 |
The Vaults (Edinburgh)
by ruthosborne1
You cannot go to edinburgh and not visit the niddry street vaults, as these are the most spectacular of vaults in the city and paranormally the most prolific.
To vist the vaults you must book through auld reekie tours based in niddry street or alternatively at st giles cathedral where they have a stand. This is a specific ... walking and ghost tour where you can get to visit the vaults at the end however there are other ways to visit them through ghost hunts. The best ghost hunt in edinburgh is through the north west spirit seekers, who can have private access to the vaults for an overnight period and this gives you the most exquisite experience to view them in details and of course possibly encounter some paranormal activity.
The vaults are centuries old and are part of the underground edinburgh which was built on top of in the 16th century due to over population of the city and to rid it of the black death. The vaults form the south side of the bridge and are set in between surrounding buildings and niddry street vaults actually have a incredible history alongside blair street vaults.
These particular vaults were founded by a student who was renting one of the rooms surrounding them and with an inquisitive mind he realised that there was a vast cavity between certain walls and hence one day decided to investigate. He knocked down a section of a wall and to his horror found the vaults behind it, little did he know that they continued far furthur than originally beleived, and even now there are continual excavations being undertaken to search through other found vaults.
An incredible find, however one with a gruesome and dark history of perished families, murderers, body snatchers and torture.
Niddry street vaults are known to be the most haunted in the area and have since been featured on most haunted television series and throughout various paranormal documentaries. The vault is home to one significant poltergeist named 'the watcher' who is a dark encounter and evil one at that. He is thought to roam the vaults and attack people who enter, this albeit bizarre to beleive has in fact happened to many a people with evidence of scratches, falls and bruises.
The vaults are individual rooms joined by a corridoor, however be warned because they are dark, slippery, damp and oppresive. Be sure to take a torch, however there is emergency lighting, a cushion if you are on an all night vigil, and gripped shoes. The first vault you come to is the witches worship room used by a local covern today and has ornate but frightening mystical objects within it. This is however a white witchcraft setting. You cannot enter this vault but can look through the barred gate and windows.
Furthur along is the stone circle vault which is beleived to be the most haunted and evil happenings have taken place here. The circle was built by the witches to contain the poltergeist as they felt his presence to be of such a destructive nature, those who dare to walk inside the circle are beleived to have bad luck cast upon them.
The furthur vaults are empty but each have their own atmousphere and gruesome past. The essence of paranormal presence is very apparent in my view. My husband who is a particular skeptic even had a paranormal experience himself and felt exhausted and emotional.
They are the best haunted location to visit on your trip to edinburgh but be warned because danger is involved and albeit many will think of it to be a story made up attacks have occured in these vaults many a time, so enter with caution!
Read the complete review |
 |
Liquid, Envy & the VIP Lounge (Crawley)
by fiisch
Liquid Envy is an impressive venue for a town of Crawley's size, and if you're looking for an average Saturday night out, and you're in Crawley, then it will certainly suffice. It's certainly the best option in Crawley, with the two main competitors - 107 and Bar Med - both being much smaller.
The dress code is currently ... quite strict with the doormen insisting on shoes, a rule which has always irked me, as I always feel a bit of a burke in a jeans/shoe combo - particularly as it's difficult to find a pair of jeans that don't drag on the ground when worn with shoes! The prices are also a bit steep - they vary depending on the night/time of entry, but on a Saturday expect to pay around £7. Drinks prices also vary, and are generally a bit cheaper before midnight, so if you're feeling thirsty 5 minutes to midnight, then get rushing to the bar!
The club is a good size, with two separate floors sporting different genres of music to satisfy mainstream tastes. The smoking area is very small, and often there is quite a queue to get outside, which is irritating if you are a smoker, which many people seem to be after a few beverages!
I wouldn't recommend Liquid as a must-visit club, and it's unlike to help create any memorable nights, but it's not a bad place to round off you're night if you haven't got the funds to venture down to Brighton/London. Make sure you're not too worse for wear on entry, as the doormen to have a tendency to be quite strict!
Read the complete review |
 |
Manchester Academy (Manchester)
by heynonnynonny
My experiences of Manchester Academy have been Taking Back Sunday, Give It A Name, Bad Religion, My Chemical Romance, and loads more probably over the years, all have been in different parts of the Academy so I will aim to review each part as I remember it.
The academy is located on the MMU campus on Oxford Street, Manchester, ... M13 9PR.
In order to get to it I have to travel 38 odd miles mostly along one road. I also get taken up the famous Rusholme districts Curry Mile along Wilmslow Road, which if you have never seen is an amzing feast for the senses, although less than a mile it boasts tons of south Asian restaurants, mostly Indian. It is fantastic!!!
The reason this is one of my favourite venues is because of the parking. Dilworth Street car park is literally 15 seconds stroll from the academies, and is £2 upon entry, that entry can be as long as you like. After 4pm it is open to the public at weekdays and on weekends all day :)
Next time I go, which is this month actually on a sunday, I am going to park here and have a day in Manchester, with the city centre being a mile and a half away it is ideal, park up there, walk into town, walk back and see the band, whilst spending 2 quid on parking instead of £10 and all the hassle of city centre parking.
Frequent buses run alongisde the Oxford Street although I do not have info on this it can be Googled of course.
Entry to the academies usually involves having a bag search, having said that they cannot touch your bag only look in it, if you have bottled drinks forget it they will be binned in front of you, they are not allowed, neither are things like chewing gum etc, so keep them hidden or better still do not take them at all!!
Then again with the price of water etc there, tsk it is a travesty!! Also WHY do the lids off water bottles get taken off you, meaning you cannot seal it back up again and have to stand there with it in your hand is beyond me. But this is pretty standard stuff for such a venue.
The area around the venue is lovely and you can chill out for a couple of hours with a Subway and McDonalds before your very eyes, a newsagents, and a small park like area with benches, gorgeous in summer especially.
The Academys biggest building appears to have had a rather large makeover, now being big, clean and modern, with a rather nice cafe and bar area upstairs and several little bars dotted around. It is dark and not particularly light or bright even in summers long hours of light.
The toilets are plentiful and I think there are 2 blocks either end, there is loads of loos in each block, and they are not the worst I have ever seen. with good mirrors and handwashing facilities too.
The room iteself is very large and never seems full to capacity, with a small bar inside, of course very dark but at least not smoky any more, I used to dread getting covered in smoke all over my clothes and hair and stinking after I'd been, now nice and fresh!!!
Now as far as my knowledge serves me there is not a balcony although I could be wrong.
There certainly isn't in Academy number 2, which is much smaller in stature, and I find it a bit oppressive. The sound in here is intense though, and can border on making you feel slightly sick depending on your music of choice. Lesser known bands who wouldn't fill the main academy usually play here.
Summary = I think I like this more than Birmingham Academy for its ease of parking convenience and cheaper parking of course too, but it is not in the city centre.
Read the complete review |
