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THE “MOON Plain” ‘opal mine is a favorite with tourists who occa-
sionally fall down old holes while backing up to take pictures...

oe dugouts a

big tourist | draw

cave homie ofa an early miner. Ther Test
of the house is ‘a comfortable ranch-.

style home: set into the side of a low

hill- with cool tile-tinderfoot, ‘natural.

ted rock walls and very creative use °
of clerestory: transom-type windows '
atop.:interior. walls to draw: natural ..
light into the back rooms.
Most active ‘mining “now takes
place on’ the‘ sivreal “Moon. Plain”

: north of the city: an eerie and dan- :

gerous. “place - so'riddled with shafts
that. tourists occasionally: ‘fall down
old, holes’ while. backing up to take
pictures, The safest and most infor- *
mative way'to see Coober.Pedy and
the opal fields is to take one’ of the:,
three or four hour tours run by a pum-

ber of operators, ail leaving from near .

the main bus station. Tour operators -

sually: have; an’ arrangement’ with a

working mine: operation’ to: allow |
t

tourists: to, “fossick”. for opal in the...

piles “of :earth: thrown Up . by. the:
Foodling” machines.."-;:° *
In: addition: to’a ‘working mine,
most, tours will take: you to some of”
the’ less obvious: “sights: of -Coober
Pedy, such’: ‘asthe’ beautiful - cool ..
underground ". churches’ — and
“Crocodile | Harry's”: where . Mad
Max: ° Beyond -Thunderdome : was
filmed./That was not a movie set, but
the home- ‘of.one of: Coober Pedy’s -
more’ colorful characters, former
- Baltic German baron who ran off to

ustralia to’ become ‘a, croc-hunter “
and opal. miner. : His. extensive ©

mine/home is'a mecca for eccentrics.

it- created. by Harry .and_ friends.
Living there must be like a permanent ‘
Pere what future archaeolo-

“out to. “The Breakaways,”.32 km (20.
“‘milés) north, dramatic stone outcrops.”
that were once islets near the coast of

the great inland sea which dried up a.

few million ‘years before white
explorers died trying to find, it. You

can even take a trip out to see a sec- |
-tion of the 9,600 km. (5, 952 “mile)

“Dog Fence", built across southern
“ Australia ‘to keep dingos away from

“the sheep ranching areas. I can per-

-sonally recommend Joe’s Tours (086)
725163.
No visit to Coober Pedy would be

‘ complete’ without the experience of
spending a night underground. Many *

of the local motels/hotels offer visi-
tors this option, but candidly admit

they maintain above ground (air-con- -

ditioned) units because some guests

have been known to develop. severe .

claustrophobia in the absolute silence
and darkness of a subterranean bed-

room. If you can afford to splash out,

a bit, The Desert Cave is a beautiful-
ly designed, absolutely. world-class

‘hotel that offers both above and
~ below-ground accommodation, . plus <9
excellent opal mining. displays and |
, pool/sauna/spa ‘etc. The Desert Cave
-wouldn’t be out: of place in. Palm

Springs,. but costs less and ‘is a lot’
: more interesting. You can write P.O.

Box «223. Coober .. Pedy, « South

Australia 5723, fax (086) 72 5198 or-
- calf toll-free 008 088521. :
»’. Lasked a miner why big mining

companies .hadn’t just come: in,
': bought up the whole district, blown it

“ sky-high and sifted out the opal. ._-

“Wouldn’t pay ‘em,” he said with
a’ smirk, “They could’ blow. up‘a

dozen square. miles and find nothing |
but worthiess petch. And ‘one miner

could dig down five feet. from their

hole and pick up a fortune in his two -

: hands. That's opal for you, mate.” ".
‘A final tip: if you want to buy

‘opal, do it there and from an estab-
vs lished dealer. Oriental gem-buyers fly

in direct for a.reason. To my

untrained eye, opal seems to triple in

price by the time it reaches major

* Australian cities and triple again

when it crosses the ocean.”

Cycle Tuscany This Summer! .
; 7 Days/6 Nights — $844 per person/ double |
“See Florence, San Gimignano, Siena & Greve i in Chianti
“ona private bike tour with your family or friends. .
“Price includes hotel, breakfast daily, bike rental,
detailed. route maps and ee transportation.

SN ME LG AN MR REM EEN EEE EERE! LAM ORAL

JULIE WALSH

Julie jolned Roseway in October of
1994. She brings with her 3 years
experience In both corporate ond
vacation travel. She welcomes all of
her cilents to visit her at her new
location.

KAREN GLAZER

Karen joined Roseway Travel in
Februory. 1994. She brings with her
17. years experience in corporate
travel. She .welcomes all of her
ferner clients to coll her at this
location.

KATHY FERREY
Kathy joined Roseway Travel in
December of 1994 as the new
manager. She brings with her 8
years experlence in the. travel
industry. and welcomes all her
former clients to call her.

Prince George
FOR THOSE SEEKING COMEORT
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