'Dracula's Castle' for sale

A Habsburg heir is hoping someone will take a bite of his offer Monday to sell "Dracula's Castle" in Transylvania. The medieval Bran Castle, perched on a cliff near Brasov in mountainous central Romania, is a top tourist attraction because of its ties to Prince Vlad the Impaler, the warlord whose cruelty inspired Bram Stoker's 1897 novel, "Dracula."

Legend has it that the ruthless Vlad — who earned his nickname because of the way he tortured his enemies — spent one night in the 1400s at the castle. The Habsburgs formally put the Bran Castle on the market Monday, a U.S.-based investment company said. No selling price was announced.

Bran Castle was built in the 14th century to serve as a fortress to protect against the invading Ottoman Turks. The royal family moved into the castle in the 1920s, living there until the communist regime confiscated it from Princess Ileana in 1948.

After being restored in the late 1980s and following the end of communist rule in Romania, it gained popularity as a tourist attraction known as "Dracula's Castle."

In May 2006, the castle was returned to Princess Ileana's son, New York architect Archduke Dominic Habsburg. He pledged to keep it open as a museum until 2009.

Habsburg, 69, offered to sell the castle last year to local authorities for $80 million, but the offer was rejected. On Monday, he put the castle up for sale "to the right purchaser under the right circumstances," said Michael Gardner, chief executive of Baytree Capital, the company representing Habsburg. "The Habsburgs are not in the business of managing a museum."

He predicted the castle would sell for more than $135 million but added that Habsburg will only sell it to a buyer "who will treat the property and its history with appropriate respect."

Habsburg said in a statement: "Aside from the castle's connection to one of the most famous novels ever written, Bran Castle is steeped in critical events of European history dating from the 14th century to the present."

According to a contract signed when the castle was returned, the government pays rent to Habsburg to run the castle as a museum for three years, charging admission. After 2009, Habsburg will have full control of the castle, Gardner said.

The government has priority as a buyer if it can match the best offer for the castle, he said.

Opposition lawmakers have claimed the government's decision to return the castle to Habsburg was illegal because of procedural errors. In recent years, the castle — complete with occasional glimpses of bats flying around its ramparts at twilight — has attracted filmmakers looking for a dramatic backdrop for films about Dracula and other horror movies.

Some 450,000 people visit the castle every year, Gardner said.

Milan Fashion Week June 26, 2007.

Quick quiz: You meet this guy at a party, and his first words are likely to be…

• “How did you cope with the power blackout? I myself had many problems.”
• “They tell me this hat pulls the whole outfit together…”
• “Help me get my $20 million out of Belgium, and we can split it.”
• “Well, to be honest, I don’t know why I walk at a 45-degree angle.”

Cover girl for “Modern Wheelbarrow” magazine?

Aggghh, country living at it's finest!

The second-worst thing that can happen on a plane

When this trans-Atlantic flight landed, you did not want to be the person asking passengers, “How was your flight?”

It turns out, backed-up bathrooms caused waste - as in human waste - to spill through the passenger cabin, and left only one bathroom partially working for 200 people on the seven-hour trip. You do the math, but I’m guessing more than one passenger said, “No thanks, flight attendant, no more beer for me…”

Psssssssst! Your dress is on upside down!

Imagine if you will, turning this dress 180 degrees. You’ll have to imagine it, because our model seems to have donned this strapless white evening gown the wrong way.

Maybe she should have noticed it was upside-down when she needed to find some way to lay her hair down on what she thought were the garment’s “shoulders.” Another clue might have been the misshapen hideousness of the thing once she zipped it up - or down, as the case may be.

Then again, if you check closely, she seems to have been pretty busy putting red lipstick around her eyes, so maybe she couldn’t be bothered to read the instructions that came with the dress.

Priest plans his own perfumes

A prominent Polish cleric known for preaching against communism and for his anti-Semitic remarks said on Tuesday he planned to launch perfumes, clothing and cafes branded with his image.

Father Henryk Jankowski took part in strikes which led to the end of communism in 1989 as part of Solidarity movement. He was later suspended from preaching for a year after insulting remarks about Jews.

Setting out his plans, Jankowski told the daily Dziennik newspaper that his initiative would "do everyone good."

"I am for it as long as it serves a good purpose. If necessary I will also sing and dance," he said.

The money from the initiative would go to the "Father Henryk Jankowski Institute," which says it supports charities and social projects.

Jankowski, who already has a wine branded with his image under the name "Monsignore," said he would be on the panel for "castings" of waitresses for the 16 cafes he plans to open in major Polish cities.

Jankowski is admired by many Catholics for his role in supporting Solidarity.

 

Drunk takes a free bike ride on car roof

Police officers in the Dutch city of Alkmaar were surprised to see a car passing by with a man sitting on a bicycle on its roof. The driver and his wife, when stopped by the police, said they heard a noise while waiting at a traffic light, but did not realize they were taking on an extra passenger. The 26 year-old man who took the free ride was fined for public drunkenness, not carrying an identity card and providing a false identity to the police.