During the night, hundreds, sometimes thousands of camels have arrived and gathered in the valley ne... (4652 Hits) |
The number of caravans, the number of camels in each caravan, and the names of available salt cutter... (5566 Hits) |
One by one, in defined order, the caravans leave towards the salt cutting area, about two hours marc... (4412 Hits) |
The march of the camels leads through one of the most hostile places on earth, the salt lake. (Photo... (4060 Hits) |
Lake Assale - a large expanse of salt which has been deposited by countless invasions from sea water... (4923 Hits) |
Salt crystals form in hollows where they are protected from wind and the rare rains. (Photo: Tom Pf... (4522 Hits) |
Close-up of salt crystals. The brown color of the lake comes from small dust particles carried in by... (4669 Hits) |
Focolo ("salt cutters") are providing the hard work, to break up the solid crust of the lake. Only a... (4506 Hits) |
Focolo at work. Each group of 3 focolo per caravan is paid 10 bir per camel by the Arho (the caravan... (4222 Hits) |
After the work of axes, several focolo join their forces to break up meter-sized fragments of the cr... (4342 Hits) |
The second step in production is shaping the blocks into rectangles that weigh exactly 7 kgs. This h... (4394 Hits) |
Cutting the salt blocks requires a good eye and feeling for the material. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) (4538 Hits) |
In a sea of broken crust, these Afar can be proud of their well-cut blocks. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) (4255 Hits) |
While the salt cutters and salt shapers are at work, the camel owners and their animals rest. They w... (4114 Hits) |
It's getting late morning and hot; the camel owners, the Arho, are impatient to start loading the ca... (4100 Hits) |
It's loading time. After having paid the 1.50 Bir to the cutters for each block, each camel can carr... (4363 Hits) |
