Club Hotel Room 16: A Night Without Sleep

By Kai Fontenot

Full transparency,  I’m someone who loves to stay up late and have fun. But this time, that wasn’t the plan.

We had just gotten back to the hotel after a spectacular day at the waterfall. The car ride was long, the swim was refreshing, and dinner was amazing. Shoutout to whoever cooked that. We were completely wiped and ready to pass out before our early morning hike the next day. Before dinner, the staff told us to check out the bar next to the hotel, but we all laughed it off. We were too exhausted. Sleep was calling.

Then the bass started. Not like “Oh, I hear some music.” No. We felt it. The walls were shaking like we were inside a speaker. I’m already a light sleeper, and the second I felt that beat, I knew I was in trouble.

So instead of lying awake, angry, I joined Megan, Elijah, and McKenzee for a few drinks at the hotel to wait it out and hope the music would die down. Spoiler: it didn’t. At some point, we gave up and attempted to sleep through it. I tossed and turned until the early hours, probably squeezing in about four hours of sleep max.

By the time breakfast rolled around at 7 a.m., I was a zombie. The idea of doing a full-on hike with no sleep felt insane. But then I heard my old roommate’s voice in my head saying, “You can sleep when you’re dead.” He always made fun of me for napping and missing out on things, and honestly, that gave me a weird burst of energy.

I pulled myself together, threw on my gear, and somehow made it up that mountain. The hike actually wasn’t too crazy, and the view at the top was completely worth it. Breathtaking. And our guide? This super-fit soccer player from Volta who wasn’t playing around. He wanted us to get to the top fast. He told me next time I’m in Volta, we’d try to beat the hiking record: 25 minutes. I told him I’d start training now.

After the hike, we headed to see the monkeys, and I managed to sleep in the van for a bit. That nap was like a gift from the gods. The monkeys were everything, honestly. The only downside was that we didn’t get to stay longer. I could’ve watched them for hours.

So yeah, sleep was a battle, and Room 16 definitely had me fighting for peace, but looking back? It was all part of the adventure. I survived, I hiked, I laughed, I bonded, and I’ll probably never forget that night or that bass.