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"Miraculous rescue": Renter saves stray dog trapped underground

An American renter was minding his own business at his rental home in Longview, Texas when he heard faint barking. The man, who chose to remain anonymous, initially thought the barking was coming from outside, but soon realised that it was coming from below his floorboards. Animal control officer Bobby Jumper was called to the scene and "was very shocked" to find a dog trapped at the bottom of an almost four-metre-deep well underneath the house. The renter did not know there was a well under the house. "I've been doing this for over seven years and that's the first time I've ran into something like this," the animal control officer told the Washington Post. Jumper immediately called in back up from the local fire brigade, who built a makeshift sling to pull the stray dog out from safety. "It took multiple people and a lot of different tools and equipment," he said. The rescue took three hours and the team did consider ripping up the floorboards, but managed to find a way into the house without damaging it. Rescuers said the stray pup, a Basset hound mix, had been trapped for days without food or water, but luckily came out unscathed. The pup was taken to the Longview Animal Care and Adoption Centre and given the name Timmy, after the character known to fall down the well on the TV show Lassie. Timmy has since been adopted by a loving family, with the adoption centre sharing the "rescue story of a lifetime" on Facebook. "We witnessed a heartwarming tale of bravery and kindness that we just had to share," they wrote. "Thanks to the quick thinking and heroic efforts of our local firefighters and animal control team, the dog was safely brought to the surface, shaken but unharmed!" "Thank you to everyone who played a part in this miraculous rescue," the post continued. "It's a true reminder of the incredible bond between humans and animals and how a community comes together in times of need!" Images: Facebook

Family & Pets

Woman injured after underground explosion

A young woman has been rushed to hospital after a series of underground explosions ripped open a footpath in Surfers Paradise, Gold Coast on Sunday evening. Emergency services were called to Cavill Avenue about 5.18pm on Sunday following reports of a "pressure blast". The woman aged in her 20s was walking down the street at the time and fell into a hole left by the blast. She suffered minor leg injuries and was taken to Gold Coast University Hospital in stable condition. An exclusion zone - which included Cavill Avenue, Elkhorn Ave, The Esplanade and Surfers Paradise Boulevard - was then put in place and anyone within the area was asked to remain indoors until further notice. It was later replaced with limited pedestrian access on Cavill and Orchid Avenues. The preliminary cause of the explosions was an electrical fault according to Sunrise. “A woman actually fell into a manhole because of the first explosion. Surfers Paradise right behind me was sent into chaos at around yesterday after reports there was multiple explosions,” Sunrise Gold Coast reporter Sam Payne said on Monday. “Emergency services rushed to the scene, trying to figure out what happened. “A woman in her 20s, was walking over this manhole, and it essentially swallowed her. She fell in. She was then brought out by members of the public. “She was taken away and a second explosion then went off. This prompted police to shut the area down, ordering everyone to stay inside, businesses to close. No one to go near the street. “It turns out it was an electrical fault at the two manholes behind me. That has since been cleared and people have been walking over it this morning. “Thankfully, the woman in her 20s was not seriously injured. People are walking over it again now. It’s apparently safe now, but would’ve been much more dangerous if more people were standing over it and thankfully no one was seriously injured,” he said. Image: Seven

Travel Trouble

How drag as an art form sashayed from the underground and strutted into the mainstream

