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The tunnels’ constant atmospheric conditions, combined with the salty soil and absence of sunlight, preserved the bodies of people who met their deaths below the surface.Cool Bonus: Stephen Bishop, the cave’s most famous explorer, was brought to the caves in 1838 as a slave. He was the first person to descend all five levels of the cave, 360 feet below the surface, and made the scientific discovery of the eyeless Kentucky cave fish that still swim in the waters today. Advertisement 8 of 10© Tourisme Montréal, Pierre-Luc DufourUnderground City Underground City Montreal, CanadaWhat Lies Beneath: At first glance Montreal does not appear to be overcrowded, but maybe that’s because everyone is underground. More than four and a half square miles make up this second city—the world’s largest underground complex, with 4,350 hotel rooms, 2,727 apartments, 930 retailers, 68 metro stops, nine fitness centers, three skating rinks, two libraries, and a chapel.How Did It Get There: Montreal’s known for its brutal winters, so in 1962, while breaking ground for the city’s first metro, the idea for an underground shopping mall was born.Cool Bonus: “If you live in one of the underground apartments you can take the metro to work, come back, do your shopping,” says Bertin Jacques, manager of Tourism Montreal.

Well, just about all of the 3,500-person population of Coober Pedy, an opal-mining town in South Australia. The town’s name comes from a mispronunciation of an Aboriginal phrase thought to mean “white man in a hole.” Because of outdoor temperatures that climb above 120 degrees, most residents live in underground homes carved into the rock. Shops, churches, hotels, and even a swimming pool make coming up for air unnecessary.How Did It Get There: The first opal was discovered in the rose-colored sandstone in 1915; the town soon became the world’s opal capital. Discharged World War I soldiers came looking for their big break and would sleep in a dugout. Underground living was born.Cool Bonus: Coober China wholesale Bathroom Basin Electric taps Pedy can be seen in The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert; Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome; and Wim Wenders’s Until the End of the World. Advertisement 10 of 10© Tore Kjeilen/ LooklexCatacombs of Kom el-Shuqafa Catacombs of Kom el-Shuqafa Alexandria, EgyptWhat Lies Beneath: Three levels of burial chambers dating back to the 2nd century A.D. An impressive architectural achievement, its three levels of tombs reach a depth of 100 feet. The décor is an unusual combination of ancient Egyptian iconography with Greco-Roman motifs: one relief wall carving shows the jackal-headed Egyptian god Anubis wearing the uniform of Roman soldiers.How Did It Get There: Alexandria’s catacombs were modeled after those in Rome and were first built for a single wealthy family.Cool Bonus: Picnics among the dead were a tradition (and it’s still common for families to lunch while visiting dead relatives). And “carry in, carry out” did not apply—it was thought to be bad luck to bring the plates and cups used back into the life of the living. A chamber on the second level of the catacombs was found full of broken shards of pottery used in these morbid meals.