Meet the Pied Piper of Hamlyn
Hamlyn is still trying to get rid of its rats.
In all shapes and sizes, they dominate the display windows of the stores and even the coffee houses which dot the town square. They are made of licorice, chocolate, cloth and even hardened bread. The tourists lap them up.
Also dotting the square are various sculptures depicting scenes from the legend, which has drawn visitors to this town for over 300 years.
But there's no escaping the ravages of modernity.
Asked what happened at the meeting with the city councillors over the proposed shopping mall, an official said: "It costs 90 million Euro (Rs 5.162 billion), (and) we are convinced that the new centre will be an attraction for tourists and inhabitants of Hamlyn and the surrounding areas."
Rats!
Image: A depiction of the Pied Piper leading the children away