Spooky City of Saints
Monday, 4th November 2013
After several days of wet, Thursday 31 October, dawned grey and misty in keeping with Halloween. By lunchtime the clouds had all but evaporated - much to the relief of the staff at Makana Tourism, Grahamstown, who had planned their first ever ghost walk to start that same evening.
A goodly crowd of witches, zombies, vampires, ghouls and goths, a werewolf, a hanged man, a family butcher and even Count Dracula assembled at Makana Tourism to hear local “ghost fundi” Brian Jackson speak about the many spooks inhabiting some of Grahamstown’s oldest buildings.
The ghost walk, which took 1.5 hours, started from Tourism’s offices at Church Square, progressed up High Street to the Drostdy Arch, through Eden Grove to the lawns at the old Chapel, passed Victoria Girls High School (where a young pupil leant out of the window and shouted “Happy Halloween”) to the Old Age Home, and then into Hill Street. The walk ended at Hill Street Manor where refreshments were served and a welcoming fire warmed chilly bones.
Two witches and a Mr Lincoln/werewolf look-alike walked away with prizes for best costumes.
“Although Halloween is not really celebrated in South Africa as it is in America and other parts of the world, I thought it would be a good idea to do something similar in our City”, said Susan Waugh, director Makana Tourism. “Tourism together with the Rotaract Club of Grahamstown Sunset organized this year’s Ghost Tour and we have already received enquiries about future tours. Plans are underway to improve the current tour by making it scarier, and other routes are being plotted to provide more entertainment for anyone wanting ghostly goose-bumps”.
For more information: Makana Tourism Tel: 046 622 3241. Email: info@grahamstown.co.za. Web: www.grahamstown.co.za. Facebook: www.facebook.com/MakanaTourismGrahamstown. Twitter: @Makana_Tourism.
