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Windy City Haunting

 

I am not much of a writer but I believe that this story deserves to be told. I am the type of person who has always searched for paranormal experiences. I used to work as a ghost walker (took people on tours of haunted sites in my town) and I collect books on bigfoot, ufology and I also read tarot cards. My grandmother also believes she is a psychic, so I have truly been around the supernatural my whole life. That being said, I am also a skeptic and I like to find rational explanations to supernatural experiences whenever I can. This story is about one of those times in which I was left feeling that the veil between the living and the dead isn't as thick as some would believe.

In March of 2019, my girlfriend and I travelled from Toronto to Chicago to attend a work conference at one of the many older hotels found in downtown Chicago. The flight was brief, and thankfully customs gave us no troubles. We took the train from O'Hare to the Loop and made sure to stop at the Nutella coffee shop before checking in to our hotel. The check-in was uneventful, and we were amazed to discover how many of our favorite movies had been filmed in this hotel. We walked up and down the staircases many times and took many pictures. We were especially excited to meet the CEO of our company on the elevator BEFORE the conference! Everything was going great and we were very excited to be there.

The conference was to take place over two days and we were set to attend workshops on each of those days. The first encounter we had in our hotel was smelling cigarette smoke coming from outside our room before opening the door. Neither of us smoke, so we were surprised and a bit concerned to have this happen. We nonetheless went about our day and attended our workshops.

The second encounter was more unnerving. While unpacking our clothes we both witnessed the light in our closet turn on by itself. There is no way either of us did this and I would be very surprised if it was an electrical problem. We both nervously laughed about it and joked that our room must be haunted...

The next morning... At around 5am... My girlfriend and I were both awakened to the sound of a woman crying from inside our bathroom. We were both too scared to even acknowledge it to each other and we both slept through it. I to this day think that our room was in fact haunted and that we experienced a spirit from another world. Part of me wanted to reach out to the entity and to try and help her. I feel that the more paranormal experiences you encounter the less afraid you become. I truly hope to one day be able to help these spirits and help them find resolve in the afterlife. Thank you for reading.

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Comments about this paranormal experience

The following comments are submitted by users of this site and are not official positions by yourghoststories.com. Please read our guidelines and the previous posts before posting. The author, Belros79, has the following expectation about your feedback: I will read the comments and participate in the discussion.

PenOrSaber (guest)
+1
1 year ago (2022-10-25)
There are quite a few hotels in America that claim, an even base their business on "hauntings". Some people even claim to have seen ghosts on site. One famous one is the Stanley hotel in Colorodo. I personally haven't been to such hotels, but once I'm old enough to drive, I plan to take a friend of mine to one. I suggest you look into the history of the hotel. Especially if it was a hotel that claims to have spitits, you should look online to see if others have had similiar experiences at the hotel.
worthise (1 stories) (2 posts)
+1
1 year ago (2022-10-24)
Hi Belros79 - Would you be willing to share the name of the hotel? I had an encounter back in 2009 at a hotel on Michigan Avenue near Grant Park. I have been a lurker on this site for a few years and I'm always looking to see if anyone else had an experience at the same hotel. I have been meaning to post my own story and I will try to do that in the near future. Thank you. 😁
Belros79 (1 stories) (2 posts)
+1
2 years ago (2022-08-27)
Hi Blosomes,
Yes! I think so too. I used to work for the city not a private company so we were told to stick to the script so to speak. The reason is wealthier people don't want their homes being spoken poorly about and the city was concerned they might be sued. I have noticed that on most of my walks pubs LOVE to be talked about. I guess because we always stop by for a drink afterwards! 😉 Thank you for reading!
Belros79 (1 stories) (2 posts)
+1
2 years ago (2022-08-27)
Hi Rajine,
No, because of the nature of the encounter (woman crying) I was concerned they might call the police and I might be involved in something else. When I am travelling, I usually try and stay under the radar even though I don't ever break the law. I have a feeling that hotel staff are well aware of the ghosts in this place! Thank you for reading! 😁
blosomes (10 stories) (62 posts)
+1
2 years ago (2022-08-09)
Interesting encounter 😲

As Rajine commented, try to do some research and you might find something interesting!

And as a ex-ghost walker too, I recommend doing research yourself to make your tour much more interesting in the future 😉
Rajine (14 stories) (734 posts)
+1
2 years ago (2022-07-26)
Hi Belros79

The supernatural world isn't as veiled as we might think, did you trying talking to anyone at the hotel regarding the incident you and your girlfriend experienced?

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