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"S:t Cyrils. Where we used to hide from the Germans..." 
Today we celebrate "Global James Bond day" - October 5 2012 marks 50 years since Dr No premiered on the big screen in 1962!
Celebrating the Golden Jubilee, we look at one of the most beautiful Bond locations in the world, namely the monasteries of Metéora, just above the town of Kalambaka in the Greek mainland.
In
For your eyes only, Bond turn to his friend Columbo in order to find Kristatos who has disappeared with the A.T.A.C. transmitter. Columbo takes Bond to the Greek mainland and an ''abandoned'' monastery called S:t Cyrils, where Columbo and Kristatos used to hide out while fighting the Germans during the war. Kristatos is awaiting General Gogol, head of the KGB, in order to sell the British transmitter to the Russians. Bond has to rely on a few of Columbo's men and Melina's crossbow to infiltrate Kristatos' lair and get it back before it is too late.
While Bond has to climb up the right side of the cliff, which is away from the buildings, Columbo and his crew waits for Bond to send down a basket with an electronic winch. In reality there is a small cable car that connects the monastery with the adjacent cliff and steps cut into the rock on the left hand side.
"Only Kristatos would make an abandoned monastery his personal retreat." -Columbo- |
| The small shed with the basket and the electronic winch (later recreated in Pinewood Studios) |
Kristatos' is in fact hiding in 'The Monastery of the Holy Trinity', built in 1475. It is given the name "S:t Cyrils" in the film and lies on the very top of the cliffs, still inhabited by monks today. The monasteries are today a tourist attraction and there is a nice mountain road that takes you all the way from Kalambaka and around the different sites. The high cliffs standing alone in the landscape, combined with the surrounding mountains creates a stunning scenery and it is a good idea to park the car and walk around. The monasteries are sometimes open to the public and 'The Holy Trinity' is also possible to visit. You should check the opening days in advance if you only have one day on location.
The filming of the scenes in Metéora were filled with problems since the monks did not like the presence of the film team and the commotion. Apparently they didn't know that Sir Roger was the saint... They tried to sabotage the filming by putting up big pieces of plastic and bed sheets on the roofs. The people down in Kalambaka understood the value of the filming taking place on location and at one point they were prepared to drive away the monks to help the film team, fortunately it never came to that! The film crew used the adjacent cliff and created a replica of the monastery where the exterior scenes were filmed. The rest of the monastery was recreated in Pinewood studios by production designer Peter Lamont and his crew.
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| The cliff to the right was used for the exterior shots. The big rock in the middle can be seen in the film. |
*Metéora consists of six monasteries, all built on natural sandstone rock pillars and it is one of the largest and most important complexes of Eastern Orthodox monasteries in Greece, all built between the 14th and mid 16th century.*
Wikipedia
The pictures do not do this magnificent location justice. It needs to be seen in real life, before you can fully understand the greatness of the landscape. It is definitively worth a visit and can easily be combined with a week or two in Corfu. From the town of Kalambaka you have a nice view of the surrounding mountains and it is a good idea to spend some time here and have a nice dinner or lunch. Driving to the west coast, and the Corfu ferry terminal, takes about two hours and you can either go via the new highway or drive through the amazing mountain roads (which takes approx. an extra hour).
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| View over "S:t Cyrils" from a restaurant in Kalambaka |
"-We should have brought more of my people. -James is counting on surprise. -But we are only five men. -And one woman..." Happy 50th Anniversary to James Bond and congratulations to Sir Sean Connery, George Lazenby, Sir Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan and Daniel Craig for 50 magnificent years! ...and 50 more to come!
Long may they live.
In the next scene we see Bond's plane land at the airport in Nice Côte d'Azur. That makes this view contradictory since Bond's plane would not fly over Monaco coming from London. But perhaps director Kershner wanted to picture a classic, beautiful view over the Riviera and Monte Carlo is a convenient site and definitively well recognizable. 
Monaco has changed a little since 1983 but almost all the buildings on the 'front row' are still recognizable. The biggest change of course being the expanded pier, a construction that took place in 2001 in order to accommodate lager cruise ships. 
Not much more needs to be said about this fabulous location. Monte Carlo is definitively one of the most beautiful Bond locations in the world and a personal favorite of mine...
Since this is England, you can rest assured that not much has been changed since the film was shot here almost 30 years ago. The main thing different of course being that the entrance has moved to the center of the building, with two big windows on either side. 'The Bond street kiosk' where 007 picks up a magazine has also disappeared. Most likely that was put up for the film, but a magazine shop with the same name can be found at the Bond Street underground station just a few minutes away.
Bond gives a signal to Smithers who tails Kamal to Heathrow in a London taxi. In the background the Polo Ralph Lauren shop is visible. You can still find the shop in the same building today, surrounded by other luxury shops along the street. Kamal is driven to Heathrow in a Mercedes Benz 600 Pullman, the car of choice for a true villain. Even though Kamal rides in the Pullman version, the Mercedes Benz 600 has been used by Blofeld in both Diamonds are forever and On Her Majesty's secret service. 
Just below Sotheby's, to the left on Bond street, you can find Conduit street. This was the location where the famous Bond tailors Anthony Sinclair and Cyril Caslte, who made the suits for Sean Connery and Sir Roger respectively, had their shops. When walking down on Bond street, you should turn left in to Burlington gardens and take a walk down Burlington Arcade where you can find the vintage Rolex store at 'The Vintage Watch Company'. They have an unparalleled collection of vintage Rolex watches if you want to do some window shopping for a 1962 James Bond Rolex Submariner. 
Even though the action is supposed to take place in Bangkok, the Hai Fat estate is located in the New Territories in Hong Kong, where the film team was based in April 1974. The estate is called The Dragon Garden and was built in the 1950's. It was designed by an industrialist and philantropist called Lee Iu Cheung and it once housed the largest private outdoor swimmingpool in Hong Kong (the pool where Chew Me is swimming). Notice part of the red Chinese gate behind the main building in the left picture. The gate is found just in front of the mausoleum where Hai Fat is talking to Scaramanga.
When Bond returns the same evening, dressed in black tie, we get to see the entrance. The red doors with the yellow balls are still the same and even the letterbox is visible earlier in the film when Bond is escorted out. The word ´Letters´ is briefly visible. Sadly the original metal plate, seen in the left picture, has been replaced with a new one at the main door, carrying Chinese characters. Behind the main door is the path that Bond is walking down in the film, leading up to "Grizzlyland". 
Along the front side of the Dragon Garden runs the same wall that Bond and Hip are looking over in the first scene. They are probably standing at the very left part of the surrounding wall.
The Dragon Garden is currently undergoing renovation and it is not easy to get in touch with anyone in charge. It appears to be a slow process, probably due to the lack of funds, but things are going in the right direction. So far, the front doors have been given new paint. The estate is still privately owned by the Cheung family and it is not accessible for the public. We have had the fortune of a quick tour of some parts of the garden but that will be covered later. The estate is guarded by dogs and a security guard, although not as heavily armed as the Hai Fat guards.
