This is the interior of one of the original homes at the Calico mining ghost town. There were probably many more of these, encrusted into the nooks of the hills. Typically, they would find a concave spot in the mountain and build "walls" around it, using mortar made from the pink earth to hold the loose stones together. They had stoves (as evidenced by a stovepipe sticking out through the stones (not visible in this image), and probably not much more than a cot, small table, and wash basin.
Although this looks roomy enough, the fisheye distortion is making it look much wider than it is in actuality. It is also quite low clearance: I was crouching to take this shot.
As if all this wasn't enough, to get to their homes, miners had to climb up the side of the hill to get to it, as there were no stairs. Still, after a long day of grueling work, this must have felt like a mansion.
Life at Calico (with a population peaking at 1,500) was tortuous, and the residents, tenacious. What is left of the ghost town was, in fact, the red light district, with saloons, brothels, etc. The families and other residents lived on the other side of the hill.
The beautiful schoolhouse is an accurate (if one-third smaller) reproduction of the original, which was recreated using historic photos. Children from the surrounding desert would walk as much as 2-4 miles to get them some learnin', walking over rocks, and climbing the craggy hills in footwear that would likely be condemned today as child abuse.
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The HDR is used as I like to see it used, in the manner of a zone system print. From my perspective the scene through the door may be just a tad bit TOO dark, I'd like to see it half a zone brighter for a more "realistic" sense of drawing-out.
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