- BUCHAREST, Romania (Reuters)
- Scary jelly, blood pudding and brains will be on the menu if Romania
goes ahead with a Dracula theme park, but critics are more afraid it could
spoil the nearby medieval birthplace of "Vlad the Impaler."
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- Romania plans to build the park near the Transylvanian
town of Sighisoara, birthplace of 15th century Romanian Count Vlad Tepes,
or Vlad the Impaler, who is thought to have inspired Irish author Bram
Stoker's Gothic novel "Dracula."
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- The government said Monday it planned to go ahead with
the $30 million Disney-style park despite widespread resistance .
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- U.N. cultural body UNESCO says the park -- expected to
feature a horror castle, a "vampirology" institute and restaurants
serving gory dishes -- would kill the medieval atmosphere of Sighisoara,
which dates back to the 13th century.
-
- A Tourism Ministry spokesman told Reuters Monday the
location of the park depended on a study due out next month, rather than
UNESCO's views.
-
- "We respect UNESCO's stand ... but this is a government
project and UNESCO cannot put constraints on it. If the experts think that
Sighisoara is the right place, we will build it there, there is no doubt
about it," he said.
-
- Government promises of around 3,000 new jobs in the park
have won over many locals, hit hard by unemployment. But some fear the
provincial town's morals will be eroded.
-
- "This place will be invaded by those who practice
satanic rites and by drugs. I already saw satanic graffiti in our cemetery,"
local Lutheran priest Hans Frolich said.
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- "What could children see in such a park? People
who sharpen their teeth and drink blood or some crazy guys clad in bed
sheets and posing as ghosts? It's ridiculous," Frolich said.
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- Glossy Tourism Ministry brochures advertise workshops
for sharpening teeth into fangs at the park, as well as mock torture chambers
with stakes and knives.
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- "Building a Dracula park near Sighisoara would endanger
the cultural value of the city," UNESCO Secretary-General Koichiro
Matsuura said this month after visiting the town, which is listed as protected
by the U.N body.
-
- Critics also point out the park would be far from any
big city or international airport, which could hinder its success.
-
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