Team Marco Polo

GO THERE!

Tuesday, October 15, 2024 by teammarcopolo

To get your share of Halloween spooks, look no further than The Stanley Hotel in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. This hotel and its ghostly inhabitants, which inspired Stephen Kings novel/movie The Shining, go the extra mile during haunting season. So book a room on the fourth floor, the most paranormally active floor, and don’t expect to sleep a wink. No better way to spend Halloween! Which in Marco’s case means curled up in the fetal position, crying for mommy.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/36/Stanley_Hotel,_Estes_Park.jpg

GO THERE! But don’t tell them we sent you.

Thursday, October 10, 2024 by teammarcopolo

Though you will have to find a way to get permission to enter, if ghost towns are your fancy, this is likely the scariest one of all. Nicknamed Village of the Damned; Dudley Town, Connecticut, was once a prosperous town, but a series of odd occurrences, including ghost sightings, inexplicable murders and suicides, mass hysteria, and demonic manifestations ultimately caused the remaining townsfolk to run away screaming. Dan Aykroid calls it the scariest place on Earth. That’s right, even Ghostbusters won’t go near it.

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dudley_Town_station_platform_buffers_2011.jpg

GO THERE! …at your own risk

Tuesday, October 8, 2024 by teammarcopolo

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cc/Castle_Leap,_Birr,_Ireland.jpg

They don’t get much more haunted than Ireland’s Leap Castle, where, in its heyday, death and violence were part of the daily routine. During its renovation, a dungeon was discovered with spiked floors and piles of human bones. So, it’s safe to say there are hordes of ghosts roaming around up in this joint. But wait, there’s more! Having once been the meeting place for dozens of occult activities, it is believed that a hostile Elemental creature, nicknamed “It”, was summoned to Leap Castle from… wherever Elementals are summoned from. This little grey humanoid makes his presence known first with the stench of rotting flesh, and though it hasn’t made as many appearances, it remains the most feared apparition in the castle, commonly known not just to intimidate but to attack thrill-seeking tourists.

GO THERE! …and bring a flashlight!

Tuesday, October 8, 2024 by teammarcopolo

El Panteon de Belen is an historical cemetery built in Guadalajara, Mexico, in 1848. Though it closed in 1896, it remains open to the public as one of the most incessantly haunted cemeteries in the world.  So, of course the best time to be there is for the special nighttime tour.

The most popular day of the year?

Hallo-what? No, silly!

November 2, Mexico’s Day of the Dead!

GO THERE!

Monday, October 7, 2024 by teammarcopolo

It’s Halloween season, so it’s time to get to know some of the more spooky, scary and downright creepy destinations in the world, starting with Portugal’s Capela dos Ossos, or Chapel of Bones.

This 16th Century chapel is stacked wall to wall with human bone remnants from the once overcrowded cemeteries, with the intention of embracing death as an ephemeral and joyous spiritual transition. But really, it just ended up being super creepy. The inscription at the door: Nós ossos que aqui estamos pelos vossos esperamos (“We bones, lying here, for yours we wait.”) Makes us go all prinkly!!

GO THERE! attn pin-heads

Tuesday, August 20, 2024 by teammarcopolo

Not that anyone needs another reason to go to Vegas, but the “Pinball Hall of Fame” is always reason enough for Marco.