Coober Pedy

K: Coober Pedy, Australia, more than 700 kilometers south of Uluru and our last stop on the Stuart Highway before the Barossa Wine Valley. CP is an otherwordly place. It is the Opal capital of Australia and the name means "White man's hole in the ground." It is barren and supremely dry in the summer and extremely hot!!! This is the landscape for movies such as Mad Max III and Pitch Black.

Despite its size, the residents are from all over the world due to the mining activity. Because of the extreme heat, most residents live underground in dugout homes. We stayed in the Desert Cave Hotel and actually had an underground room. We also toured an underground church. See photos below.



Opal mine tunnel



Underground motel room



Sign of the 'Roo, in the Outback

The driver 'wave', a finger, or two, or a hand	Opal shop customer and owner
The world's only underground Catholic church, we think
Coober Pedy, mine shaft debris

V: And so the girl is one very fine opal necklace the richer! We learned so much about opals here at Coober Pedy, and the fun Greek lady at Opalios had a uniquely designed double opal necklace that just couldn't be passed up. And so she awaits the next social event to wear it!

There is absolutely nothing south of Uluru, but Coober Pedy, as one heads towards Adelaide and the Barosso wine valley. So, we stopped at the underground hotel. Kind of neat, as the underground complex featured a bar, a little gaming area, a few gift shops, a mining museum, and a restaurant. I'd wanted to visit Coober Pedy, ever since I knew it was a featured landscape in films such as Star Wars, Pitch Black and Mad Max III. If one likes living in dark rooms, without any semblance of natural light, ala a troglodyte, then CP has definite housing possibilities.

On to Barosso Wine Valley, mmm mmmm!