I have needed a change for a while and Ubud appealed because I remembered its’ quiet, gentle atmosphere and narrow streets scattered with little palm fronds, incense and flowers.

After working in Europe for a year, I wanted to decompress and be a little closer to home. I was now surviving on savings and needed somewhere cheap to formulate a plan.

Within days of arrival though, my whole body is tense from the constant zipping of motorbikes. Ubud has become busy. The other foreigners still love...