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Simeon Mitropolitski is a Canadian analyst, of Bulgarian origin, and a former syndicated columnist with the Bulgarian News Agency (BTA). He is the author of several hundred articles dealing with hot political and economic topics, both national and international.

He was part of the first group of Bulgarian intellectuals and students that began the opposition movement that finally put an end to the communist regime in this country in 1989, and in 1996-1997 participated in international observation teams during the elections in several Balkan countries - Romania, Albania and Bulgaria.

In 2002 Simeon and his family moved from Bulgaria to Canada where they live now in Montreal, province of Quebec. Simeon is a Master of Political Science from McGill University and a B.A. of Political Science and History.

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• Romania 2000
  
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These days Dan Agathon proclaimed that the "Dracula theme park" project in the heart of Transylvania has attracted enough investments so it can go ahead. Till the beginning of April the investors had bought $2.9 million worth of stock, which is more than 60 percent needed by law for the project to proceed. The park is to be built in the medieval Transylvanian city of Sighisoara*, near the castle Bran, where the legends said Dracula lived and made his bloody orgies. The initial public offer for almost $5 million was launched in November 2001, but the deadline was extended to April 3 after first sales didn't meet the targets required by the local law. The whole project of the "Dracula theme park" is $16 million worth with another $20 million for additional infrastructure improvements in the region.

The major investors in the project so far are the Romanian unit of Greece's Hellenic Bottling Co. and the Austrian brewer Brau Union AG. They have agreed to bet on the name of Dracula in exchange for exclusive rights for the sale of drinks in the park.

The financial considerations finally have taken upper hand in the Romanian discussion on whether or not such park should be built. For months the opponents of the project have claimed that such park could draw Satanists to Romania. Other have warned that the tourists could damage the medieval castle located in the nearby.

Thus Dracula will make money even centuries after his death. But how about the minister's promise to make Romania looks like Cote d'Azur (which is situated in France for the most of the time)? Well, this is an odd story mixing the traditional Balkan idiotism and the jealousy towards the neighboring country, Bulgaria in our case. Romanian Tourist minister has been very impressed by the fact that the neighbors from the South (Bulgarians) are decorating their beaches with palm trees (these trees are imported from further south and are used only to make impression that you're somewhere in the tropics). So he has decided to do the same and has ordered several hundred palm trees from Greece.

To think that these palm trees can turn Romania or Bulgaria into new Cote d'Azur is the same as to think that drinking Coke will make Romanians and Bulgarians to behave like Americans.

* - 300 km northwest from the capital city of Bucharest.

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