WHAT YOU'LL DO IN THE EVENING

If you’re staying the night at Hidden Villa, you’ll be doing some fun things. After all the afternoon activities, we gather in the hostel to have dinner. Sometimes we even help prepare the food. While we eat, we talk about Hidden Villa related stuff and share our favorite adventures of the day with our classmates. After dinner we have a bonfire where we listen to stories, play skits and sing songs. Once the sun has set all the way, we go out on a night hike. We don’t hike very far, but we play lots of night games. Finally, we return to the hostel nice and tired and get ready for bed. We get our beds ready, brush our teeth and put on our pajamas. If we’re lucky, we get to share one last story before climbing into the bunkbeds to sleep.

THE NIGHT HIKE

One of the activities that all of the kids in our class absolutely love is the night hike. To enjoy your night hike you should make sure to dress warmly. Even though it may be sunny during the day, once the sun goes down it can get very chilly in the Hidden Villa valley. Dress in layers with a long-sleeved shirt, thick jacket and maybe even a warm hat.

The night hike might seem scary at first, but in truth it’s 100% safe. As you probably noticed earlier in the day, Hidden Villa trails are really safe. One main reason is that any predators out there only eat rodents like mice and squirrels and are very shy of people. Also, you are in a group that will make sure nothing bad happens to you.

If you think you might get scared during the night hike, tell a good friend how you feel before you go. Sometimes just talking about your feelings will make you feel better. This friend could also help you feel brave during the hike by encouraging you and maybe even giving you a friendly hand to hold. Being a little scared of the dark is normal, but letting yourself get terrified will really make it hard for you to enjoy the night hike. Fear is in your mind, so you have control over it. Instead of thinking about how scary the night is keep your mind focused on the activities you are doing with your group or think about all the fun you had at Hidden Villa during the day.

GETTING READY FOR BED

At Hidden Villa they have many cabins. They are all very safe and comfortable. In each cabin are several bunkbeds with warm blankets and pillows. If it gets cold at night the hostel host will also turn on the heat for you. Girls all stay in cabins with girls and boys all stay in cabins with boys. The best thing about staying the night is sharing a cabin with your friends and having a parent with you in the cabin to make you feel safe.

It’s great to you have a read-a-loud time after the night hike. Having a book read to you before bed helps you to relax because it’s a very calming activity to end such an active day. It makes it easier to fall asleep you’ll have more energy the next day. Some good books to read are: Stelaluna by Jannel Cannon, Owl Moon by Jane Yolen and I’m in Charge of Celebrations by Byrd Baylor.