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/jonathan-w-marshall-1195978">Jonathan W. Marshall</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/edith-cowan-university-720">Edith Cowan University</a> Recent protests against <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2022/aug/11/im-just-trying-to-make-the-world-a-little-brighter-how-the-culture-wars-hijacked-drag-queen-story-hour">drag queen story hours</a> are the latest in a series of actions targeting the increased prominence of displays of LGBTIQ+ culture in the public arena. But drag artists have been strutting their stuff in speakeasies, cabarets and films for a long time now. <h2>The long history of cross-dressing</h2> There is a long global history of cross-gendered performance. In the West, this included <a href="https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803105532521;jsessionid=B8A5B8C5FE0EBAEDAB763E0AC1405EEA">“travesty” roles</a>, “<a href="https://www.planethugill.com/2013/08/en-travestie-curious-tradition-of.html">breeches parts</a>”, pantomime dames and their cousins in <a href="https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1429&context=gradreports">blackface – “wench” – parts</a>, variety halls and Shakespearean performances. There’s also <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctvcwnjxz">Japanese kabuki (onnagata)</a>, Beijing opera, <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/1124189">Samoan fale aitu and fa’afafine performances</a> and more. All share something with drag – cross-dressing and various forms of gender play and/or reversal – but none is quite the same as what we know today. Legal restrictions on gendered clothing have existed in places like Europe, China and Japan through to modern times – though the focus was more on class than gender. The wearing of men’s pants by women was <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/at-last-women-of-paris-can-wear-the-trousers-legally-after-200yearold-law-is-declared-null-and-void-8480666.html">technically illegal in France</a> until 2013. Centuries earlier, it contributed to the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-BYbasO034">prosecution of Joan of Arc by church courts</a>. <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/p-BYbasO034?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></figure> <h2>The emergence of drag</h2> Something like contemporary drag <a href="https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/mono/10.4324/9780203411070/changing-room-laurence-senelick">appeared in the West from the late 18th century</a>, blending early burlesque (disrespectful comedy, not necessarily bawdy) with nascent queer culture (clubs, speakeasies and other semi-underground meeting places where same-sex-attracted individuals socialised). By the time the 20th century rolled around, drag artists, particularly in the US, offered beauty tips, attempted to engage in sponsorships or sold stylishly posed <a href="https://wislgbthistory.com/people/peo-l/leon_francis.htm">postcards</a> and <a href="https://ourcommunityroots.com/?p=13079">souvenirs</a>, closely recalling advertisements aimed at female consumers. Since much early drag made fun of women in general, and women of colour in particular, the form has hardly been a consistent force for good. Drawing on blackface minstrelsy, British panto and college revues, drag from the 1950s increasingly featured female impersonators offering hyperbolic, over-the-top and often disrespectful portraits of feminine characteristics. So called “glamour drag” was designed, in the words of artist Jimmy James, “to take people totally away from the ugly realities … and transport them to the realm of the magical” through fabulous dresses, hair and sequins. This became the dominant form of drag in the West, particularly in Australia – although there was also a vibrant counter-culture. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9dOrfO2gVs">Danny La Rue</a> camped it up on the stages of Britain and the US, touring Australia in the late 1970s, while <a href="https://dangerousminds.net/comments/ridiculous_a_little-known_drag_tv_role_by_charles_ludlam_1983">Charles Ludlam</a> made the difficult transition from outrageous drag to main stage theatre and back, losing none of his style. <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/e9dOrfO2gVs?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></figure> <h2>From the queer underground to the straight mainstream</h2> Key to the crossover of drag from an underground principally LGBTIQ+ phenomena to the cis mainstream was the increasingly flamboyant manifestation of popular music – such as glam, hair metal, disco and new wave. The exultant 1978 video for disco star Sylvester’s <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gD6cPE2BHic">You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)</a>, for example, introduced audiences to the concept of “<a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/0/does-realness-actually-mean-surprising-heartbreaking-history/">realness</a>” as she inhabited different costumed personas. Sylvester was a former member of the avant-drag troupe the Cockettes and her clip was shot at London’s gay disco The Embassy. <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gD6cPE2BHic?