Dracula Forever.(Romania planning theme park)(Brief Article)

In the restaurant Medieval Terasa, in the center of Sighisoara, the menu offers up bloody pork chap. This is not a misspelling. "Chap" is the underside of a pig's neck--not the same as a pork chop. And here it is served seasoned with "Dracula" sauce and a glass of Vampire red wine. But these days, there are few takers; winter is not the most hospitable time to visit this Romanian city where the real-life inspiration for the fictional Dracula was born. And in any case, there is not much to do there. Gift-shop proprietor Aniko Pazsint believes that will soon change. "When Draculaland opens, things will be different," she says, dusting off statues of the demonic count. "Our vampire will bring this town back to life."

Romanians are finally hoping to do a little bloodsucking of their own. Over the next two years, the government plans to build a large theme park dedicated to the legendary vampire. Officials are confident they can lure tourists to the foot of the Carpathian Mountains with a replica of Dracula's castle, complete with "a tall slender tower and lots of doors," says Alin Burcea of the Tourism Ministry. A walk through the castle will reveal many scary surprises, including a torture chamber and poison laboratory. The park will also contain a center for vampire studies with conference rooms, hotels, a lakeside amphitheater, cafes and shops, as well as a zoo and grounds for horseback riding. "Everyone in the world is making a profit off of Dracula, except us," said Tourism Minister Dan Matei Agathon when he announced the plans last July.

Who was Dracula anyway? Irish author Bram Stoker modeled his literary count after Prince Vlad Tepes, who, as legend goes, once ordered 40,000 Turkish prisoners impaled after a battle. "All that we know for certain is that Tepes was born in 1431 in Sighisoara, and that is why we decided to build our Dracula park there," says Burcea.

Romanians everywhere are counting on the tourist windfall to overhaul their country's image. For many Europeans, Romania is still synonymous with backwardness and poverty; Draculaland is supposed to bring in a projected profit of $35 million per year. Mayor Mihai Stoian estimates that the park will attract more than a million tourists to the town annually--more than three times last year's total. "Even this year, with the launch of the Draculaland advertisement campaign, the number of newcomers has doubled," says Ioan ...