In 1692, it was all happening in the township of Salem, where 19 people were hanged and one was crushed to death with stones - all because they were reputedly witches. How did the good folk of the town know this? Because some young girls got a healthy dose of dementia and began firing off accusations and backing it all up with “spectral evidence”.

Today, over 400 years later, people are still suffering dementia, but it’s mainly due to the heat. Right now, we’re escaping the sun inside the lovely cool air-conditioned library, but outside, it’s a mere 98F/37C. We’re really looking forward to the stint in London where the average temperature in summer is only half of what we’re in right now…

The downside to that is that we have to lug backpacks across the countryside of Spain and Italy first, and that’s just not a pleasant thought…

It’s a weird feeling as we run down the last few days of our stay in North America - strange to think so much time has passed already, and that we’re technically on the fast-track home now.

Categories: Travel, Odyssey 2001