Happy champing: English churches welcome campers
(Artdaily.org)

Silent night, holy night takes on a whole new meaning for visitors paying for an unorthodox overnight stay in a mediaeval English church. With a midnight walk in the graveyard and the chance to play some show tunes on the church organ, `champers` -- short for church campers -- make the most of the experience. `It adds to the mood, thinking about who is sleeping underneath us,` says university student Kae Ono, with a nod towards the gravestones, ahead of what she and her three friends hope will be a spooky sleepover in the 13th-century hilltop church in the English countryside. Hiring out their space for `champing` stays is providing a handful of churches in England and Scotland with a way to bring in much-needed cash for their upkeep. `Champers` pay around £50 (56 euros, $62) each to hire out St Mary`s Church in Edlesborough,