Friday, October 28, 2011

Do you or don't you

I was perusing the internet the other day as I sometimes do, and came across a interesting story - haunted hotels.  Of the top 5 on the list, I had spent the night in one and visited another.  If the list would have been a top ten I am sure I have stayed in a third and fourth.  So it got me thinking about making my own list.


  • Hotel del Coronado - San Diego, CA  ++
  • The Myrtles Plantation - St. Francisville, LA ++
  • Copper Queen Hotel - Bisbee, AZ  xx
  • Pinebridge Inn - Spruce Pines, NC  xx

++ - on the Yahoo! list
xx - awtta be on the list

The common theme for all my visits to these hotels; I did not know about the "paranormal spirits" until after I arrived.  Sometimes not knowing until the next day when somebody in town asked "Where did you stay last night?"  Upon providing my response, "O my, did you know it was haunted!?"   

They would then want to know how well I slept or if I had heard or seen anything.  My response was always the same.  "No, can't say that I heard or saw anything while I was sleeping." 

The Myrtles Plantation and the Copper Queen Hotel were so proud of their paranormal activity at breakfast the next morning the Myrtles staff would ask if you saw anything unusual.  The Cooper Queen had a ghost register at the front desk - they wanted you to record your experience.  All these places had names for their ghosts hosts.  When I failed to give any accounts of encounters of the ghostly, "You will before you leave."  

I am not saying there are or are not ghosts, but I will say that given the chance to fill ones head with stories before you go to sleep or while you are staying a "haunted hotel", you may start hearing things and seeing things that make you wonder: is that where I left my toothbrush, I thought I left the TV on ESPN before I left for dinner, I don't remember putting water in that glass, was that somebody dragging their finger nails across a chalkboard, who is that standing behind the curtains...





7 comments:

Yvonne said...

Imagination is a wonderful thing. Gives you so much to talk about the next morning. No one cares if it's real or not, because they really want to believe that you really did have visitors during the night. I took an old house tour when I was in Virginia City, Nevada, and was drawn with an eerie feeling to the upstairs bedroom with a cradle in it. It was just a spooky feeling. After the tour, I was told that the room was haunted. I don't believe in ghosts, so can't explain the very uneasy feeling I had standing at the entrance of that room.

roughneckturtle/Jeff C. said...

I believe that ghosts, or some sort of spirit exists. And, I also believe that when given a spoon, people have a tendency to eat from that spoon. If you give someone a reason to see a ghost, and given they're predisposed to want to see a ghost, most likely they'll see a ghost. Or a toaster, or a ghost toaster. Who knows?

Kipp said...

Clipped - I think you hit the nail on the head. It helps with the lore (aka marketing).

roughneck - good to hear from you man. Love the spoon and toaster analogy. :)

Dave (aka Buckskins Rule) said...

Kipp, could it be that the ghosts are afraid of you? Just sayin'...

Donna Perugini said...

Sheesh! I've never had anyone ask me if I saw or heard anything unusual during a hotel stay. Since the TV show, Ghosts...something-or-other debuted, I can see why they'd push the idea. That show has been on for over three years now...the market for ghostly visits has probably risen. Good for marketing.
Although we did hear some really horrible sounds through the walls of an Embassy Suites in TX. We told the front desk we thought someone was being tortured and they snickered behind their hands. To spell it out...it was, well, a 'special meeting spot' for well...you know.

Andi said...

I agree you can really freak yourself out when you want to - every time my hubby goes on a biz trip overnight I "hear" things that I might not have heard before - I imagine given the environment of a haunted house as context - it could be worse! I didn't know that the Hotel Coronado was considered haunted - interesting!

Kipp said...

Dave - it is possible my personality keeps them at bay. Most likely it is my bear like snoring. :)

Donna - can I just say "LOL". Watch out for the folks that use the pool after hours as well...just saying.

Andi - Seems to be there plan, put all these stories in your mind so that when you turn out your lights all the sounds and shadows seen and heard have to be ghost related.
Hotel Coronado has a lady that was waiting for her fiance, he never showed...she is still waiting for him...while she waits she plays cute, fun tricks on the guests. Paranormal romantic comedy.