Even glamorous Pussy Galore* couldn’t improve the scenery, as BILL WATT rediscovered his inner James Bond in the Austrian alps.
When I was six years old I had a toy James Bond Aston Martin car, complete with guns, a bullet-proof shield and an ejector seat. It was my pride and joy and was one of the few toys that joined me on my family’s 15,000km odyssey from Scotland to a new home in Australia.
Now, decades later, it has taken another 15,000km journey, this time from Sydney to Austria (via Amsterdam), to spark a new passion for all things 007, the Brit spy with a licence to kill.
Between matches at the European Football Championship in Germany, a group of us** journeyed to the Austrian Tyrol where we took the gondola 3048m up Mt Gaislachkogl to 007 Elements, an interactive cinematic museum dedicated to the James Bond movie brand. It was also where critical scenes in the Bond movie Spectre, starring Daniel Craig, were filmed.
It doesn't take long to realise this is not your average museum trip. The flashy-looking gondola ride up the mountain is itself worth doing. The scenery as you ascend the alps in two stages is nothing short of spectacular. Being June, the mountains are a riotous combination of green pine forests, craggy rock faces and snowy crevices and caps. The blue sky with fluffy, pure white clouds dancing erratically, provides the support act.
Greeting you at the end of the gondola ride is the 007 Elements building, an architectural marvel built into the summit of Mt Gaislachkogl (pronounced something like Gash-la-kogel).
The museum consists of nine galleries devoted to the James Bond movie franchise, focussing heavily and understandably on Spectre, part of which was filmed right here. The superspy 007 is obviously the star, but no doubt the co-star is the alpine scenery.
Among other things, a journey through the interactive galleries of the museum wraps you up in a blanket of the famous soundtracks of the Bond films, dramatically displays the natural theatre of the Austrian alps, takes you on a wave of 007 nostalgia, visits the evil minds and lairs of the Bond villains, unlocks the secret devices developed by Q and reveals the secrets behind modern movie making with an in-depth exploration of the thrilling mountain plane/car chase scene in Spectre.
The Action Hall which details the chase scene has as its feature installation the front portion of the plane which Bond pilots - and crashes - in the sequence. Behind the plane is a panorama window looking out across mountains where it was filmed. It is a definite highlight.
We also ventured outside where there is a vehicle used in Spectre stranded on a cliff face, with the last of the winter snow still hanging around it. But, it is the everchanging sky with the imposing icy mountain peaks all around that again play a starring role. And, you can never escape them (which isn't a bad thing). Even the view from the men's urinal is crazily picturesque. It's certainly the most spectacular dunny I've been, too. But, a warning: People look at you strangely when you get your phone out to take a picture in a toilet!
Even when you have done the full Bond circuit, and your souvenir t-shirt has been bought (yep, I'm one of those people, but be reassured I don't have any "I heart/love ..." versions), there is still time left for one last 007 extravaganza ... in the form of the ice Q restaurant.
In the movie Spectre, this sky-high eatery was transformed into a futuristic health resort, the Hoffler Clinic, where we are introduced to 'Bond girl' Dr Madeleine Swann played by Léa Seydoux. It is also where the film's snow chase scene begins.
And, I'm telling you, there is nothing quite like a hot lunch and single malt whisky, in good company, overlooking the chilly Austrian alps.
* Pussy Galore is a female villain in the Bond movie Goldfinger. She was played by Honor Blackman.
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