"Since Trump became the Republican presidential candidate, media have been showing an increased interest toward us, which we have never seen before. We thought, along with 95 percent of the residents, that the hype would decline after the elections but now we have realized that it is here to stay," Joerg Doerr, a local tourism manager, told Sputnik in an interview.
Doerr said that journalists from around the world were visiting or at least calling to the town every day to find out about the roots of the president-elect. The locals, however, cannot tell anything particularly sensational.
"Friedrich, Trump`s grandfather, used to live in the house, which one would not even pay attention to. It`s a very ordinary house, standing in a quiet village lane," the tourism manager said.
Friedrich Trump left for the United States in the late 19th century and was nothing but an economic migrant. "Friedrich emigrated illegally. He left in order not to serve in the army, he did not have a permission to leave. When, years later, as already a wealthy man, he wanted, including on the insistence of his wife, to go back and live in Germany, he was not allowed to do this. And in 1905 he had to leave for the United States again," Doerr explained.
The manager, however, is not particularly excited about Trump`s popularity.
"There is a rule in tourism, `not any publicity is good publicity.` Opinion about Tramp is based on his speeches made on the campaign trail, and they are, to put it mildly, very controversial to be discussed, because he polarizes the audience very much. So we prefer to wait and see," he stressed.
"However, if he turns out a respectful president, then we may have to think about putting Trump`s name back on the agenda here, in Kallstadt," Doerr concluded.
As for now, the question of whether the 1,200 local residents are ready to accept the new name of the town, "Trumpstadt," remains open.
More about:
-1780923278.jpg&h=190&w=280&zc=1&q=100)
