marqkin
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« : July 16, 2007, 03:38:42 AM » |
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Having just returned from visiting the Almeria filming locations, I thought this might be of interest...
The small village of Los Albaricoques (Agua Caliente in For A Few Dollars More), is home to a wonderful inn/hotel called the 'Alba'. Thanks to the proprietor (who has, for many years now, kept the memory of Leone alive), the local Spanish tourist board has begun to show an interest in Los Albaricoques as a 'historical' Leone film site.....see other threads on this site for confirmation of this....
The Hotel 'Alba', is....I must add...a great place to stop at for a cool beer and a tasty tapas....especially after a hard day spent scouting filming locations....
the hotel's walls are adorned with original lobby cards from the 'dollar' westerns; a magnificent 'painting' of Eastwood and Van Cleef; and a glass case containing red wine that bear a specially commissioned label featuring an image of Clint Eastwood... the writing on the wine bottle label (in Spanish) roughly translates as "Wine selected for the distinguished clientele of the hotel/restaurant 'Alba'..."
The wine, itself , tastes like cheap plonk, but the bottle is worth having, if only as a great souvenir.....
I must also add that the service at the 'Alba' hotel was wonderful.....it's well worth a visit...
And now....the pocket watch.......
Before visiting the 'Alba', I'd read on this site, and others, that a glass case could be found there containing an 'original' pocket watch (as used in 'For a Few Dollars More)....
Yes...the case is there....it does contain an authentic-looking pocket watch, and the watch does (at first glance) look as if it was used in the film itself. The watch even has a picture inside of Colonel Mortimer's sister.....
However....on closer inspection.....if you examine the picture of Mortimer's sister, you will see that (in the bottom right corner), there is a blimmin' big thumb...
in other words, this picture has obviously been 'lifted' from the film, and the thumb already mentioned belongs to Lee Van Cleef! Needless to say, I was pretty hacked off to discover this, but I suppose that it was too good to be true that it would have actually turned out to be one of the original watches used in the film...
Having said that, the Hotel Alba is worth a visit...if only to dampen the trail dust that inevitably gets lodged in the back of the throat when location hunting....
Adios....
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