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The town of Coober Pedy in northern South Australia (wait, it gets
even more confusing) is the opal capital of the world. Nearly 95% of the
world’s opal supply comes from the local mines. But, if you were to
walk into this mining town of 3,000 people, you wouldn’t see a bustling
little town. You’d actually see less than half of its population.
That’s because half of the people who live in Coober Pedy live underground.
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Most of the cave system that was dug out in the area was originally for the mines.
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The holes started off small, because 50 years ago most of the mining work was manual labor.
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But, as the miners kept digging for opals, they also made more room…
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To live. The miners, instead of living in the extreme desert
climate, began moving into the caves they created during the mining
process.
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You’d think that living underground would be dank and dark, but they found a way to make their caves look like real homes.
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Even complete with “windows.”
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Some of the caves in the hillside did lead outside, so this wasn’t a city of mole people (we think).
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At least they had a sense of humor.
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Even though these caves are private residences, visitors are welcome.
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Now, there are even underground hotels in Coober Pedy, just in case
anyone would like to have a taste of the lifestyle that was created
here.
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Don’t get too claustrophobic, though. The “underground” homes are
usually dug into the surrounding hillsides and most entrances are at
street level.
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Each room is ventilated with a vertical shaft, the temperature is
perfectly regulated and sound barely travels through the homes.
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Essentially, you could get a perfect night’s sleep in Coober Pedy (if you could get over the whole “cave” thing).
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Although the perfectly regulated temperature seems like a good idea,
the thought of living underneath a desert in a series of caves is still a
hard pill to swallow.
Source:
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