MANILA – Dayanara Torres became emotional as she recalled her life prior to joining the Miss Universe pageant more than two decades ago.

Torres, who was crowned in 1993, never thought she would join the international pageant because she was just a simple girl living in a rural area in Puerto Rico.

“I will always watch the shows. I will always dream about it but I never really thought that it would be possible. The situation in my family was tough. When somebody saw me, it was like a miracle,” she said as her eyes welled with tears.

“If that didn’t happen, I don’t think my family was able to actually to put me through that kind of experience. Although they wanted to, they couldn’t afford it,” she added.

As if written in the stars, Torres won the competition which eventually changed her life completely.

“I lived in the mountains, beautiful rural area. From that to a completely different lifestyle and experience. I never traveled before. It gave me everything,” she said.

Aside from the pageant, Torres also considers her stint in the Philippines after her reign a "miracle."

“I won in Mexico City but when I finished, it could have been in any other country. I was just lucky that it was here. All the opportunities, being in show business, I could never imagine. It’s been pretty my life. Ending up in the Philippines was pretty much a miracle,” she said.

Torres first visited the Philippines in 1994 to crown her successor in the Miss Universe pageant. She went on to become a celebrity in the country, starring in TV shows and several movies.

However, she had to leave the Philippines after five years because of a contract obligation she had to fulfill.

“I signed this contract with a company under Sony in Puerto Rico. I started my singing career, did my first album, it went great. And then I met the father of my sons. I got married. Once I got married and had my first child, my life completely changed,” she said.

Torres said she wanted to be there for her children every step of the way, especially after she and Marc Anthony got a divorce. Nonetheless, the Puerto Rican beauty is more than happy to be back in the Philippines now although it took her so long to do so.

“When I left, I didn’t think I wasn’t coming back. Life happened and it took a different turn. But I’m back. Definitely, hopefully, I’ll be able to come back and forth so the wait wouldn’t be that long,” she said.