Nature is a truly beautiful thing. But with a bit of human intervention, it’s possible to turn something pretty into something absolutely breath-taking.

There’s no better example of this than Wieliczka salt mine in Poland. This underground haven features lakes, chapels and even chandeliers made out of salt.

These 12 pictures of the mine will have you booking a post-COVID19 vacation to Krakow ASAP.

1. What an entrance!

Apparently it’s possible to host events in this particular space. We can’t imagine it would come cheap, but hey, you really do get what you paid for. Now how much would it cost to ship one of those chandeliers home?

2. Harry Potter?

Excuse me, have we fallen into Hogwarts? Apparently not – this is just one of the coolest “rooms” in the salt mine. It looks like a cosy living room from about 100 years ago, and we want one for ourselves.

3. Creepy gargoyle

The Harry Potter theme continues. This gargoyle has been carved entirely out of salt. There’s something very imposing about it, but there’s no denying the craftmanship.

4. Lake goals

As if rooms with chandeliers and rock-carved gargoyles wasn’t enough, the Wieliczka salt mine also has its own lakes. These gloomy blue waters look like the sort of place you’d find a three-eyed fish. Very eerie.

5. This chapel of dreams

Places of worship have some of the most beautiful architecture in the world, and this underground chapel is definitely an example of this. From the ambient lighting to the carved walls and lit-up stained glass, this space is truly something else.

6. More intricate wall carvings

This image really gives an idea of just how huge the “rooms” are in the salt cave. Everything in this picture that’s grey – the walls, floors, ceilings, stairs, carvings and railings – are all made entirely from salt. The real definition of impressive.

7. Walkways over water

You can take your own tour in the Wieliczka salt mine, where you can follow walkways like these over lakes and up stairways. You’ll need to be okay underground, as things can get a little dark and spooky. Not one for the claustrophobic!

8. Impressively high ceilings

It’s only on images like this that we can get a true idea of how high some of these ceilings are (and, indeed, how far underground the mine is). Let’s talk about how humongous this chandelier is too! Compare its size to the stairway just underneath.

9. Stairway to nowhere

We wouldn’t want to be alone here at night. Even with the dim lighting on the stairway, it would be pretty terrifying. Still, it would make a great setting for a fantasy movie.

10. Ethereal fountain

Even though this mine’s first intention was obviously not to attract tourists, we can tell as lot of work has been put in to beautify it over the years. This way, Poland has managed to preserve its history and make money from it. Genius.

11. Rustic chic

This corridor gives us an idea as to how the salt mine looked without its lavish add-ons. How would you fancy being a miner and spending so much time underground? It’s a job not many of us could imagine doing nowadays.

12. Beautiful salt formations

And the reason why this mine was formed in the first place: for the salt. These hanging salt formations look like blinged-up icicles. Though it’s fair to say they have lot more history behind them.

Please SHARE this with your friends and family.

Source: Bored Panda