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></figure> “Rock camp” performance found its perfect expression in <a href="https://youtu.be/4plqh6obZW4">The Rocky Horror Picture Show</a> stage show in 1973, directed by Australian queer theatre legend Jim Sharman. Its comedic celebration of gender fluid performance and sexuality helped make drag and related forms mainstream. Also crucial was Jennie Livingston’s 1990 film <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/jun/24/burning-down-the-house-debate-paris-is-burning">Paris is Burning</a>, documenting the competitive balls (drag races) mounted by working class LGBTIQ+ African-Americans and Latinos in New York, some of whom (but not all) identified as trans. Performers at the balls competed to exhibit “realness” – not only in gender terms, but employment and social position: “executive realness”, “butch queer”, “banjee girl” and “military”. <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/4plqh6obZW4?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></figure> Madonna famously recruited performers from Paris is Burning (Jose Gutierez and Luis Camacho from House Xtravaganza) to assist in the choreography for her video <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GuJQSAiODqI">Vogue</a> and then her Blond Ambition tour, skyrocketing the international renown of these practices. <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/9SqvD1-0odY?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></figure> <h2>Drag landmarks</h2> Prior to The Rocky Horror Picture Show gracing the stages of London and Sydney, Kings Cross had seen the foundation of legendary drag revue <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0G6aDpxhWlg">Les Girls</a>, running from 1963-93. This show was led by Carlotta, who took her girls on tour, and became the inspiration for <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QgFDIinCeYI">Priscilla Queen of the Desert</a>. “Alternative cabaret” also thrived. Notables included Australia’s truly outrageous Reg Livermore, the bizarre fantasies of Lindsay Kemp or the incredible Moira Finucane. Finucane’s brilliant early “gender fuck” performance as <a href="https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-765293824/view?sectionId=nla.obj-769278625&partId=nla.obj-765310182#page/n6/mode/1up">Romeo</a> involved an arrogant, moustachioed and convincingly male performer who undressed to reveal Finucane, who then pleasured herself with a feather boa. Australians might also remember the wonderful Pauline Pantsdown’s drag satire <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D4tZRZSGxcE">I Don’t Like It</a> in 1998. <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/0G6aDpxhWlg?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></figure> Topping it off was the huge success of <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1353056/">RuPaul’s Drag Race reality TV show</a> in 2009. Producers were onto a winner: fabulous clothes, the highs and lows of competition and a scintillating array of would-be stars, presided over RuPaul, looking never less than fabulous. <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/PDe8zJvyF54?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></figure> <h2>Lessons from the history of drag</h2> The glamorous, hyper-feminine artist remains the most popular model of drag. Perhaps unsurprisingly it was these paragons of camp femininity who were chosen to read to children in libraries, first in <a href="https://www.dragstoryhour.org/about">San Francisco in 2015</a> and then internationally. These glitter, glam and <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/340774905_Balirano_G_2020_Of_Rainbow_Unicorns_The_Role_of_Bonding_Queer_Icons_in_Contemporary_LGBTIQ_Re-Positionings">rainbow unicorns</a> seemingly conquered the globe. But more outré drag queens, drag kings and “genderfuck” performers never ceased toiling away in the underground. <a href="https://canadianart.ca/features/the-showstoppers/">Drag is changing</a>. If we are to look to history for lessons, I’d like to see story time presented by the successors to Divine (one of John Waters’ collaborators, whose <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfirqQJC3I0">1984 appearance on Countdown</a> marks one of the strangest moments in Australian television) or transgender superstar <a href="https://revolverwarholgallery.com/superstars/warhol-superstar-candy-darling/">Candy Darling</a>. Now that would be a story time education to remember.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/205650/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/jonathan-w-marshall-1195978">Jonathan W. Marshall</a>, Associate Professor & Postgraduate Research Coordinator, Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/edith-cowan-university-720">Edith Cowan University</a> Image credits: Getty Images This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-drag-as-an-art-form-sashayed-from-the-underground-and-strutted-into-the-mainstream-205650">original article</a>.

