Winchester Mystery House Holiday Party

Gary and I attended his Army Reserve unit's Holiday Party last Saturday, which was held at the Winchester Mystery House in San Jose, CA. The mansion, which normally operates only until 5pm, graciously hosted the event and offered tours around the area for all the soldiers and their families.

Famous for its oddity, the house was built by Sarah Winchester, widow of the Winchester Rifle magnate William Winchester. It was said that the Winchester mansion was constructed after Sarah lost her only daughter and her husband, went to a medium and was told that the family was cursed by all the people killed by the Winchester Rifles. She believed that she needed to construct a house for all the lost souls that haunt her, so for nearly 38 years since 1884, Sarah directed the non-stop construction of this Victorian house until her death. http://www.winchestermysteryhouse.com/

I'm normally scared of my own shadow, and watching an episode of Ghost Hunters International on the Winchester Mystery House made me more fearful, but I was also very excited to see it. The truth of the matter is, the tour was too tiring for me. It's like an endless maze of small spaces, with the smell of old, pungent wood following you throughout the tour. The details of the interiors are very lavish and intricate, and one can only imagine what ran in Sarah Winchester's mind as she masterminded the construction of this monstrosity of a house!

Excited to go out :)

Gary and his Filipino friends

one of the many Christmas trees in the mansion 

Our patient guide showing us around

The ancient pantry

The carved walls of the Winchester mansion

My favorite Christmas tree

Me and my honey bunny

The best way to end the evening? Catch the last full show of Breaking Dawn Part 2 at AMC. We got home at around 3am. Not the perfect thing to do as Stellalela's parents, I know, but we don't really stay out too late often. Despite my aching legs, I had a lot of fun. It was the perfect night :)