Mystic Grove promises an “immersive paranormal experience” to anyone with a credit card and a high tolerance for candle wax and nonsense. So naturally, I booked the town’s most theatrical offering: a private evening ghost tour with Mariah St. James, self-proclaimed medium, ghost hunter, spiritual intuitive, and costume jewelry enthusiast. Mariah met me just after … Read more
Nestled at the edge of Mystic Grove — and I use “nestled” as loosely as possible — the Shady Oak Bed and Breakfast promises “historic charm with a touch of mystery.” What it delivers is the architectural equivalent of a shrug. The place looks like it was decorated entirely from estate sale leftovers. It offers … Read more
I’ve been to a lot of “spiritual centers” in my time — strip mall palm readers, candle-lit séance parlors, roadside UFO museums complete with homemade aluminum hats — but few have been quite so aggressively adorable as The Divination Station in Mystic Grove. For starters, it’s housed in a repurposed gas station. Somewhere around 1962, … Read more
If you’re wondering whether Mystic Grove’s obsession with “heritage” extends beyond its psychics, charm shops, and “energy cleansing workshops,” allow me to direct your attention to Trattoria Amorelli — the town’s self-proclaimed beacon of fine Italian dining. Spoiler: it’s less “La Dolce Vita” and more “Death by Béchamel.” The decor sets the tone immediately. The … Read more
At first glance, the city of Enchanted Springs seems like the kind of place where you’d expect every third resident to burst into song about the power of friendship, all while framed against a charming backdrop of restored brick storefronts and suspiciously cheerful flower baskets. It’s charming, sure — the first twenty minutes you’re there. … Read more
Some people spend their Saturday nights watching sports, drinking beer, maybe indulging in a little reckless online shopping. I spent mine sitting around a wobbly dining room table in a dusty antique shop, participating in what was billed as a “Traditional Victorian Séance Experience.” Traditional in the sense that it involved costumes, bad accents, and … Read more
Deep in the Chihuahua desert, miles from anything resembling civilization, lies Cielo Verde, Mexico — a place where the sand shimmers, the sun never quits, and gullibility is baked into the landscape like so much brittle cactus. Cielo Verde claims to be the site of a massive extraterrestrial landing thousands of years ago, an “energy … Read more
Automatic writing is the noble tradition of zoning out, letting your hand twitch around on a piece of paper, and then insisting that the resulting illegible mess is a profound message from the spirit world. The idea is simple. Too simple. You grab a pen, empty your mind — which for some practitioners is less … Read more
You haven’t truly experienced spiritual capitalism until you’ve wandered through a psychic fair set up in the abandoned lot behind a defunct strip mall. The Crescent Moon Psychic Fair proudly offered “guidance, enlightenment, and authentic metaphysical experiences,” all conveniently located between an empty Payless ShoeSource and what used to be a Curves gym. Upon arrival, … Read more
If you ever find yourself driving through the wooded hills of eastern nowhere and spot a hand-painted sign for the Whispering Pines Haunted Hotel— keep driving. Especially if the sign welcomes you to “Stay If You Dare.” Not dissuaded? Fine, but temper your expectations. The only thing you’re likely to encounter is peeling wallpaper, passive-aggressive … Read more