Nov 012013
 

It’s close to midnight….. and something evil’s lurking in the dark
Under the moonlight …..you see a sight that almost stops your heart

Setting aside the eerie sights that these lyrics evoked in Michael Jackson’s “Thriller,” in Salem these lyrics highlight the sights from last night as thousands upon thousands of humans, demons and whatevers (see the fellow to the below/ right) celebrated Halloween 2013.

Then magically and orderly disappeared. Poof.Whatever

We won’t have the numbers for a few days, but it was crowded.

Visitors and locals, having a good time, then hopefully in the days to come telling friends & families about what Haunted Happenings is all about in Salem, MA. Friendly folks, shocking scares, dandy deals, and fabulous food. Glad you had a good time!

We want to take a moment to thank all our great Salem Main Streets volunteers who gave of their time and energy. But also this year to the community members who came through for the Destination Salem “Shutdown” table when it was needed. And to the city workers involved in Haunted Happenings from the beginning to the middle to the end. As well as law enforcement for making it a safe evening.

Plus thanks to the Attractions & Downtown Merchants for getting involved in this crazy time and each in their own way contributed to the atmosphere of Haunted Happenings 2013.

BUT— unlike the werewolf who crawls out only with the full moon or the vampire who only rises at night, Salem has a life beyond the framework of October. Come back and visit us another time; as one local blogger has pointed out, Salem just loves its multi-day festivals. From Haunted Happenings to Heritage Days to restaurant week (next week!) to Salem So Sweet, our Downtown merchants strive to be your year ’round destination.

You can be strange, just don’t be a stranger.

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Oct 272013
 

But, depending on the time 0f day/night, they may not lead out.

The City of Salem has published Road Closures & No Parking Zones for Halloween. And as a courtesy to our followers who may be nearby or are still miles away but planning to be here on the big day/night we are reprinting the schedule from the city website. Please note that all closures are subject to change based on conditions, crowd size, and other public safety factors.

Streets closed to traffic at approximately 4 p.m.( no later than 5 p.m.), and until approximately 11:30 p.m.

This means not only can’t you drive through these streets but if you parked there, you can’t leave either.No Parking

1.      Washington St. from New Derby to Bridge St.
2.      Essex St. from Barton Square to Union St.
3.      Derby St. from Lafayette St. to Congress St.
4.      Brown St. at New Liberty St. Second backup closure at Howard St.
5.      Lafayette St. from Derby to Front St.
6.      Hawthorne Blvd. from Derby St. to Essex St.
7.      Washington Sq. West from Essex to Brown St. Washington Sq. South closed. Washington Sq. North closed from Brown to Winter St.
8.      Winter St. at Bridge St. closed to inbound traffic.
9.      Williams St. at Bridge St.
10.     Congress St. closed at South Harbor Garage. Vehicles will be detoured to Pickering Way out to Derby St. Derby St. inbound traffic detoured to Little Hawthorne Blvd., right on Essex St. (Traffic direction will be reversed on Little Hawthorne Blvd.)

Streets closed to traffic from 10 p.m. until 11:30 p.m.

1.      Bridge St. will be closed to traffic between the westerly ramps and the Bypass Road.
2.      Incoming Bridge St northbound traffic will be detoured up westerly ramps to North Street. Bypass Road inbound traffic from Beverly will be diverted back to Bridge Street and back to Beverly. Incoming southbound traffic from Bridge Street will be diverted to the Bypass Road and back to Beverly.
3.      Franklin Street may be closed to traffic if needed.

Other closures or openings could be decided as special circumstances arise.

No parking tow zones from 4 p.m. to midnight. These will be enforced.

1.      Lafayette St. both sides Front to Derby St.
2.      Public parking lot along Front St. Public parking spaces located on Central St. in front of old police station.
3.      Essex St. from Barton Sq. to Hawthorne Blvd.
4.      Derby St. both sides between Congress and Lafayette St.
5.      Hawthorne Blvd. both sides.
6.      Front St.
7.      Central St.
8.      Washington St. from New Derby to Bridge St. both sides.
9.      Washington Sq. North, South, and West both sides.
10.     Federal St. both sides from Washington to Superior Court.
11.     Norman St. from Washington to Crombie St.
12.     Franklin St. on the Furlong Park/North River side of the street.
13.     New Derby St. between Klop Alley and Lafayette St.

