Romania

Sexy Heiress Running for European Parliament

Filed under: Wealth

Italy's rakish prime minister / media mogul Silvio Berlusconi has said he wants to see some "fresh faces" in the upcoming 2009 European parliamentary elections, and it appears his wish will be granted. One candidate is 28-year-old Elena Basescu (above), sexy daughter of Traian Basescu, the president of Romania. Dubbed the "Romanian Paris Hilton," she's done some modeling, is quite the party girl and has had many beaus, Spiegel Online reports. In response to critics who say she doesn't have the intellectual firepower needed to represent her country in the European Parliament, her father counters that Elena is "much cleverer than people think." Nice Maserati, too.

Tags: Romania, Silvio Berlusconi, SilvioBerlusconi

Romanian Tuner MAFF Offers Custom Porsche Cayenne

by Noah Joseph (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos

When it launched the first Cayenne sport-utility in 2002, Porsche knew it wasn't just getting into the SUV market alongside every other carmaker – it was tapping into the great market of people who wanted a Porsche but needed more practicality. It's since proven a big success for the German automaker, but with so many on the road, there are plenty of customers looking to differentiate their Cayennes from all the others. MAFF Tuning is the latest to answer that call. With the Muron package, the Romanian tuning house offers a virtually endless range of customizing possibilities, from choice leather and Alcantara suede upholstery for the interior to the fiberglass and carbon-fiber body kit to give each Cayenne a flavor all its own. With such a wide spectrum of options, the sky's the limit in terms of pricing as well, but chances are if you can afford the gas to fuel such a beast, you can afford to drop a little extra to make it yours.

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Tags: cayenne, custom cayenne, custom porsche cayenne, CustomCayenne, CustomPorscheCayenne, maff, maff muron, maff muron porsche cayenne, maff tuning, MaffMuron, MaffMuronPorscheCayenne, MaffTuning, muron, porsche, porsche cayenne, PorscheCayenne, romania, widebody, widebody cayenne, WidebodyCayenne

Carol Parc Hotel

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

Perhaps the poshest hotel in the city of Bucharest in Romania is the five-star Carol Parc Hotel which opened this year. The boutique hotel is home to 20 rooms and suites and the rooms boast wood-burning fireplaces, terraces, plasma televisions, and Bulgari amenities. The hotel is also home to the Poem restaurant for fine dining. It is also one of the priciest hotels in the area with rooms starting at 300 euros but first-time guests are eligible for a 50% disount on the first night's stay, and a room upgrade for the entire stay. The hotel's website has an excellent virtual tour that gives you a look at this beautiful property.

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Tags: bucharest, carol parc hotel, CarolParcHotel, five star hotel, FiveStarHotel, journey, romania, travel

Dracula's Castle for Sale (Bats Included!)

by Rigel Celeste (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Estates

Some 450,000 people pass through Dracula's castle in Transylvania each year, and now people not only have the chance to see it but also to own it. Prince Vlad the Impaler, the violent warlord who inspired Bram Stoker's "Dracula" character, is rumored to have stayed one night in his family's castle, officially called Bran Castle, back in the 1400s. It's been running as a museum per an agreement with the Romanian government that expires in 2009. The castle went up for sale on Monday, and although it's expected to go for upwards of $135 million it won't be sold to just anybody, as only buyers who "will treat the property and its history with appropriate respect" will be considered. And those who don't mind seeing bats flying around the ramparts at twilight, of course.

Interested? I think I'll pass.

Via Book of Joe

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Tags: bran, bran castle, BranCastle, castle, dracula, impaler, prince, prince vlad the impaler, PrinceVladTheImpaler, romania, transylvania, vlad, vlad the impaler, VladTheImpaler

Dracula's Castle Returned to Owner

by Nicole Weston (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Estates

One of Romania's most popular tourist attractions, Dracula Castle, is being returned to its rightful owner, Dominic van Hapsburg, a New York Architect and descendant of the Hapsburg family line. The castle is actually named Bran Castle, and was never owned by Vlad the Impaler, though the prince who inspired the story of Dracula is though to have stayed there. The castle's remote, cliff-top location and striking Gothic architecture have made it a fixture of Dracula movies. The property is being returned under new legislation that reverses the seizures made by the former communist regime. The castle was originally taken in 1948 and was left to fall into disrepair until a restoration began in the 1980s. Part of the agreement for handing over the castle is that the new owner will not make any changes to it for at least three years. The hand-over ceremony will take place on Friday. The castle is worth approximately $25 million.