The Wild Hunt

This legendary phenomena has been recorded throughout Europe for many years. It's led by a male or sometimes a female. The hunt consists of phantoms or beings that are otherworldly. It's often at night that this happens. It occurs with noise of blowing horns, howling winds and loud shreiks of anger.
The Wild Hunt is associated with Winter and the Yuletide season but has been known to last many weeks until Easter.
What are they? Some say fairies or demons. Some say gods like Odin or Woden. Also seen among the Wild Hunt has been Theodoric the Great, King Valdemar IV of Denmark, the Welsh Gwyn ap Nudd, archangel Gabriel, Sir Francis Drake, King Arthur, King Herla, Gwydion Fab Don, Herne the Hunter, Holda, Count Arnou, Wild Edric, Hereward the Wake, Count Hackelberg, Saint Guthlac, Jan Tregeagle, Herodias, the Fianna, Fairy Cavalcade, Berend van Galen, and many more. 
To witness the Wild Hunt would bring about doom such as plague. People seeing it alone might vanish into thin air, being spirited off, hunted and killed. The many names and nicknames include:
Wild Army, Furious Army, Wild Host, Herod's Hunt, Hounds of Annwn, Herla's Assembly, Hellequin, Ghost Riders, Chasse de Cain, Baiting, Wild Hunting Party, Dead Hunt, Old Army, Troop of Ghosts, War Company and so on.
Hearing the Wild Hunt itself has been widely recorded and reported throughout history. According to some scholars, this might be a natural phenomena viewed with superstitions. Yet people have seen the Wild Hunt itself and their visions were written down. Witnesses like medieval monks have counted between 20 and 30 members of the Wild Hunt and how long they appeared. Among the hunters are dogs and horses. People have often been wary of the Wild Hunt and stayed indoors to avoid being killed.
Places like Wistman's Wood in Devon, England, is where the Wild Hunt often appeared. Considering this is sacred territory and has been a hunting ground for the spectral assembly centuries ago, a lot of wildlife was hunted to extinction as today the only animals known there are snakes. It's full of tales of goulish hounds and sightings of ghost dogs.
Could this be video evidence of the noises made from the Wild Hunt?:
Strange noises
You decide.
Howls ^^
 

Winter Solstice moon

Happy Yule!
The Winter Solstice is upon us and so is the full moon. A Winter Solstice full moon is rare and so it's going to be a special event. Also alongside the full moon is the Ursid meteor shower. A splendid display of a bright moon lasting a few days and glittering lights, so ideal for this holiday season.
Another name for this moon is Cold Moon.
Source link.
Howls ^^

The Tale of Tales

This is a 2015 fairytale film directed by Matteo Gerrome, and stars Salma Hayek, Vincent Cassel, Toby Jones and John Christopher Reilly.
Aesthetically pleasing with beautiful costumes and filmed at breathtaking locations such as the Castel del Monte, Castle of Roccascalegna and the Alcantara River. There are different characters with their own stories here and the film is based on the fairy stories by Giambattista Basile.
The theme is dark and almost brutal, cruel and vicious. Such as the Queen of Longtrellis who is so desperate to have a child that she devours a sea monster's heart. The problem is that in order to get the heart, a life will be sacrificed and a virgin has to cook it first. Both queen and virgin fall pregnant and give birth to boys who are like twins, and they grow up as good friends. The queen is disapproving of her sons' friendship with a cook's son, and has attempted to put an end to it. The boys are seperated but a sacred tree outside the castle behaves like a signal.
Many have found that the film has so many unanswered questions. I shall not attampt to explain it as that would be a SPOILER and I don't want to do that. I shall just review on the stories that are both entertaining and weird.
Another tale is almost like Beauty and the Beast except the princess doesn't love her new husband that she's forced to marry because he's an ogre. A mad king raised a flea as a pet and he shows it more care than he does for his own daughter.
Another even whackier story of two shy sisters living together in a cottage, when a king falls in love when he listens to their singing. He turns up at the house and tries to woo them out. Little does he know that the sisters are old hags!
Here is an extract from the book The Tale of Tales with the story "The Flea": 

Every animal loves its offspring; you alone treat your own seed with a contrary heart and nausea, you alone cannot stomach your own daughter! Oh, better if my mother had suffocated me...