Visitors planning to come to Salem on October  31st are strongly encouraged to take the commuter rail or ride the Salem-to-Boston Ferry. For more information about traveling to Salem during Halloween visit the Haunted Happenings website and to be notified about road closures follow @GetThruOctober on Twitter or our own Twitter account @SalemMainStreets.

We will also have this information at our new Visitors’ Info Booth, which is at the corner of Washington and Essex Streets, across from the Bewitched Statue.

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Oct 212013
 

3When the autumn weather, Turns leaves to flame

One hasn’t got time, For the waiting game

(lyrics from “September Song”)

In other words, Salem residents, North Shore neighbors and all our Haunted Happenings visitors, this Thursday is your last chance to harvest a bumper crop of goodies from the Salem Farmers Market. The season ends just ahead of Halloween and we are expecting a lively crowd from 3-7pm in Derby Sq.

What will you find? A variety of home-grown, home-made delights for breakfast, lunch, dinner and late night snacks. But don’t take our word for it.

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Oct 132013
 

Our friends at the Peabody Essex Museum had a long way to go to top last month’s PEM/PM monthly evening party series involving Steampunk. And it looks like they have. All the way to China of 1929. This Thursday, Oct. 17 from 6:30 – 9:30pm enjoy a live performance by Devil Music Ensemble as they play their original score for Red Heroine, one of the only remaining feature-length martial arts films from China’s silent era.

Made at the height of the martial arts craze in 1920s Shanghai, this lively tale features the genre’s blend of pulp and mystical derring-do.

As noted in a summary of a NY Times review:

This silent Chinese film serial consisted of 13 chapters. The story featured orphan Yun Mei (Fan Xueping), who survives a brutal attack by a warlord that killed her grandmother. She is taken in by a monk (director Wen Timin) who schools her in martial arts. When she masters her talents, she seeks to exact her revenge on the warlord, who spends much of his time cavorting with concubines. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi.

Red HeroineEnhancing the visual performance, will be the sound provided by Devil Music Ensemble. Founded in 1999 by Brendon Wood, Devil Music Ensemble explores many facets of music — rock, electronic, orchestral, folk, improvisation, incidental, etc. The band’s original scores have been credited with enhancing the film-watching experience for all.

The trio recently finished a European tour, giving live soundtrack performances to Red Heroine in 12 countries in Western and Eastern Europe.

The PEM/PM evening events also include a Lion Dance followed by Kung Fu demonstrations led by Grandmaster Winchell P.C. Woo, founder of Chiu Mo Kwoon, the first traditional Kung Fu school in the Boston area. There will, as often does happen at these PEM/PM events, be a food tasting and chef demonstration. Try your hand at art making.

Admission is free of charge for PEM members and Salem residents (with ID); nonmembers pay $10 at the door. For more info, call 866‐745‐1876 or visit pem.org. The Museum is located at 161 Essex St, in Salem Ma.

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Oct 092013
 

What exactly are you planning to do with last year’s costumes? Will you arrive again at cousin Jerry’s party as Bigfoot? And what about little Jack & Jill? Maybe they’ve outgrown “Toy Story.” If you’re like most people, as much as you don’t want to, you will end up tossing the costumes into the trash and buying new ones. But there is an economic and ecological alternative: swapping costumes. And you can do it Thursday, Friday and Saturday of this week, right here in Salem.

The City of Salem Recreation Department will be accepting costumes for its 2nd Annual Salem Costume Swap at the Salem Senior Center. You may drop off gently used adult, kid or pet costumes Thursday from 8am to 7pm and Friday from 8am to 4pm. They will also accept Halloween accessories.

In return, you will receive one swap ticket to claim a new-to-you costume at the actual Salem Costume Swap on Saturday, October 12th at the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Salem, 13 Hawthorrne Blvd.

No costume to swap? Still want to shop? No Problem! Stop by the Salem Boys & Girls Club that day from 10am to 1pm to purchase any costume for $5. Proceeds will benefit Salem youth programs.

Green Halloween®, a non-profCostum Swapit community initiative set up to create healthier and more sustainable holidays, began sponsoring National Costume Swap Day in October 2010. In partnership with Kiwi Magazine and Swap.com, parents, young adults and kids across America can come together to swap out once-used Halloween costumes and walk away with something new.

According to their website “Swapping half the costumes kids wear at Halloween would reduce annual landfill waste by 6500 tons, equal to the weight of 2500 midsize cars.”

So, make it an eeek-ological and eeek-onomic Halloween.

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