Art

“I didn’t want to come out!”: Spanish mountaineer emerges after 500 days underground

When Spanish mountaineer Beatriz Flamini descended into her cave - and home for the next 500 days - the world was an entirely different place. COVID-19 restrictions were still enforced, Queen Elizabeth II was still alive and on the throne, war hadn’t been declared in Ukraine, and Flamini herself was only 48. She entered the cave on November 20 2021, and while she was forced to surface for eight days while repairs were made to a router - one used for transmitting audio and video - she spent that brief period isolated in a tent. And then, a year and a half later, a 50-year-old Flamini emerged from 230 feet underground outside of Granada, Spain. And while most would be eager for some sunshine and some company after such a stint, Flamini had an entirely different take, informing everyone that she had actually been sound asleep when her team came to collect her. “I thought something had happened,” she said. “I said, ‘already? Surely not.’ I hadn’t finished my book.” And when it came to whether or not she’d struggled while down there, Flamini was quite to declare “never. In fact, I didn’t want to come out!” To keep herself occupied during the marathon stay, Flamini tried her hand at a whole host of popular pastimes, from knitting to exercising, painting, knitting, and reading. The effort paid off, the days flying by as the determined mountaineer successfully lost track of time. “On day 65, I stopped counting and lost perception of time,” she explained. “I didn’t talk to myself out loud, but I had internal conversations and got on very well with myself. “You have to remain conscious of your feelings. If you’re afraid, that’s something natural, but never let panic in, or you get paralysed.” Flamini was given a panic button in case of emergency, but she never felt the need to use it. And while her support team were on hand to give her clean clothing, provide essential food, and remove any waste that had accumulated, they were not to talk to her. “If it’s no communication it’s no communication, regardless of the circumstances,” Flamini said of that particular decision. “The people who know me knew and respected that.” As for what comes next, Flamini will now be studied by a team of experts - psychologists, researchers, and the like - to determine what impact the isolation of her extended time below might have had on her. Images: Getty, Sky News

Travel Trouble

Ukrainian nurses care for surrogacy babies underground

A makeshift bomb shelter in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv has become a temporary home for babies born to surrogate mothers whose new parents can’t enter the country to take them home. At least 20 babies - including some that are just a few days old - have been taken underground where they are well cared for by the many nurses from the surrogacy centre also stranded in the shelter, as reported by <a href="https://7news.com.au/news/conflict/surrogate-babies-wait-out-war-in-ukraine-c-6135483" target="_blank" rel="noopener">7News</a>. With Ukrainian troops fighting off Russian forces in Kyiv’s suburbs, it has become too dangerous for the nurses to travel between the shelter and their homes. “Now we are staying here to preserve our and the babies’ lives,” said Lyudmilia Yaschenko, a 51-year-old nurse. “We are hiding here from the bombing and this horrible misery.” <img src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/2022/03/surrogacy.jpg" alt="" width="1280" height="720" /> At least 20 surrogacy babies are being cared for in an underground bunker as the war rages on above them. Image: Getty Images Ms Yaschenko said they could leave the shelter for brief periods to get some fresh air, but that they worked constantly to look after the children. “We are almost not sleeping at all,” she said. “We are working around the clock.” She also worried for her two sons - aged 22 and 30 - who were fighting to defend the country. Ukraine is one of the few countries that allows foreigners to use surrogate services, with <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-60824936" target="_blank" rel="noopener">most</a> of the 2000 children born through surrogacy every year are matched to foreign couples from Europe, Latin America and China. Though Ms Yaschenko wouldn’t say how many children are still waiting to be united with their parents or how many surrogate mothers are expected to deliver soon, the nurses have plenty of food and baby supplies to continue caring for them as they wait for the war to end. Image: Getty Images

Caring

Three-year-old rescued after 65 hours trapped underground

Two little girls have made it out alive after an apartment building in the Turkish city of Izmir collapsed due to a colossal earthquake. Felt throughout Turkey and Greece, U.S. Geological Survey rated it 7.0, while Istanbul’s Kandilli Institute put it at 6.9 and Turkey’s emergency management agency said it measured 6.6. The overall death toll in Friday’s quake reached 85 after teams found more bodies overnight amid toppled buildings in Izmir, Turkey’s third-largest city. Onlookers applauded in relief as the two young girls were pulled from wreckage and debris before they were rushed off to hospital. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> Rescuers in Turkey have pulled a three-year-old girl from the rubble of her apartment block 65 hours after it was destroyed by an earthquake. Elif Perincek was pulled alive from the rubble early this morning. <a href="https://t.co/6DXQ6upzeQ">pic.twitter.com/6DXQ6upzeQ</a> — RTÉ News (@rtenews) <a href="https://twitter.com/rtenews/status/1323184542031761408?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 2, 2020</a></blockquote> They are two out of over 1,000 people who were injured in the quake that was felt mostly in Turkey, Rescue workers clapped in unison Monday as 14-year-old Idil Sirin was removed from the rubble. She was trapped for 58 hours. Her 8-year-old sister, Ipek, did not survive. Rescuers also found 3-year-old Elif Perincek seven hours after Sirin. She spent 65 hours in the wreckage of her apartment before she was extracted. Eli’s mother and two sisters had been rescued two days earlier. Muammer Celik of Istanbul’s search-and-rescue team told NTV television that he thought Elif was dead when he found the young child. “There was dust on her face, her face was white,” he said. “When I cleaned the dust from her face, she opened her eyes. I was astonished.” Celik said: “it was a miracle, it was a true miracle.” The girl would not let go of his hand throughout the rescue operation. Celik added: “I am now her big brother.”

