So, since this blog is about everything new I hear, here is something creepy that has been going around the internet for a while.
BEHOLD! The Poveglia Island of Italy!
Do not be fooled, for it might look like just any other floating mass of land in water but it is way beyond that!
According to the history, Poveglia Island was home to a small community until it was abandoned around 1380, during the War of Chioggia between Venice and Genoa. Split into two segments by a petite canal, the Poveglia Island is a small land mass situated in the Venetian Lagoon between the cities of Venice and Lido.
When the Bubonic plague hit Italy in 1576, thousands of dead bodies were piling up in Venice and the stench was terrible. Something drastic had to be done. The dead were hauled to Povelia and dumped in large pits or burned on huge bonfires. As the Black Death tightened its grip, people panicked, and those showing the slightest symptoms of the plague were dragged screaming from their homes. These living victims, including children and babies, were taken to the island and thrown into the pits of rotting corpses, where they were left to die in agony. As many as 160,000 tormented souls were disposed of during the Black Death.
An interesting legend surrounds a building “erected in 1922 on the island, which was used for various purposes, including usage as a mental hospital. The legend states that a particular mental health doctor tortured, butchered, and ate many of the patients, before going ‘mad’ and jumping to his death from the bell tower. According to that same legend, he survived the fall, but was ‘strangled by a mist that came up from the ground’. Its ruins remain to this day. It is rumored that he is bricked up in the bell tower, and on a still night the bell can be heard tolling across the bay.
The hospital has since closed down, and the island is uninhabited. It is not open to tourist, and its ashy beaches remain deserted. Most boats refuse to call at the death isle, another of its names, but those who have landed report treading on ashes, hearing screaming, seeing moving shadows and having the urgent desire to flee. Recently a family sought permission to visit the island, hoping to buy it cheaply and build a vacation home. The family left before the night was over and have refused to comment on the reason for their abrupt departure; the only fact known is that their daughter’s face was ripped open by “something” and needed twenty stitches.
Italians like to keep Poveglia at the bottom of their list of tourist attractions. But nosey scare-seekers have found their way onto its forbidden shores with mixed results about their encounters with the undead. When it comes to ghosts, it seems that people always find exactly what they're looking for. In the end, it's hard to say if this island is actually haunted or not but I am not really interested in finding out. So any of you scare seekers out there, you could make a trip if you want if nothing else you get to visit Italy!! :D
Some pictures of the island:
You could further read about it here: http://www.paranormalocean.com/europe-2/poveglia-island/
BEHOLD! The Poveglia Island of Italy!
According to the history, Poveglia Island was home to a small community until it was abandoned around 1380, during the War of Chioggia between Venice and Genoa. Split into two segments by a petite canal, the Poveglia Island is a small land mass situated in the Venetian Lagoon between the cities of Venice and Lido.
When the Bubonic plague hit Italy in 1576, thousands of dead bodies were piling up in Venice and the stench was terrible. Something drastic had to be done. The dead were hauled to Povelia and dumped in large pits or burned on huge bonfires. As the Black Death tightened its grip, people panicked, and those showing the slightest symptoms of the plague were dragged screaming from their homes. These living victims, including children and babies, were taken to the island and thrown into the pits of rotting corpses, where they were left to die in agony. As many as 160,000 tormented souls were disposed of during the Black Death.
The soil on Poveglia island, combined with the charred remains of the bodies, formed a layer of sticky ash on the land. The top layer of ash has dried in the sun to form a fine dust that swirls in the breeze and catches in lungs. Part of the island core consists of a layer of human remains. Fishermen avoid this area, as the chances of catching a body part or two are high.
The hospital has since closed down, and the island is uninhabited. It is not open to tourist, and its ashy beaches remain deserted. Most boats refuse to call at the death isle, another of its names, but those who have landed report treading on ashes, hearing screaming, seeing moving shadows and having the urgent desire to flee. Recently a family sought permission to visit the island, hoping to buy it cheaply and build a vacation home. The family left before the night was over and have refused to comment on the reason for their abrupt departure; the only fact known is that their daughter’s face was ripped open by “something” and needed twenty stitches.
Italians like to keep Poveglia at the bottom of their list of tourist attractions. But nosey scare-seekers have found their way onto its forbidden shores with mixed results about their encounters with the undead. When it comes to ghosts, it seems that people always find exactly what they're looking for. In the end, it's hard to say if this island is actually haunted or not but I am not really interested in finding out. So any of you scare seekers out there, you could make a trip if you want if nothing else you get to visit Italy!! :D
Some pictures of the island:
You could further read about it here: http://www.paranormalocean.com/europe-2/poveglia-island/
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