When I was younger and I pictured what my life would be like, I imagined myself living a pleasant, quiet sort of existence in Sydney, working as a kindergarten teacher, which is what I was doing when I went to Bali for a holiday that would change everything.
The year was 1977 when my mother and I set off. We arrived in Ubud and went to our accommodation at the Puri Saraswati Bungalows, which was a beautiful and tranquil hotel on royal palace land. The luscious gardens shimmered with a million shades of green and the Balinese architecture took my breath away.
The property was owned by one of the two wives of Prince Tjokorda Agung Suyasa. One of his wives lived with him in