News

How do magpies detect worms and other food underground?

How do magpies detect worms and other food sources underground? I often see them look or listen, then rapidly hop across the ground and start digging with their beak and extract a worm or bug from the earth – Catherine, age 10, Perth. You have posed a very good question. Foraging for food can involve sight, hearing and even smell. In almost all cases learning is involved. Magpies are ground foragers, setting one foot before the other looking for food while walking, called <a href="http://www.publish.csiro.au/book/7677/" title="Biology and Behaviour of an Unusual Songbird">walk-foraging</a>. It looks like this: Finding food on the ground, such as beetles and other insects, is not as easy as it may sound. The ground can be uneven and covered with leaves, grasses and rocks. Insects may be hiding, camouflaged, or staying so still it is hard for a magpie to notice them. Detecting a small object on the ground requires keen vision and experience, to discriminate between the parts that are important and those that are not. Magpie eyes, as for most birds, are on the side of the head (humans and other birds of prey, by contrast, have eyes that face forward). <a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/305806/original/file-20191209-90592-eed4d5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/305806/original/file-20191209-90592-eed4d5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="" /></a> A magpie’s eyes are at the side of its head and it can only see something with both eyes if that is straight in front of the bird. Shutterstock/Webb Photography To see a small area in front of them, close to the ground, birds use both eyes together (scientists call this binocular vision). But birds mostly see via the eyes looking out to the side (which is called monocular vision). This picture gives you an idea of what a magpie can see with its left eye, what it can see with its right eye and what area it can see with both eyes working together (binocular vision). You asked about underground foraging. Some of that foraging can also be done by sight. Worms, for instance, may leave a small mound (called a cast) on the surface and, to the experienced bird, this indicates that a worm is just below. Magpies can also go a huge step further. They can identify big scarab larvae underground without any visual help at all. Scarab larvae look like grubs. They munch on grassroots and can kill entire grazing fields. Once they transform into beetles (commonly called Christmas beetles) they can do even more damage by eating all the leaves off eucalyptus trees. Here is the secret: magpies have such good hearing, they can hear the very faint sound of grass roots being chewed. We know this from <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0003347281801121" title="Localization of soil dwelling scarab larvae by the black-backed magpie, Gymnorhina tibicen (Latham)">experiments</a> using small speakers under the soil playing back recorded sounds of scarab beetle larvae. Magpies located the speaker every time and dug it up.<a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/" class="license"></a> So how do they do it? Several movements are involved. To make certain that a jab with its beak will hit the exact spot where the juicy grub is, the magpie first walks slowly and scans the ground. It then stops and looks closely at the ground – seemingly with both eyes working together. Then, holding absolutely still, the magpie turns its head so the left side of the head and ear is close to the ground for a final confirming <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/318003665_Audition_and_Hemispheric_Specialization_in_Songbirds_and_New_Evidence_from_Australian_Magpies">listen</a>. Finally, the bird straightens up, then executes a powerful jab into the ground before retrieving the grub. <a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/305292/original/file-20191205-70133-1fvy04l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/305292/original/file-20191205-70133-1fvy04l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="" /></a> An Australian magpie digging for food gets a grub. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Australian_Magpie_Digging_Grub.jpg" class="source">Wikimedia/Toby Hudson</a>, <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/" class="license">CC BY-SA</a> That is very clever of the magpies. Very few animals can extract food they can’t see. Only great apes and humans were thought to have this ability. Clever magpies indeed. And farmers love them for <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0003347281801121" title="Localization of soil dwelling scarab larvae by the black-backed magpie, Gymnorhina tibicen (Latham)">keeping a major pest under control</a>. <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/gisela-kaplan-2401">Gisela Kaplan</a>, Emeritus Professor in Animal Behaviour, <a href="http://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-new-england-919">University of New England</a> This article is republished from <a href="http://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/curious-kids-how-do-magpies-detect-worms-and-other-food-underground-125713">original article</a>.

