Sharing with y’all the choice pics from my trip to Salem from September 20-23.

I am anxious to return, hopefully with friends and I am willing to brave the crowds for Spooky Season! Hell, I’d love to go there any time of the year. What would Salem be like in the Spring?

For my trip, I stayed at The Hotel Salem, located in the heart of downtown on Essex. It’s bristling with shops of all legitimacy and pedestrians eager to throw away their money on spooky baubles and witchy trinkets. For the three days I was there, most of my time was spent walking the town. Salem is incredibly walkable, with various attractions in every conceivable direction. You won’t need to speak to the spirits to find a watering hole to soothe your soul – ditch the dowsing rod and hop into the nearest diner or cafe!

If you do ever find yourself in the Witch City, know that it isn’t all witches and bedlam. There’s an identity emerging from beneath the branded visage. That this is the former Salem Town, the destination of choice for merchants, shippers, and even pirates, there’s historically less to do with sorcery than fishing or tea and spice trades. There’s a confluence of pre-colonial, colonial, and modern architecture and aesthetics.

What more, not all establishments buy into the Witch City movement – step beyond the confines of the tourist strip and you’ll see these shops and diners craft their own image, using the fact that they’re in Salem as a just the bones upon which they layer their guise. In time, I think Salem will be able to perfectly blend all these identities into a town that wants you to see beyond the witches. But still be spooky. Maybe kooky or all together ooky.

I would recommend clicking to enlarge some of the images to get the fuller picture, so to speak.