When we arrived in Penang by ship we stayed at the RAAF hostel, where I made my first Malayan friend. He took me exploring the seafront and taught me to fish for garfish.

We soon moved to Tanjong Bungah to a nice single storey bungalow where I soon discovered the surrounding jungle and went trekking. I remember the regular monsoon rains that came every afternoon at 2 pm. You could hear the rain coming towards you belting onto the roofs of the houses to the north.

We had a pretty Malay ahmah at first, but she soon left to be replace by an older lady who chewed betel nut. She came to work one morning crying her eyes out. When we asked her what was wrong she said she had been beaten by a 'ghostie'. We thought it was some sort of superstition, but it turned out she meant that her husband had beaten her with a 'golf stick'!

We would travel to the Residency Road school, which was situated in a very pretty part of town. Form 1 attended science and French classes in the garage.

I was a member of Saber sports team, but land based sports were never my strong point. However, I did pretty well at the Penang Swimming Club where I was a member of the Dolfin team. I also played a mean game of water polo every Sunday with the 'big boys'. We usually followed this with the best curry I have ever eaten....and I live in Thailand now, so that's saying something.

We moved to Hillside about the same time the new school opened, so the commute was much shorter. I used to enjoy walking in the hilly jungle at the back of our house and often went up to the pillboxes on the top of the hill. My father also took me trekking in the hills behind the water treatment plant over the other side of the valley.

Our scouting days were a lot of fun at the camping grounds near the Botanical Gardens, and I remember walking up to Penang Hill a couple of times, and once to the top of the hill next door where we found an abandoned colonial style house. Does anyone remember going up there with me?

Like many of you, those days in Penang were among the best of my life. But I got the bug to live in Asia and I finished up living in Thailand for the last 24 years. You might like to read about my days in Ubon, north eastern Thailand, in 1967 at http://www.holtww.com/hww-bcwar-2001.shtml. And my daughter Michelle's website is worth a visit at http://www.holtww.com/thekid/

I welcome any emails from old classmates.

Cheers!

Marc Holt
26 June 2003