Caring

Tourist mistake on the London Underground costs them $200k a year

For many tourists visiting London, the London Underground is a blessing as it’s easy to navigate, fast and boasts 270 stations across 11 lines. However, some tourists are too eager to jump on the Tube and it’s costing them almost $200k a year. A report by the UK’s <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/consumer-affairs/london-tourists-waste-100k-year-travelling-two-closest-tube/">The Telegraph</a> has shown that tourists in central London are wasting money catching the London Underground between the two closest stations on the network, which are Leicester Square and Covent Garden. The stations in London’s West End are about 275 metres apart and take four minutes to walk between them. The ride on the Tube between the two stations takes just 45 seconds and costs 2.40 pounds (AUD $4.48) for a single pay-as-you-go ticket. A freedom of information request by The Telegraph showed that an average of 862 people travels between the two stations each week. This means that close to 45,000 people are making the short journey each year, spending unnecessary funds to do so to the tune of AUD $201,600. The report pointed out that walking between the stations is probably quicker than catching the Tube anyway after factoring in time spent getting down to the platform, waiting for a train and then returning to street level.

Travel Trouble

Discover what life is like underground in White Cliffs

The local landscape of White Cliffs can border on the surreal. Like any small town, White Cliffs has the obligatory pub and a general store, but on our visit they appeared to be closed for the day. The petrol station looked deserted and the local restaurant claiming to have the best casseroles in town was empty. Apart from The Stubbie House — a home built out of 54,000 bottles — and the abandoned Solar Power Station there wasn’t much else to see. It may seem like a ghost town, but the truth is a little stranger – it’s because the majority of the White Cliffs community live in holes under the ground. Located in outback New South Wales, 255km northeast of Broken Hill, White Cliffs’ residents started living in dugouts in the early 1890s. Miners built extensive underground homes in the hillside to avoid the intense heat — with summer temperatures that consistently reach over 40°C. Today, it mixes tourism with opal mining, offering visitors a unique perspective to outback living. There are around 100 dugout homes still in use in White Cliffs, making them fascinating to visit. A great example of one of the homes is the beautifully carved residence of Cree Marshall and Lindsay White. As you enter their abode, there is something at every corner that will catch your eye — the ornamental wooden harp, the towering tree stump standing at the centre of the kitchen, even the recycled geometric floor tiles. <img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.wyza.com.au/media/3663406/dug-out-tour-underground-white-cliffs.jpg" alt="Dug -out -tour -underground --white -cliffs" width="700" height="400" />Cree and Lindsay's stunning 'White House' The pair have been progressively renovating their home into a remarkable subterranean dwelling and offer tours at $10 per person between 11am and 2pm. Well worth the price, the home is located beside the <a rel="noopener" href="http://www.redearthopal.com/" target="_blank">Red Earth Opal Cafe</a>. But it’s not just about underground living. Off the Barrier Highway at Wilcannia, midway between Broken Hill and Cobar, head northbound to White Cliffs’ Opal Fields where you’ll be transported to a moonscape terrain of around 50,000 diggings. While the mining boom has diminished, opal is still being found at White Cliffs and what better way to get an insight into the historic diggings of the 1890s than by visiting an underground working opal mine. <img src="https://cdn.wyza.com.au/media/3663403/red-opal-cafe-entrance-white-cliffs.jpg" alt="Red -opal -cafe -entrance -white -cliffs" width="700" height="400" /> You can also book an opal mine tour at the local Red Earth Opal Cafe Walk down into the shaft and discover the gritty reality of mining. You know you’ve struck it big when you’ve unearthed the brilliant gem ‘pineapples’, but these are very rare, so rare in fact, that they have only ever been found in White Cliffs. While fossicking for the elusive opal may not go as planned, you can always head by the local opal store and pick up one of the precious stones, which can often be cheaper than the ones in major retail outlets. <img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.wyza.com.au/media/3663404/stairwell-star-gazing-white-cliffs-hotel.jpg" alt="Stairwell -star -gazing -white -cliffs -hotel" width="300" height="450" />White Cliffs' Underground Motel is a great place to escape the heat Looking for a special place to stay overnight? Immerse yourself in the local experience with a stay at the famous <a rel="noopener" href="http://undergroundmotel.com.au/" target="_blank">White Cliffs Underground Motel</a>. Located on a mesa locally known as ‘Poor Man’s Hill’ (due to its lack of opal), this man-made underground lodge welcomes travellers with a unique experience. Switch off from the world above and see first-hand what it is like living in a dugout. The maze of passageways lead you to a stairwell that take you up to the star gazing room where you can see the brilliant night sky and can enjoy the vast sunsets and sunrises. There’s also a small on-site History and Cultural Centre for those interested to learn more about the community. Insulated from the harsh outback heat, the indoors remain at a cool and comfortable 22 degrees all year round. White Cliffs is a comfortable <a rel="noopener" href="http://www.tristate.com.au/tours-old/2-day-opal-dreaming-tour" target="_blank">two-day tour</a> from Broken Hill, allowing you to experience a true outback experience, underground. Have you ever been to outback NSW? Where’s your favourite road trip? Written by Maria Angela Parajo. Republished with permission of <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.wyza.com.au/articles/travel/life-underground-in-white-cliffs-nsw.aspx" target="_blank">Wyza.com.au</a>.

