Fields of White Water

Polly flew south along the coast. By a small river, the land was flat. There were hundreds of shallow pools by the sea. Each pool shone like a mirror. These are the salt pans of Sečovlje. People have made salt here for more than seven hundred years.

Sea water comes into the pools. All summer the sun takes the water away. The salt stays. Polly walked into a pool. The water was warm and salty.

The salt workers pushed long wooden rakes through the water. The white salt made small hills. They work by hand, like long ago.

A worker showed her the floor of the pool. It was dark and smooth, like skin. It keeps the mud down, so the salt stays white.