I love mysteries and puzzles. My favorite kind of movie is something you have to work to figure out, like Primer or Memento.

This is part of our 100 Things in 2016 challenge. Here’s the full list.

So when Becky surprised me with a trip to Labyrinth for the 12th day of Christmas, I was over the moon.

Our experience was hard to characterize. On the one hand, playing live-action Myst is a ton of fun. On the other hand, we weren’t alone – along on our adventure was a group of eight 14-year-old boys, with typical 14-year-old hygiene and awkwardness. And we were locked in two small rooms with them until we could solve the mystery and escape. Motivation.

Our compatriots also had trouble finishing things. They would happily ransack the entire room for clues, but upon discovery that one had to search through a thick book to solve a puzzle, they flitted off to find the beginning of something else.

None of that could take the shine off this experience, though. We had a great time overall, and are eager to go back – they have 5 more rooms to solve!