Domestic Travel

Luxury cottages built into their surrounds

From luxurious <a href="/travel/accommodation/2016/04/train-carriage-transformed-into-luxury-airbnb/" target="_blank">converted train carriages</a> to beautiful <a href="/travel/accommodation/2016/05/bulli-yurt-rainforest-retreat-airbnb/" target="_blank">rainforest treehouses</a>, Airbnb gives you the opportunity to stay in accommodation out of the norm. And the cottages featured in today’s article are a little bit special. These four, incredible underground houses offer accommodation that is undeniably luxurious, and definitely more memorable than the hotels you’re used to staying at. To see more images of these cottages, scroll through the gallery above. 1. The Earth House – Overijssel, Netherlands For those looking for an authentic, rural experience in the Netherlands you can’t do much better than <a href="https://www.airbnb.com.au/rooms/930940/?af=61160407&c=apac_au_over60_earthhouse" target="_blank">The Earth House</a>. Luxuriously appointed with yawning views of the farm surrounding, the Earth House gives you an insight into rural Dutch life. For more information or to book The Earth House, <a href="https://www.airbnb.com.au/rooms/930940/?af=61160407&c=apac_au_over60_earthhouse" target="_blank">click here</a>. 2. Cosy Mud Hut – Portland, USA Hand built by members of the local community, the <a href="https://www.airbnb.com.au/rooms/1194370/?af=61160407&c=apac_au_over60_mudhut" target="_blank">Cosy Mud Hut</a> provides a tranquil, rustic sleeping space that’s wood-heated and candlelit. The Cosy Mud Hut is simply the perfect base from which to explore the interesting surround of Portland. For more information or to book the Cosy Mud Hut, <a href="https://www.airbnb.com.au/rooms/1194370/?af=61160407&c=apac_au_over60_mudhut" target="_blank">click here</a>. 3. Boulder House – California, USA In many ways a paradox, the <a href="https://www.airbnb.com.au/rooms/517357?af=61160407&c=apac_au_over60_boulderhouse" target="_blank">Boulder House</a> contrasts its desert-inspired exterior with a beautifully adorned interior that provides the perfect shelter from the sometimes treacherous surrounds. And the sunsets are worth the price of admission alone. For more information or to book the Boulder House, <a href="https://www.airbnb.com.au/rooms/517357?af=61160407&c=apac_au_over60_boulderhouse" target="_blank">click here</a>. 4. Hobbit Hut – California, USA Built by a renowned sculptor, the <a href="https://www.airbnb.com.au/rooms/1328154/?af=61160407&c=apac_au_over60_hobbithut" target="_blank">Hobbit Hut</a> is truly one of a kind that provides a luxurious, in many ways magical stay minutes away from the quaint town of Geyserville. Convenient access to local restaurants and wineries makes this a blissful choice. For more information or to book the Hobbit Hut, <a href="https://www.airbnb.com.au/rooms/1328154/?af=61160407&c=apac_au_over60_hobbithut" target="_blank">click here</a>. <a href="https://www.airbnb.com/?af=61160407&c=apac_au_over60" target="_blank">Whether you want to make money by renting your place or to find affordable accommodation options and stretch your travel budget further, head over to Airbnb now and have a look around.</a> Related links: <a href="/travel/accommodation/2016/04/train-carriage-transformed-into-luxury-airbnb/">100-year-old train carriage transformed into luxury cottage</a> <a href="/travel/accommodation/2016/04/private-island-on-airbnb/">Escape to your very own Island with Airbnb</a> <a href="/travel/accommodation/2016/05/this-beautiful-airbnb-is-carved-out-of-a-rock-face/">This beautiful Airbnb is carved out of a rock face</a>

