Media mentions of Germany's famous Bruno the Bear--tragically shot back in 2006--seem to be increasing again, and we're thinking that Germany is starting a new angle on tourism: When beer is no longer enough to bring the tourists in, try bears instead.
The latest news is that a half-brother of Bruno has been sighted in Austria, near the German border. Unlike the late Bruno, this guy's not destroying sheep or strolling into villages to sit on the doorstep of the police station, but authorities are worried that locals and tourists will again freak out at the sight of him.
There's now a government-sponsored exhibition touring Bavaria on the subject of living with brown bears and authorities are hoping that this return of brown bears will become a peaceful coexistence. Or, we suspect, a great tourist-attracting money-spinner.
We've been trying to let poor ol' Bruno the Bear rest in peace since he was killed in Bavaria after famously being the first wild bear to enter Germany since 1836.
But we just have to mention that Bruno the Bear has finally become a permanent part of the tourist landscape in Germany. As promised, a well-stuffed Bruno is now on display in the Museum of Man and Nature inside the Nymphenburg Palace near Munich. The realistic-looking diorama opened last Thursday and the nice thing is you can get into the museum for just €2.50 ($4).
And while we're pleased that Bruno can take a rest now, we don't want you to forget that if you're traveling through western Austria this summer, you might catch some of the location shoot for the movie based on Bruno's story. If you think we're champing at the bit to visit Bruno in the museum, just imagine how much we're dying to see this film.
We can't explain our addiction to the Bruno the Bear story last summer, when brown bear Bruno led a media circus through southern Germany before he was shot dead. He's now ready to stand proud in a Munich museum.
The weird thing is that we are obviously not alone with our Bruno-mania. It was just announced that Austrian film company Cine Tirol have signed on well-known German-speaking writers, directors and even actors for the film version of Bruno's escapades, tentatively titled The Bear is Loose.
The movie's due to be filmed in summer 2008 in Tyrol, in western Austria. We promise to bring you the ultimate in movie set travel through the beautiful hills of Tyrol when Bruno's on set. But right now we're just wondering how on earth they're going to make a movie-length story out of all this.
We haven't heard much of Germany's ill-fated-yet-lovable Bruno the Bear recently, but of course, the Germans can't let sleeping bears lie. Bruno's hit the headlines again, even though he's long dead.
(In case you missed it, Bruno terrorized locals and tourists alike last year when he escaped out of the Italian alps and went on a rampage in Bavaria, eating sheep and chickens before an anonymous hunter shot him.)
Now Bruno's stuffed body has found a home. He's going to be displayed at the Man and Nature Museum in the Nymphenburg Palace in Bavaria, a popular summer attraction. If you're passing through, expect to find Bruno there--in a "scientifically accurate context", no less--from spring 2008. Long live Bruno!
A hiker in the Black Forest raised the alarm on bears this weekend, and police started looking for the bear immediately, fearing another crazy Bruno the Bear saga. Last summer, Germans were divided over the kill-or-don't-kill question when Bruno strolled uncaught through the Bavarian forest.
But this spotting turned out to be a false alarm. When police came across the bear, they noticed that it wasn't moving much: because it was a life size replica bear positioned in the forest (with permission) as target practice for the local archery club. But you should still beware of bears in Germany: where there's bears, there's weird publicity.
These Romanian brown bears might look cute, but we've got a bad news story today and they star in it. A group of American hikers wandering through the Carpathian Mountains north of Bucharest over the weekend were attacked by a brown bear who eventually killed one of them, a 31-year-old woman.
We know Europe's nervous about roaming bears--just see the hysteria created in Germany over Bruno the Bear. It's an uneasy truce between dense populations and the few remaining bears. About half of Europe's brown bears make their home in Romania, and although attacks on people are really rare, they obviously do happen; if you're stressed about it, check some tips on surviving bear encounters.
Avid Jaunted readers will remember our coverage a year ago of Germany's Bruno the Bear problem: an escapee bear who tormented Bavaria by randomly killing sheep and chickens, Bruno was eventually--controversially--killed.
So now, in honor of Bruno, the Bavarian tourism authorities have marked out a walk through the woods named the Bear Strategy Path. It follows the very same rivers, woods and autobahn paths that Bruno took and is scattered with "Bear Tips" on how to live a happy life.
Kind of ironic, as nobody can accuse Bruno's life of being too happy. And as for Bruno himself: his corpse is waiting on ice for a promised spot in a museum.
He's known variously as JJ1, problem bear, Petzi and Bruno, and has wandered southern Germany and Austria over the last few weeks snacking on sheep, goats, rabbits, guinea pigs, chickens and honey. He's become the star of an internet game. And he's been hunted by American bear-trap inventors, Finnish tracking experts and their non-heat-resistant dogs, and finally by gun-toting, lederhosen-wearing Bavarians. Now it's time to say goodbye.
That's right. After leading the German media on a merry race since mid-May, Bruno was shot dead early Monday morning by an unnamed Bavarian hunter after the state government once again gave the OK for licensed hunters to shoot the troublesome bear. With the costs of expert help to capture him alive running at over $150,000 and an enclosure already put aside for Bruno to live out his retirement days, it's unsurprising that many groups are outraged.
Perhaps the "shoot to kill" order from the Bavarian government could have had better timing. If they'd waited until Germany plays their quarterfinal game on Friday evening, nobody would've noticed. We guess that Bruno will be cheering for Argentina from bear heaven.
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by amandak
