t visit here, so its very quiet. Oh wait, the trip is not yet over, there are 3 (or maybe 4) more posts.
Salt. Any palmists? Please tell me that my future is filled with travels! Well I know it is. 
For the complete photo set, slideshow and comments, please see my Moray and Salinas – Sacred Valley Photo Gallery
Previous post: Sacred Valley | Next post: The road to Machu Picchu
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At one time, salt mined from the mountains was worth a lot. I was in Salzburg (Austria) last week, where the city’s wealth came from it’s salt mined from the hills.
↵Priyank, as usual your photographs take my breath away.
You have a big heart, make friends easily and you are a “mental” type of person. Which means intellectual things attract you. You are idealistic in love. You are also extremely straighforward.
↵Btw, your hand shows that you are a clear-headed person, even if not always logical!
All this from your left hand, which is what you have inherited. the right hand shows you as you are today, and I am assuming your right hand is similar. It may not be. You could have changed.
Your hand also shows a restless nature, resulting I think in the travels you do.
An excellent post! Thank you!
↵Hiya Priyank,
Was laid low by a bad cold and had to take the day off. I had enough time on hand and decided to catch up on your Andean travels. Read all the nineteen posts. A day well spent, I must say.
Amazing and simply superb. Reading your posts made me want to go to Peru and explore and maybe via Toronto….(LOL).
Infact, I now feel, you should be a travel writer – TV travel series host (in Marathi..maybe) – travel consultant…….and drop plans of being an urban planner. Unless, the ancient Incas gave you some “out-of-box” ideas of building cities…
Satisfied for today, but, waiting for more….till then it is
Ganpati Bappa Morya (tmrw – 3rd Sept is Ganesh Chaturthi).
↵How much I envy you!!!
↵Beautiful pictures. Sometimes, the world just doesn’t stop surprising me.
Priyank that is some story and really lovely pictures. I should stop coming to your blog for a while or I will turn permanently green with envy!
↵[...] is writing about his travels to Peru and he finds himself in the middle of nowhere! And what a place it turns out to be. And after looking at the pictures I am seriously considering [...]
↵Shantanu:
Infact I never imagined that they could harvest salt from springs on land !!
↵Wow, I didn’t know that
Nita, the palmist
When I posted that picture, I had you in mind and I’m glad you had some nice things to say. Thanks 
↵WOW, that’s quite an accurate assessment! I am thrilled. I don’t know how similar or dissimilar my right had is since the lines look the same to me but could mean different if you see them
Paul:
↵Hey, thanks, I’m glad you liked it
Mavin:
Your encouragement inspires me to write better. As for inspiration from the Incas – I must admit that you caught me there, they were phenomenal planners. 
↵Welcome to Priyank.com and thanks for such a lovely comment
Mavin:
↵Happy Ganesh Chaturthi to you too ! गणपती बाप्पा मोरया !
Amit:
↵ah, lol, just a little thing man
Mridula:
Thanks for the link over at BlogBharati 
↵You are so sweet
Priyank,
This post and your lovely photographs on the Incas is a real treat. I guess its almost time for the best of the lot to be shared to us. Waiting to read about the enigmatic Lost City.:)
↵Wow, in the middle of nowhere, wow, you are trooper. We were once in the middle of nowhere going from Grand Canyone in the middle of night, it was scary. But I have to tell you the views are amazing, glad you made a back and blogging again. Anna
↵Celine:
Yes, Machu Picchu coming up next!
↵Thanks
Anna:
↵Thanks, I’m glad to have made it back too! The same place at night would have been really scary too, thank God it was beautiful daytime
Great Post! Yeah I constantly told myself that those Incans were crazy when I visited Peru. But those crop circles…geez. But it’s cool, I learned something.
↵The place is not just in the middle of nowhere…its just outta this world!
↵Christy:
↵Welcome to my website and thanks for the comment. I know that feeling, all over Peru the Incas dont stop surprising us!
Vasuki:
Thanks!
↵Welcome to Priyank.com and its nice to see your comment
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