Accommodation

Secret underground tunnels below Disney World unearthed

Disney World is a place known for its magic, but it has one secret that has gone generally unknown to the public until now. Walt Disney World, Florida has a network of tunnels used only by the Disney staff to keep them from being seen by guests whilst travelling. Apparently. Walt Disney saw a cowboy walking through a science-fiction theme part to reach Frontierland, and having witnessed this believed it detracted from the magic of Disney. This led Walt to have tunnels built, to avoid this problem. Today, the tunnels, referred to as “utilidoors” have offices, wardrobes and cafeterias, all beneath the iconic theme park. For US$79 visitors can see the tunnels for themselves, with purchase of a “Disney’s Keys to the Kingdom Tour”. <img width="491" height="552" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/8470/tunnels.png" alt="Tunnels" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"/> Related links: <a href="/news/news/2015/08/blind-photographer/">Blind photographer takes stunning black and white photos</a> <a href="/news/news/2015/08/cockatiel-lip-syncs-nelly-dilemma/">This cockatiel can perfectly lip-sync</a> <a href="/news/news/2015/08/parents-choose-gender-of-babies/">Parents are choosing baby’s gender with controversial new method</a>

News

NASA discovers an underground ocean on Jupiter’s largest moon

It sounds like the stuff of a sci-fi movie, but indeed it is reality: NASA has announced evidence that Jupiter’s largest moon, Ganymede, has a saltwater ocean under its icy surface. And perhaps most interestingly, the ocean seems to have more water than all the water on Earth’s surface.New Hubble (a telescope that orbits Earth) observations of Ganymede’s magnetic field strongly suggest that the moon, which is the largest in our whole solar system, is home to a subsurface ocean.Scientists have already confirmed the existence of an ocean on Europa, another moon orbiting Jupiter, and NASA has announced plans to send an unmanned mission there searching for the life that might come with liquid water.It is estimated that the ocean is about 95-kilometres thick, which is about 10 times deeper than Earth’s oceans. But unlike our salty waters, Ganymede’s ocean is buried under 150 kilometres of ice.“This discovery marks a significant milestone, highlighting what only Hubble can accomplish,” said John Grunsfeld, assistant administrator of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, “A deep ocean under the icy crust of Ganymede opens up further exciting possibilities for life beyond Earth.”Related links:<a href="/news/news/2015/02/best-beaches-in-the-world/" target="_blank">Which Australian beach is considered one of the world’s very best?</a><a href="/news/news/2015/02/frozen-niagara-falls/" target="_blank">The stunning picture of a frozen Niagara Falls</a><a href="/news/news/2015/02/tourists-ruin-morning-glory/" target="_blank">Tourists have ruined this once pristine natural wonder</a>

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Discover what life is like underground in White Cliffs

Luxury cottages built into their surrounds

Secret underground tunnels below Disney World unearthed

NASA discovers an underground ocean on Jupiter’s largest moon

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