It was pitch black. No streetlights, no moon — just that kind of darkness where even your hands vanish before your eyes. Rain drizzled down from the leaves, every step a gamble. The path — if you could call it that — was narrow, mud-slicked, overgrown, and littered with roots ready to trip you.

This should be the place according to the GPS. We were carrying a torch with the impact of a small sun. Its beam sliced through the night, illuminating the temple, the jungle, the raindrops, our faces. But still, hours into our search: no reflection of a dog’s eyes. That meant… no Fiji. My heart sank.

Fiji

Fiji wasn’t just any dog. She was the dog I looked after. Sensitive, marked by trauma, fleeing at the first hint of fireworks. 

I was staying at a villa on the river’s edge in Tabanan, Bali, caring for her while her humans were away for two months. I’ve looked after her before, gained her trust, and started to care about her. 

So, when I came back after doing my Christmas groceries and found her missing… That was unsettling to say the least.

The thought of her lost, scared, maybe hurt — sent chills through my veins.

The Search, The Crew

Fast forward. I wasn’t alone. Three people were helping me. Like angels falling from the sky — they showed up at the right time.

Fiji had a GPS tracker on her collar, that was really helpful. Her pin was located in a nearby village. It was pinned in a grey zone on Google Maps: no roads, no houses. Just jungle. Like ‘finding a needle in a haystack’ is a Dutch saying that would describe the situation.

I’m brave, I love nature, I don’t mind the rain and all. But hello? I’m no Jane in the jungle. So yeah… Searching for a dog in a rural, pitch-black, snake-filled area felt slightly above my survival skill level.

But like I said, I wasn’t alone. How I met those guys, you ask? Okay, let me take you back to the start of the search…

Party crash

I left the villa as soon as I realized Fiji was missing. A few minutes later, I was on the motor heading toward the pinned location — only to realize I was going in circles. The pin sat somewhere in a vast rural area, without roads or reference points. And to make things worse, I couldn’t see shizzl. It was dark as I was wandering around in a foreign village.

I needed a clue.

 Instinctively, I went where the noise was: I crashed a party.

The smell of Arak and Tuak (local liquors) in the air. 90’s karaoke blasting through tired speakers. Scratched couches. Smoke. Laughter.

“Hey”

In my best Loekienesian I explained the situation while showing the pin.

Some laughed, like I was a clown, serving them some type of entertainment. But I wasn’t in the mood to laugh or be laughed at, at all. Thankfully though, one person listened.

And sometimes you only need one person who does.

That person stood up. Calm. Determined.

“Ayo” (let’s go)

He studied the map for about 30 seconds and we left the party. Off-road. Into the darkness.

The temple and the Torch

About 40 minutes into our search, he called his brother and cousin to bring a torch. They crossed a river to reach us. Suddenly we were with the four of us, cutting through the jungle with one massive beam of light.

They warned me about snakes countless times. I brushed it off. I wasn’t scared of a snake? And even if I were, I was more scared of not finding Fiji.

Hours passed. Rain fell harder. Nothing.

It started pouring.

Then one of the guys actually spotted a snake. The men strongly insisted we’d leave now as the snakes around here can be deadly.

So, eventually, I followed them out.

With a heavy heart.

Was the GPS not working?

What the heck, I’m going back.

Back at the villa, I texted Fiji’s parents. They were convinced the GPS was accurate — and that Fiji might be scared of the men who were helping me, looking for her.

If I went alone, it could change things. Makes sense.

So I went back.

12:30 AM. Jungle clothes. Torch in hand. Alone.

My search started around 7pm and I didn’t eat breakfast so I was kinda craving the Christmas eve dinner that was waiting for me. But, I was craving to find Fiji more so, here we go.

It was but a five-minute drive. I parked my bike and retraced the jungle path. Mud. Temple. Slippery turns.

Then I arrived. The exact spot of the pin.

Softly, I said: “Fijiii, sayang”

And faster than my eyes could register, she ran from the dark towards me. Tail wagging. Rain pouring. 

I kneeled as she crashed into me, her way of saying: “Thank you for coming back for me”

A movie-like moment.

Black magic, baby 

Right after our reunion, something strange happened.

The torch died. Battery dead?

But then. Suddenly everything was pitch black, as both my phones’ flashlights had died too. Not the phones, not the battery, just the flashlights. Are you kidding me?… A very peculiar glitch at a very peculiar moment.

Coincidence? Black magic? Who knows.

All I know is that somehow Fiji and I, we found our way out of that jungle safely. Then she jumped on my bike like she’d done it many times before. And through the pouring rain we drove back to the villa.

Christmas 2025 was memorable for many reasons.

Finding Fiji was one of them.