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August 18th, 2026
Daily puzzle · Medium · Topographic map
Theme: Underground and Cave-Dwelling Towns
Long before modern insulation, these communities found comfort by digging into the earth itself. Cappadocia's soft volcanic rock let Byzantine monks and Anatolian farmers carve entire underground cities and homes. Coober Pedy's miners went underground to escape Australia's brutal desert heat while chasing opal. From Tunisia's Berber troglodyte dwellings to Spain's cliff-cut cave houses, these towns show how humans have long turned solid rock into shelter.
1
Göreme, TurkeyThis Cappadocian town is famous for its fairy-chimney rock formations riddled with ancient cave dwellings and churches.
2
Coober Pedy, AustraliaMuch of this Outback opal-mining town lives underground to escape scorching desert temperatures.
3
Matmata, TunisiaThis Berber town is known for its pit-style underground homes carved into the desert landscape.
4
Guadix, SpainThis Andalusian town has thousands of whitewashed cave houses dug into soft rock hillsides, many still inhabited today.
5
Setenil de las Bodegas, SpainHomes and bars in this Andalusian village are built directly beneath and into overhanging cliff rock.