One of the most picturesque places in Larnaca is the large salt lake located to the west of the city. In fact, it is not just a lake, but a whole lake system consisting of four separate bodies of water - Aliki, Orfani, Soros and Spiro, with a total area of over 5 square kilometres.
According to legend, once upon a time there was a beautiful vineyard on this spot. One day St Lazarus, the patron saint of Larnaca, passed by it. Seeing the beautiful berries, he asked the owner for a bunch of grapes. However, the greedy old woman did not want to give him a treat and told the saint that all the grapes were gone. Then he asked her what she had in the baskets on the ground. Without hesitation, the old woman said: "Salt." Just then Lazarus muttered, "Salt? So be it!". Since then, a lake with salty-salty water appeared on this place.
As for the official version of the origin of the lake, scientists still can not come to a consensus on this matter. Some believe that salt gets into the reservoir from the soil saturated with it. Others are sure that everything is to blame for sea water, which regularly seeps into the lake through underground springs. This version is confirmed by the fact that the chemical composition of sea and lake water is almost identical.
In summer, the water in the lake completely dries up, leaving a huge amount of salt on the surface. But when it is full of water, a huge number of birds, including rare species, fly there. In general, the lake and its shores are home to about 85 species of birds - grey crane, lake gull, spurred lapwing and, of course, some of the most beautiful birds in the world - pink flamingos.
Today this place is a protected area. In the past, salt was mined there on an industrial basis, which was even exported to many countries around the world.
