Anakin Skywalker’s hometown of Mos Espa is not only still standing, but people are actually living there.
Back in 1997, George Lucas dragged the Phantom Menace production team out into the middle of the Tunisian desert, where they constructed Anakin Skywalker’s home village of Mos Espa, a ramshackle collection of mud domes and vaporators on the planet Tatooine. It was all left behind when filming was complete, and yet today, 15 years later, it’s all still standing – even the vaporators.
The intrepid team at RocketNews24 recently took a trip to check out the old Star Wars sets and found they were still standing and in good shape, although in spite of their intergalactic pedigree, they’re not quite as high-tech as they looked in the film. The team said that everything is still in good condition and seems very sturdy, but all the techno-gadgetry was constructed from nothing but wood and plastic. The up-close look at the vaporator is particularly revealing; it’s just a painted box with some plumbing bolted onto it.
Amazingly, this isn’t the only Star Wars set still standing in Tunisia. Die-hard fans looking for the full experience can even spend the night in the Lars homestead, Luke’s childhood home, which is actually part of the Hotel Sidi Driss. There are no props remaining and apparently the accommodations aren’t all that, but the exterior is still as it was in the one and true Star Wars and it offers a bar with a menu inspired by the films. Best of all, it’s just ten bucks a night, including a traditional Tunisian breakfast – and you probably won’t be turned into a smoking corpse by rampaging stormtroopers.
Source: RocketNews24
