A German diamond-boom town in the Namib desert, abandoned to the dunes. When diamonds were found in the sand here in 1908 a wealthy little town rose complete with ballroom, theatre, hospital and the first X-ray machine in the southern hemisphere; when richer fields were found south it emptied by 1956, and the desert has since poured through the doors, filling grand rooms shoulder-deep in sand. It sits inside a restricted diamond area, so you need a permit. PUBLIC by permit, Namibia.
Kolmanskop, near Luderitz (Namibia)
See it on the map
Other places on the map within a couple of hours.
