- published: 18 Jun 2015
- views: 57646
Coober Pedy is a town in northern South Australia, 846 kilometres north of Adelaide on the Stuart Highway. According to the 2011 census, its population was 1,695 (953 males, 742 females, including 275 indigenous Australians). The town is sometimes referred to as the "opal capital of the world" because of the quantity of precious opals that are mined there. Coober Pedy is renowned for its below-ground residences, called "dugouts", which are built in this fashion due to the scorching daytime heat. The name "Coober Pedy" comes from the local Aboriginal term kupa-piti, which means "white man's hole".
Opal was found in Coober Pedy on 1 February 1915; since then the town has been supplying most of the world's gem-quality opal. Coober Pedy today relies as much on tourism as the opal mining industry to provide the community with employment and sustainability. Coober Pedy has over seventy opal fields and is the largest opal mining area in the world.
Aboriginal people have a long-standing connection with the area. The first European explorer to pass near the site of Coober Pedy was Scottish-born John McDouall Stuart in 1858, but the town was not established until after 1915, when opal was discovered by Wille Hutchison. Miners first moved in around about 1916. By 1999, there were more than 250,000 mine shaft entrances in the area and a law discouraged large-scale mining by allowing each prospector a 165-square-foot (15.3 m2) claim.
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CIUDAD SUBTERRANEA ESCONDIDA. Coober Pedy
Tyres goin’ bald
Engine’s blowin’ smoke
Radio don’t work
Neither does the choke
Well he’s had himself a shower
He’s been down a hole all day
And he’s headin’ into town
To howl the night away
CHORUS
Well he’s in love
Big time honey
You can see it in his eye
Every time she swishes by
He’s in love
He’s in love
With the girl behind the bar n Coober Pedy
Well his after shave is cheap
And his hair is goin’ thin
His boots are polished up
And his flannelette’s tucked in
He’s got a pack of winnie blues
And a zippo for some class
And if you suggest it otherwise
You can blow it out your trumpet
CHORUS
Well he’s in love
Big time honey
You can see it in his eye
Every time she swishes by
He’s in love
He’s in love
With the girl behind the bar n Coober Pedy
Well he goes to ask her on a date whenever it’s his
shout
He’ll think of somethin’ good to say and then he
chickens out
He sees a lack of interest as a just playin’ hard to
She’s already got a fella
He just doesn’t know that yet
CHORUS
Well he’s in love
Big time honey
You can see it in his eye
Every time she swishes by
He’s in love
He’s in love
With the girl behind the bar n Coober Pedy
With the girl behind the bar