"The Jetsons" lived in the sky and the "Mer People" lived underwater. And now, there is a community of miners in Australia that lives underground - more like moles, civilized moles.
Coober Pedy - a mining town in Australia looks like any other average mining area with mounds of rubble piled up on the surface. But, no one would guess there is a whole town living underneath all that mess.
About 2,000 people live about eight to 22 feet under the surface. According to Curbed, the entire population is connected via a complex dugout system. The underground town has 1,500 homes, a church, an art gallery, a book store and even a hotel for visitors.
Apparently, the residents of this underground town enjoy all the facilities of above-ground living. Their homes have everything from walk-in closets, TVs and modern kitchens. There is ample ventilation too.
And interior décor you ask? What could beat the gemstone studded walls they are surrounded by.
The town was founded in 1919 when miners discovered Opal in the area. Coober Pedy is the largest Opal mine in the world and when miners started digging for the gemstone, they eventually ended up making enough room for people to live in there.
So why did the miners move underground? The heat, the unbearable, supremely mercury-raising-temperatures (imagine 125°F on a normal day).
But, the Coober Pedy residents aren't really complaining. Being the first ever underground functional town in the world, the area gets a lot of tourists. Several movies like "Pitch Black," "Mad Max" and "red Planet" were shot in the town.
And when the residents are not entertaining tourists, they play glow-in-the-dark golf - above the ground at night when temperatures are lower. How cool is that!
Explore Coober Pedy in a video below:
You can also take a look at some pictures here, here...and here too.
