BULA everybody!! Robinson Crusoe Island, Fiji, July 11-13

“Oh, the people were SO nice!” Why are people always amazed when they meet nice people? Why do we expect to encounter rude, mean folks when we travel away from home? Nice people DO exist outside of our hometowns, no? Maybe we figure only nice people travel (to get away from the meanies), which leaves behind the meanies (now meaner from being left behind). I think someone should look into that.

I came to the island a common man. I left a stick spinning champion. You know, that game where you have to spin around with your forehead on a stick then try to run back to the finish line. OK, so I’m not Alexander the Great. I ran the anchor leg on our team. We had to resort to games like this because the weather really sucked the second day we were there. Light rain all day long. ANYWAY

Winning gave us our team our pick from the bar. Now I’m not a big drinker, and apparently neither were the other guys on the team because they all ordered white wine. I, not wanting to look like a wuss and order white wine, eventually settled on a rum and coke. Something didn’t seem right…I had to pee pretty bad so I went…No, not there, in the restroom. When I got back, I found out everyone had to chug their drinks and had done so in the 30 seconds I was in the can. *Sigh* So I get my rum/coke hoping it won’t be that strong and bottoms up! It wasn’t that strong. Apparently the Fijians know how to make money by watering down the hooch. But the story doesn’t end there. That something that didn’t seem right…well it became clear what it was. Ziggy calls, just the guys, back to the center and presents us each with a beer. Fiji Bitter. This is what happens when men order girly drinks like white wine instead of Fiji’s finest. And yes, we had to chug these, too. It hit me like a flash just as I was putting the bottle to my lips. I could pretend to chug the beer. No one would really be able to tell, right? If I do it right. Struggle, move my throat like I’m swallowing, act like it burns, maybe even spill a little. I later found out that neither of the other guys drank theirs, either. My friends assured my I looked the best at faking it. Small victories.