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FUN FACTS and Freaky Activities for Friday the 13th…
Looking for some fun and freaky stuff to do in the theme of Friday the 13th? Well there is all sorts of creepy activities and attractions around Australia; the Gold Coast has the famous Dracula’s Circus Cabaret who have a fresh and exciting new show called Transfusion, you can visit the Haunted House, or embark on the all new Surfers Paradise Ghost Tour. If you reside in Melbourne you can head off on one of the many Ghost Tours, a Melbourne Crime Tour or better yet, Melbournites combine a couple of fantastic activities with a Melbourne attraction pass! On the Sydney side you can go on a Convict Castles and Champagne Cruise or a ghostly Quarantine Station Tour!
Just for a bit of fun we have put together a few fun facts about Friday the 13th!
- One theory suggests that its origins came from combination of two ancient superstitions; that 13 is an unlucky number and that Friday is considered to be an unlucky day in some ancient cultures.
- To have an irrational and morbid fear of Friday the 13th is a phobia called Friggatriskaidekaphobia! An estimated 17-21 million people in the United States are affected by a fear of this particular day. It is also known as Paraskavedekatriaphobia and Triskaidekaphobia which is a fear of the number 13. It is estimated that hundreds of millions of dollars are lost due to the fear of flying, travelling, getting married or conducting business as usual on this day!
- Two famous friggatriskaidekaphobia sufferers include Napoleon and President Franklin D Roosevelt.
- The number 13 is considered lucky in China and Egypt. Pagan cultures also believe that 13 is a lucky number.
- Some interior designers and architects tend not to label the 13th floor of a building! In fact most hotels do not feature the number 13 at all.
- Alfred Hitchcock was born on Friday 13th and August 13 1999 would have been his 100th birthday.
- Fidel Castro and Butch Cassidy were also born on Friday the 13th and so too were the Olsen twins – Mary-Kate and Ashley!
- In 2012 there are three Friday the 13ths and they are spaced 13 weeks apart! This has not occurred since 1984. Next time will be 2015.
- It is considered to be bad luck to have 13 dinner guests (associated with the 13 guests at the last supper in the bible). In some countries such as France you can hire a 14th guest or a “Quatrorzieme “to make up the numbers!
- A hangman’s noose is said to have had 13 knots, and there are apparently 13 steps that lead to the gallows.
So touch wood, cross those fingers, stroke that old rabbit foot and throw a pinch of salt over each shoulder and maybe you will get through the day without an unwelcome attack of friggatriskaidekaphobia!
