“Transylvania is not England. Our ways are not your ways, and there shall be to you many strange things.” —from Bram Stoker’s classic vampire tale, Dracula
FANGS FOR THE HOSPITALITY
When the fictional Count Dracula welcomed Jonathan Harker to his Transylvania castle, the young lawyer from London thought he was there to settle a property deal. Sure, he wondered why that woman at the Golden Krone Hotel had begged him not to travel on the eve of St. George’s Day and had made him take along a crucifix and cloves of garlic. Of course he found it odd that his host with the pointy teeth never shared a meal with him and was never around during the day—who wouldn’t? But he had no idea what horrors lay in store for him.
GRUESOME TWOSOME
Was Dracula for real or did Bram Stoker make him up? The author based his character on a real Romanian prince named Vlad Dracula (1431–1476). Vlad was the warlord of the Romanian province of Wallachia. His dad, Vlad Basareb, adopted the name, “Dracul,” when he was inducted into the Order of the Dracul, or “Dragon.” So young Vlad went by the name “Dracula”—which means “son of Dracul.”
Unlike the fictional Dracula, Vlad Dracula didn’t go around the country sucking people’s blood. However, he had an equally chilling way to frighten away enemies—he impaled them on stakes. In 1462, one Turkish sultan ordered his soldiers to retreat after they stumbled upon a “forest” of impaled bodies outside the gates of Wallachia’s capital.
Vlad’s method of torture and slow death earned him the name, “Vlad Tepes,” or “Vlad the Impaler.” Romanians consider him a national hero, because he defended Wallachia—a Romanian province—against the Ottoman Empire. Which Dracula was creepier, the vampire or the impaler? Time for some on-site research.
STAKING OUT DRACULA
After visiting all the Count Dracula sites in England, travel writer Steven P. Unger headed to Transylvania, the historical region in the central part of Romania, to continue his “obsession” with all things Dracula. His goal: visit every site related to the fictional Count Dracula or his historical counterpart, Vlad Tepes. Like the fictional Jonathan Harker, Unger kept a travel journal that ended up in a book. Unlike Harker, Unger didn’t have to travel alone. The Romanian Tourist Board encourages Dracula fans to visit both the fictional settings of the novel and the real sites made famous by the Impaler. Since the 1980s, visitors can even sign up for Dracula-themed tours. So Unger had plenty of company as he visited these sites:
• Bistrita (or Bistritz) This town at the foot of the Borgo Pass in northern Romania was the fictional Jonathan Harker’s last stop before he took his fateful journey to meet the count. On May 3, Harker spent the night at the Hotel Golden Krone (compliments of his yet-unseen host). No such hotel existed in Bram Stoker’s day. But, in the 1980s, the town built one. To duplicate Harker’s evening meal, the hotel restaurant serves something called a “robber steak.”
• Borgo Pass (or Tihuta Pass) To reach the count’s castle, Harker took a horse-drawn passenger coach to the top of the Borgo Pass. “As we wound on our endless way, and the sun sank lower and lower behind us,” he recalled, “the shadows of the evening began to creep round us.” After the coach reached the crest, another coach driven by a man with “bright eyes” conveyed Harper to his destination.
• Hotel Castel Dracula Built in the 1980s, this vampire-themed hotel stands at the setting of the fictional Count Dracula’s castle. Some visitors find the blood-red carpets, stuffed wolves in the lobby, and fake crypt with a coffin kind of tacky. But it has great views of the Carpathian mountains.
• Vlad Dracul’s House (Casa Dracula), Sighisoara In 1431, Prince Vlad was born in this house at Strada Cositorarilor Number 5. He lived here until he was four. A wrought-iron dragon hangs at the entrance. A medieval weapons museum fills most of the first floor.
• Targoviste When Vlad’s dad became ruler of Wallachia, Vlad’s family moved to this provincial capital. Following in his father’s footsteps, young Vlad returned there as warlord from 1456 to 1462.
• Poienari (the “real” Castle of Dracula) Scholars believe that Bram Stoker used Poienari—Prince Vlad’s fortress overlooking Targoviste—as his model for Count Dracula’s castle. The climb to the top of the ruins is a long one: 1462 steps. From his perch there, Vlad once watched the mass impaling of 20,000 Turkish prisoners.
DRACULA HUNTER’S LANGUAGE LESSON
Before you start chasing the Count, arm yourself with a few words and phrases you can count on.
English |
Romanian |
Do you speak English? |
Vorbesti engleza? |
Do you have the time? |
Aveti timp? |
I’m lost! |
M’am ratacit! |
No |
Nu |
Blood transfusion |
Transfuzie de sange |
Neck |
Gat |
Teeth |
Dinti |
And the most important word… |
|
Help! |
Ajutor! |