Sliding Through History

Over the past week, I had the oportunity to go on the World Heritage Tour. This field trip is put on by IES Abroad during the first week break. In this week we visted Hallstadt, Salzburg, Český Krumlov and Prague. There is so much to talk about and so many photos to share. However, in this post I will talk about my favorite part of the trip: visting the Salt Mine in Hallstadt. 

To start off, Hallstadt is a beautiful city in Upper Austria. In the city, we spent a short amount of time walking around the city. There is not a lot to see in Hallstadt from the city. However, there is a beautiful sight when one looks at the city from the water. We took a short boat cruise that gave us a gloriouis view of Hallstadt. Here are some of the photos from beautiful Hallstadt.

After touring Hallstadt from above ground, it was time to tour Hallstadt undergroud and head to the mine. Before we could enter the mine, we had to take a cable car up and up the mountain to the Salt Mine enterence. It was very easy to find the entrance because there was a cut out of a guide always pointing the way. Of course, we had to stop for a quick photoshoot with our lovely guide. 

A little history: this is the oldest salt mine in the world! Humans starting mining the salt around 7000 years ago starting around 800 BC. This mine is still in use today. In the mine, there are seven levels. Our tour only took us on the 6th and 7th levels because the lower five are still in use. One way these miners would get between levels were the use of wooden slides. Some of these are still in the mine, and I was eager to try! Due to the slides being made of wood, we got a very fashionable jumpsuit to protect our clothes. I was sad to hear that I could not take this outfit home because I am alway in the market for a good miners outfit. 

Also as workers explore the mine, new discoveries are still being made. In 2002, a wood staircase was found and dated to be the oldest in the world. They estimate the staircase was created in 1344 or 1343 BC. We also got to hear about an old miner found in the mine from an "old miner." While this miner gave us lots of good information, I found him a little creepy. 

After a fantasic tour, it was time to leave the mine. Our ride out of the mine was a little train that was used to carry salt at that point. After sliding our way around the salt mine, it was time to ride out in style with our colorful outfits and cheesy smiles!