The time we got outwitted by a pile of sticks

A bilibili (pronounced billy billy) is a raft made of bamboo poles lashed together.  It’s not often that a group of educated and (normally) intelligent people gets outwitted by a few pieces of bamboo.


or so we like to think

After suffering through a week of actual work, a small crew of daring and very good-looking volunteers decided to brave the jungles of Fiji and head to the interior of Viti Levu for a weekend break. 

Heart of Darkness stuff, right here!

After allowing us to drag them on a very muddy morning hike, our kind hosts put together the bilibili for us, and even took us upstream in their boat so we could float back leisurely to our accommodation. Undeterred by a little torrential rain, we set off to conquer the river.  



Our hosts making it look easy



We managed to pile 7 adults onto the bilibili, by which time it was so overloaded we were in water up to our waists, much to the amusement of our guides.  Being fearless adventurers, we decided that a little thing like an inevitable dunking into a rapidly rising river wasn’t going to deter us.

We soon hit the ‘rapids’. Too late, we realised that we were in the wrong position, with no way to steer (an overloaded bilibili isn’t the most manoeuvrable of watercraft), and were heading into the rapids side on.

In spite of the rapidly rising water, we got stuck. Then 2 of the bamboo poles broke, in very inconvenient and potentially uncomfortable places*. At this point one of our number decided discretion was the better part of valour and (perhaps wisely) abandoned ship. The rest of us continued our sideways descent of the rapids on a rapidly disintegrating bilibili.

After exiting the rapids and finally dragging what remained of the bilibili onto the beach we went to shower and rest on our laurels. I was having a chat to one of our guides when I happened to look at the river and make a comment about the abandoned bilibili that happened to be floating past. Our guide did a double-take when he realised it was ours, sprinted down to the beach, de-shirted and swam out Baywatch-style on the swollen river to fetch our wayward bilibili. 

You win, you wily pile of bamboo and spite!

I can't wait for our next bamboo-based adventure.  Only next time I plan on winning this battle of wits, or at least coming armed!

*under our butts. Very splintery.

Many thanks to Rochelle Booth for letting me use her photos!