Every summer in Australia, tens of thousands of teenagers make a pilgrimage to Schoolies, a week-long high school graduation party.
The tradition has its roots at Surfers Paradise in Queensland in the early 1980’s and has since expanded to attract students from every corner of the country. But, in recent years, a growing crowd of school leavers have abandoned the original destination and headed abroad to the Indonesian island of Bali. The allure is obvious - cheap booze, tropical weather and few regulations. The rowdy party is considered a right of passage for young Australians and, for most, it’s the first real taste of parent-free independence. In 2014, more than 5,000 teenagers clogged Legian Street in Kuta, the epicentre of Bali’s nightlife.
