Day 23 - The Salt Mine of Nemocon

It's Saturday, which means no appointments!  So today we ventured outside of Bogota to Nemocon, a small rural town of about 10,000 people.  On our way there we enjoyed the sights of the Colombian country side with lush grass, tall trees and the beautiful Andes Mountains.  It is truly a gorgeous country!

The town of Nemocon

Our destination was the Salt Mine of Nemocon.  Last time we were in Colombia we had toured the Salt Mine of Zipaquiria, so this location was a new adventure for us.  Before entering the mine, there is a small museum to explore.

After the museum, we got fitted with head gear for our adventure through the salt mine.

The mine runs about 200 feet below the ground.  Upon entering, you must make your way down a long rugged stair case and then a steep walkway.

The mine entrance

The steep stairs

Recently the film Los 33, about the Chilean Miners that were trapped underground and starring Antonio Banderas, was filmed in the mine.  Our tour guide was pretty excited about the mine's latest publicity!

A prop from the movie Los 33

Our happy-go-lucky girl wasn't digging the mine.  She seemed a bit concerned for quite a bit of the tour.  Then I finally figured it out - she did NOT like Mama wearing the hard hat!  So off with the hat!

Mass is held weekly at the chapel inside the mine.

There were many amazing sights to see.

Probably the most amazing sight was the visual effect of the salt brines.  The water was so clear and still that it reflected everything around it.  It was incredible!

After the tour, we took a walk up a long path to get a better view of the area.

Afterwards we grabbed lunch at a restaurant just down the street.  Jorge (our tour guide) always knows the best places to grab food.  It was delicious!  The boys had their usual grilled chicken and fries while the rest of us enjoyed a delicious bowl of ajiaco soup.  It was SO good!

Dessert was included in the meal (which was a surprise to us!)  The waiter brought out 5 plates of a traditional Colombian dessert called cuajada con melao, which is basically a specific type of cheese (called cuajada) covered in a brown sugar sauce (called melao).  We were skeptical.  The boys didn't touch theirs (which was good because of their dairy-free diets!), but my mom and I gave it a try.  It was so good we ate our whole serving - and Jorge ate his and both the boys!!

The kids were so tuckered out that they all slept on the way back to Bogota.  After their naps, they were ready to go (although us adults could have used some rest!)