News from Salem

[Tonks]

I have been here since Wed. The Witching
 Hour Confrence has been great.
I am using a webtv in my hotel room and 
there is no spell check and I can't see 
half of what I am typing so forgive me.

Salem is a wonderfully strange city. I was
lost for the first 2 days. We compared notes
at dinner and everyone at my table agreed.
and had simular stories to tell. It seems
that if you stop at a gas station and ask
for directions, they can't tell you. Maybe 
they are all Muggles and the places we are
all trying to go are unplottable.

One woman said she was walking and asked
a shopkeeper directions and he gave her
exact directions, but she got lost. Later
when she found a map she realized that he
had give her perfect directions, except 
that they were backwards.  I told a
shopkeeper that story and she said "That 
is typical for Salem". 

When I found the visitors center the man
said "this is the most difficult city to
get around in. Most of the country if you 
make 4 right turns you will end up back
where you started, but here you will end 
up in the next county". I suggested it migh
be easier if there were signs on the streets
to tell you what street that you are on.
You always know the side streets but not the 
street you are on.) The two attendants both laughed. I think
they like to *play* with the tourest. It 
does add to the flavor of the town. Overall
I love it here.

If any of you ever get a chance to visit
Salem do it and do it in October. It is
a wild, exciting and mysterious city.
I saw a woman shopkeeper with yellow green eyes. Humm.
There is a strange *something different* feeling
about this place. Not good, not bad, just
different. A feeling of a *presence* of 
something in some parts of town. Other parts just 
seem like any other city.

Tonks_op