A quote by the princess Porziella to her father, the King of Mountain found in The Tale of Tales by Giambattista Basile.
The film gets an 8/10.
Most favourite scene: The queen does a Daenerys Targaryen and chews on a heart.
Howls ^^

Whoever Slew Auntie Roo?

Fairytale meets thriller with this 1971 film. Directed by Curtis Harrington and stars Ralph Richardson, Mark Lester, Chloe Franks and "scream queen" Shelley Winters.
A wealthy window named Auntie Roo invites some well behaved orphans to her Christmas dinner party at her house. She comes across as kind and charitable, giving out presents, food and letting them sleep in different guest rooms. A brother and sister sneak into the house when they've not been invited but Roo is okay about that. There is a teddybear stuffed with jewels, a dead body, a shed with a guillotine, a dolls house which is a likeness of the big house. There are too many references to Hansel and Gretel so much that it forces the viewer to hate on Auntie Roo.
Very mad.
I vote this film a 6/10.  
Howls ^^

Saturnalia

Saturnalia is a Roman celebration between December 17th and 23rd. It's held in honour of Saturn, a god of wealth and agriculture. We have echoes of the Roman celebration today with the decourative tree, gingerbread men, giving eachother gifts, kissing under the mistletoe, sweets, role reversal in pantomimes, feasts, white candles, games, Santa's hat, music and wild parties.
The Greek version of Saturn was Cronus and he ate his own children. He's often connected with two women, Ops and Lua. Ops is the wife and sister of Saturn. She's an Earth daughter and her Greek counterpart is Rhea. Lua is a mistress of Saturn and she represents destruction and war.  
During Saturnalia, was the season of misrule, chaos and sexual violence, people in various communities ran riot. Animals were sacrificed. Some people have said humans were sacrificed but other sources refute that. Leaving human ritual sacrfice out, the celebration was when rules broke down only for that time, slaves were allowed to bully their masters, people could wear whatever they liked, many wore masks,  and people sang naked in the streets. People drank, ate and gambled. What they did only lasted for a short time and afterwards everything returned to normal.
Howls ^^ 

Winter games 5

The season of Winter is cold and dark, so let's journey into Medieval Christmas Land game created by Wow Escape. Look for buried items and clues here in this grim and frozen place. There are puzzles that need solving, and shadows to be reunited with their objects. This game is cute with gentle background lullaby music.
This is a time when the Elf on the shelf makes an appearance. They seem so really nice but they can play pranks, monitor kids and do creepy things. Yes, it's really the parents behind all of that. It's a tactic for them to control their kids by using these little elf dolls to scare their kids into behaving themselves.
Howls ^^

Winter Games 4

Another review of some Winter themed games.
There is a stunning internet game called Magical Snow Animal Escape. This is a large game as you progress on, searching for a way out because the theme is Winter and you're lost in it. Created by Wow Escape, and is a point and click outdoor type, set in the arctic. The puzzles can be very tough so buried clues will help if you locate them.The music is quite soft and there are some very cute animals all throughout the levels.
Okay slightly off topic now. A boy from a town in Colorado was successful with ending a ban on snowball fights. That means, snowball fighting outside with natural snow. There is a game called Snowtime Anytime for indoor snowball fights. There are 40 artificial snowballs that come in a tin. Apparantly they feel like real snowballs.
Howls ^^

