New York - Visitors to New York looking for a scary good time have a new tour to check out: the Mysteries of New York Ghost Walk offers a chance to sense the thousands of spirits who are said to haunt the many parks, buildings and streets of the city.
The Merchant's House Museum on East Fourth Street in East Village is one of Manhattan's most well-known haunted houses - and pretty well a mandatory stop for any Ghost Walk.
The so-called “Master Storyteller” Victor Magnus and his partner Father Sebastian have been offering tours around the city three nights a week since September - albeit not only for tourists but also for curious New Yorkers.
The storytellers lead groups around to various locations throughout the city where tragedies actually took place - the same places many residents just hang out in.
Thousands of people relax on a daily basis at Washington Square Park, walking their dogs or sitting with their partners at the large fountain. But Magnus shines a different light on the park.
“What most of them don't know is that the park once was used as a cemetery. There are 20 000 bodies buried underneath them,” says Magnus.
Magnus's tour lasts about two and a half hours and goes from colonial times to the American Revolution up to more recent tragedies.
Shuddering tourists hear about the fire at the former Triangle Waist Company Factory - today the Brown Building at New York University - where a number of people jumped from the upper storeys to their deaths to get away from the flames.
Magnus's stories are not made up. He says: “They are well documented and can be researched for further study.” - Sapa-dpa