Rumors of Elon Musk holding Halloween party at Bran Castle proven false
Days after the first rumors started to circulate about the fact that Elon Musk was in Romania and had rented Bran castle for a party, no definitive proof of his presence – or that of Angelina Jolie, also rumored to be in attendance – has been made available.
On the contrary, two officials within Romania’s Ministry of the Interior, who asked for their identity not to be revealed, stated for Libertatea that neither Musk nor Angelina Jolie had entered the country.
The actual host of the Bran Halloween party was PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel. The businessman and his husband Matt Danzeisen seem to have taken advantage of the rumors regarding Musk and Angelina Jolie to highlight the glamor of the party. A billionaire in his own right, Thiel’s net worth is estimated to be around USD 7 bln, placing him in the 297th spot in the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, according to Ziare.com.
Among those actually present were actress Julia Sandstrom, dietician Agnieszka Kaczmarska, dressed in a rich, 19th-century dress, and the two DJs part of Too Many Left Hands, who chose to don pirate costumes for the party. Also attending was Ovidiu Toma, the CEO of the encrypted communications app CryptoData.
A privately-owned field next to Bran served as a landing area for the rich guests’ helicopters. The same parcel of land housed a giant sign that read “Welcome, Elon Musk!,” giving further credence to the billionaire’s presence. The marketing ploy worked wonders, with Romanian journalists dubbing the party as one attended by the “richest people in the world.”
Many of Thiel and Danzeisen’s guests stayed at Kronwell, one of the luxury hotels in Poiana Brasov, according to Mediafax. The two organizers also chose to stay at the same hotel during their time in the area. They visited the surroundings of the touristic Poiana Brasov, including a sheepfold, according to ProTV. The castle visit included laser and magic shows, a high-end meal served in Brasov, and a party. Each of the guests wore masks and went up to the castle in small groups. The party scheduled for Sunday night saw a crowd of local tourists form around Bran castle in hopes of seeing a glimpse of Elon Musk or Angelina Jolie, both heavily featured in the evening editions of numerous national news outlets and TV stations.
Greenpeace Romania used the opportunity to raise awareness about the destruction of Carpathian forests by projecting messages addressed to Elon Musk and Anjelina Jolie on the Bran Castle's tower. "We took the Halloween opportunity to share a real horror story from Dracula’s forests. It’s about chainsaws, murders, greed, and death. As we speak, old-growth Carpathian forests are still being destroyed by industrial logging, and complex habitats are vanishing faster than ever, with historically low chances for biodiversity to adapt," said Ciprian Gălușcă, Greenpeace Romania Forests & Biodiversity Campaigner.
Simultaneously with the party, Elon Musk posted on Twitter, the social media platform he recently acquired, saying that “carbs are amazing.” He also praised freshly baked bread and pastries, leading local journalists at Antena 1 to say that he was praising traditional Romanian cuisine. It is now apparent the Tesla CEO was simply enjoying pastries elsewhere.
(Photo source: Hutchinsphoto / Vevesoran | Dreamstime.com)
