Bolivian orchestra stranded in ‘haunted’ castle surrounded by wolves

A Bolivian pan flute orchestra has been stranded in the grounds of a “haunted” German castle since the start of the coronavirus crisis.

More than 20 members of the Orquesta Experimental de Instrumentos Nativos, which arrived in Germany 77 days ago, have been unable to leave the Rheinsberg Palace after the country banned large gatherings and implemented a nationwide lockdown.

Since then, the musicians have been holed up in the buildings and grounds of the moated castle, a Renaissance-style estate an hour and a half from Berlin, which is “haunted by the ghost of Frederick the Great”, according to the New York Post.

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“We all joke that Frederick’s ghost is following us and trying to trip us up,” said Camed Martela, a 20-year-old member of the orchestra. “I don’t usually believe in such things but it does feel as if there are ghosts on the grounds.”

Complicating their stay yet further, the 600-acre estate is also surrounded by more than two dozen packs of wolves.

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Tracy Prado, who joined the orchestra in December, said she saw three wolves while out for a walk. “I froze in fear but they were just play fighting and moved on,” she said.

The group is also running up a huge accommodation bill and is becoming increasingly desperate to get home, the BBC says.

“People back home think we’re in a fairytale land. I’ve had hundreds of messages telling me to stop complaining, and that I’m living like a princess in a German castle,” a member of the orchestra named Carlos said. “We feel abandoned.”

The Bolivian embassy hopes to get the musician home in early June, the BBC reports.