Travel - Trogolodyte Cave Homes of France

On my trip to the Loire Valley of France this summer, we wandered the village of Amboise, which sits below the limestone cliff where the castle Chateau De Amboise sits. As I mentioned in my last post, It look a lot of limestone to build all the grand chateaus (castles) of France and this left a lot of limestone caves spread across the country. In my last post I explained how in one instance, these caves were used to store wine, but in many other cases, people seeking inexpensive shelter moved into these caves and built them out as homes. I first saw these homes as I was walking along Rue Victor Hugo, the main Street through the village of Amboise. I could see them from alleys between the houses that lined the street. It seemed inconceivable that they could actually be currently occupied, but I saw plenty of signs of life.

A troglodyte by definition is someone who lives in a cave. These homes exist in a variety of countries, especially in areas where people sought shelter from the heat by living in these subterranean spaces. I’m sure it’s not for everyone, and I did see some in Amboise that looked abandoned.

You’ve probably seen homes such as these in movies, the most famous being Luke Skywalker’s boyhood home in Star Wars A New Hope and again in Attack of the Clones. George Lucas used the Hotel Sidi Driss, in Matmata, Tunisia as the filming site for the Lars homestead in the movies.

Source: Wiki Commons, Underground courtyard of Hotel Sidi Driss, Star Wars filming location, 27 November 2003, 09:27, Source 004687, Author: Neil Rickards from Cambridge, England

I even found a listing for a trogolodyte home on Airbnb for $79 a night.
https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/8349449

I think I’ll stick with something above ground.