It’s mid-morning and the sun is trawling its rays through the palm leaves that canopy over our West Bali garden. I’m working upstairs, where my head is deep in research and the house is surrounded by the branches of an old mango tree, when a soft, spicy trail of incense weaves through the wooden floorboards.
Through the window I see Ketut, my Balinese “aunt”, walking away from the house as tendrils of incense smoke twist elegantly around her shoulders. She is wearing the traditional clothing of the island’s women: a sarong wrapped left over right, a lace kebaya top (white, because today is , full moon) and a wide sash tied around her waist.
