Hotel California, Mexikó
"This could be heaven and this could be hell..."
A hotelt 1950-ben nyitotta Mr. Wong, kínai emigráns, aki feleségével és 7 leányával szintén a 16 szobás intézményben lakott. Annak érdekében, hogy a helyiek azt higgyék ő is mexikói, megváltoztatta a nevét Don Antonio Tabasco-ra. A fedőnév-művelet azonban nem sikerült, hiszen rövidesen "El Chino"-nak vagyis "A kínai"-nak kezdték el nevezni a helység lakói. Az 50-es években azzal vált népszerűvé, hogy elsőként szervírozott hideg sört a városban, köszönhetően a La Paz-ból ideszállított jégnek. A szálló hírnevét a 60-as, 70-es évekbeli ködös történeteknek, pletykáknak köszönheti, melyeknek egyike szerint az Eagles is tulajdonolta az épületet, de a szálloda honlapja cáfolja ezt. Mítoszát az együttes 1976-os Hotel California című száma emelte az egekbe. A népszerű dal allegórikus szövege a legjobb alapot szolgáltatta a legendához. Mint a művészeti alkotásoknak általában, ennek is többféle értelmezése lehet, mindenki arra buzdítok, találja meg a sajátját benne.
Fotók: Katja Presnal
On a dark desert highway,
Cool wind in my hair,
Warm smell of "colitas"
Rising up through the air,
Up ahead in the distance
I saw a shimmering light,
My head grew heavy and my sight grew dim,
I had to stop for the night.
There she stood in the doorway,
I heard the mission bell
And I was thinkin' to myself :
"This could be heaven and this could be hell"
Then she lit up a candle,
And she showed me the way,
There were voices down the corridor,
I thought I heard them say
Welcome to the Hotel California,
Such a lovely place, (Such a lovely place) Such a lovely face
Plenty of room at the Hotel California,
Any time of year, (Any time of year) You can find it here
Fotók: Katja Presnal
On a dark desert highway,
Cool wind in my hair,
Warm smell of "colitas"
Rising up through the air,
Up ahead in the distance
I saw a shimmering light,
My head grew heavy and my sight grew dim,
I had to stop for the night.
There she stood in the doorway,
I heard the mission bell
And I was thinkin' to myself :
"This could be heaven and this could be hell"
Then she lit up a candle,
And she showed me the way,
There were voices down the corridor,
I thought I heard them say
Welcome to the Hotel California,
Such a lovely place, (Such a lovely place) Such a lovely face
Plenty of room at the Hotel California,
Any time of year, (Any time of year) You can find it here
Her mind is Tiffany-twisted,
She got the Mercedes bends
She got a lot of pretty, pretty boys
she calls friends
How they dance in the courtyard,
Sweet summer sweat
Some dance to remember,
Some dance to forget
So I called up the Captain
"Please bring me my wine"
He said, "We haven't had that spirit here
Since nineteen sixty-nine"
And still those voices are calling from far away,
Wake you up in the middle of the night
Just to hear them say:
Welcome to the Hotel California,
Such a lovely place, (Such a lovely place) Such a lovely face
They're livin' it up at the Hotel California,
What a nice surprise, (What a nice surprise) Bring your alibis
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Mirrors on the ceiling,
and pink champagne on ice, and she said:
"We are all just prisoners here,
Of our own device"
And in the master's chambers
They gathered for the feast,
They stabbed it with their steely knives,
But they just can't kill the beast
Last thing I remember, I was running for the door,
I had to find the passage back to the place I was before,
"Relax," said the night man, "We are programmed to receive,
You can check out anytime you like... but you can never leave"
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Képek forrása: Skimbaco
