Cuevas de Lituergo of Villanueva de la Reina
The Lituergo caves, located next to the Guadalquivir River, have been converted into homes by local families. At their peak, more than fifty caves were in use, each with a living room, kitchen and bedroom.
Some families inhabited them before the Spanish Civil War, but it was after the war that a large number of people came to make them their own. Due to the limited machinery available at the time, it took many months to build even the entranceway of many of the caves. The caves were painted blue and white, and the floors were made of a material called 'crema para las cucharas' (cream for spoons), which was used to wash cutlery before detergent became widely available.
In the cave of 'Juanillo el Quinto', there was dancing every week to the sound of his accordion. They even performed a play in one of the largest caves and made paper costumes for the occasion.