Game of Thrones S8 teaser

HBO just released the teaser trailer to Game of Thrones, Season 8. To watch the teaser trailer for Game of Thrones season 8 visit HBO link Youtube here: Teaser trailer for Game of Thrones season 8
The entire clip runs for 54 seconds and shows a dramatic meeting of ice and fire on the map table in Dragonstone. I noticed that in the teaser, just after the wolf statue gets frosted, the scene then shows a carved dragon on the right of the table but on the left of the screen behind the table looks like someone is sat in front of the fireplace. It might be a blurry easter egg or it could also be only a trick of light caused by a reflection.The clip of the wolf statue frosting over as ice moves across the table, heading South, could mean Winterfell is caught in ominous Winter. As ice moves across the map, heading towards the Riverlands, statues of other houses get caught too. It could be the wrong angle but ice moves down across the Iron Islands on the table.
 South of the table, fire moves north across the map. The lion of House Lannister is engulfed in flames. The forces of ice and fire meet on the map at the Twins. Right there where both ice and fire meet, is a creation of obsidian. This hints that a new Wall could be made there in the Riverlands. Winterfell is going to fall (major clue in the name), the Lannisters will be at war against the northerners, and not fighting with them. Other houses present on the map represented by their sigils are pawns. The clearest houses are Stark, Lannister and Targaryen. Most of all, the teaser trailer is showing that there's going to be a massive war. This will be most epic. 
Howls ^^

Winter games 3

A review of games for Winter. Wild Moon Christmas is a point and click game created by Wow Escape. It's one of the most beautiful escape games I've ever played. The purpose is to find a way out of this big dark forest full of Yule decourations and wolves. The puzzles tend to be complicated but this is always good. The background music is lovely and adds to the therapy of the game.
Another good point and click game is Polar Bear Cub Rescue, with snow just everywhere. This was made by Games 2 Rule. It can get a bit tricky sometimes so it's useful to write things down.
An old computer game with a cold Winter feel is Rune created by Human Head Studios. This is fantasy action and adventure, where you control the hero Ragnar, who begins training in the village, but all is cast into the sea when followers of Loki seek world domination. It's set in ancient times and there are gods and monsters from Norse mythology. I think it's totally enjoyable.
Howls^^

Winter games 2

This is my review of games in theme of the coming Winter.
Now there is a cool puzzle game called Wizard Christmas. You must find a way out of the vast Yule themed landscape, discovering clues and collecting items that will bring you further to the next level. It's got reindeer, elf girls, presents, trees, Santa, hidden objects and mind boggling puzzles. The eerie background music makes this Christmas land creepy enough that you want to get out. Wizard Christmas is an epic game, made by wowescape.com.
To make your own DIY board game for Winter, try out Christmas Lights. The link for that one is here with details on how to make one and rules of playing it. Christmas Lights at Board Game Greek.
Enjoy!
Howls^^

Winter games 1

During Winter it's fun to play games. I shall make a review of some games and other games all related to Winter. Firstly, a review of a computer game and details with link of a spooky Winter Olympics venue.
Now the computer game is an escape game called Sled Dog Rescue by Games 2 Rule. In that game, you must find clues to solve puzzles, collect missing objects and unlock portals. A dog is trapped in a cage and you need to find the key to release it. The puzzles are vague but clues are found across the level, with some absolutely beautiful wintry landscapes and snowy scenes.
Whilst on topic, there is the abandoned Winter Olympics venue in Sarajevo. The place looks very haunted with age and damage from war. To look at details with photographs of the site go and follow this link: Haunting pictures of the Winter Olympics venue
Howls ^^

The Yule Cat

In Iceland there is a legendary creature called the Jólakötturinn or Yule Cat. It's a frightening story to tell children. The legend has it that a giant hissing cat lurks in the shadows of hills, and during Yule, the Yule Cat eats anyone who doesn't get any clothes as presents to wear at Christmas. According to some sources, the origin of the Yule Cat eating people for not wearing new clothes during Christmas comes from times past when people used to get rewarded for doing all of the dirty chores. If people didn't do their chores, they wouldn't get a reward, such as new clothes. So the Yule Cat favoured eating lazy people because not having new clothes meant they didn't get rewarded for doing chores. It's sort of a threat to tell people to do some work or get eaten by the giant Yule Cat. The creepy Yule Cat stares through windows to watch people opening their presents. If people got clothes as presents, the Yule Cat left them alone and move to the next window. Perhaps it observed everyone somehow, because cats are sneaky that way. The Yule Cat enjoyed eating all of the food as well as the poor victim. It's also said that modern people in Iceland are still afraid of the Yule Cat so they buy things such as pyjamas and socks as presents to keep that evil moggy away.
Howls ^^