Bryan Phillips
1976-1979 Years 8, 9, 10
Email: buzumi@optusnet.com.au
My father was the base "Rat Catcher" and there were five of us kids by the time we were sent to Malaysia in '76. I was the oldest. I finished up year 8 that year and in '79, had to come home to my Aunties place in Newcastle before the rest of my family, to start year 11. Apparently, policy was that the resident health inspector had to do 12 months either side of the water, so we started in Bagan Agam and then moved to Mount Erskine (we spent a few weeks initially at number 10 Jalan Azyze, just up from the school).
Penang was the best posting I remember from my childhood, after Point Cook which was was a beautiful, isolated happy place to be a kid - we lived on base there. Malaysia was special because we were affluent for the first time in our lives and could afford stuff we never had been able to before, because it gave us a chance to experience (and sometimes misunderstand) a different culture to the Aussie one which had been our entire life experience until then, and because Penang was just such a beautiful place to live. Also, I think that we RAAFies were a close knit group in that environment, because we perhaps saw ourselves as an island of white skin in a sea of brown faces.
One of you wrote in your entry that you didn't remember us fighting much at R.S.P. I think that some of the friendships we had up there were a little stronger for the same reason.
Carl Tinsley, who was up there when I was, wrote that his family were posted back to Melbourne, and that Hiedelberg was a big change from Penang. I started high school at West Heidelberg, before we went to Malaysia, and I know exactly what you mean mate. I have vivid recollections of seeing sexual transactions happening during science class in Form 1, with audience encouragement. I went back to Heidelberg High School(they renamed it 'Boronia' College) in 2000 to have a look at the place. They changed the name, but it hasn't changed a bit... Penang was definitely nicer.
I had a good mate up there, Vincent Foran, who shared his music and his friendship with me, and I've wondered, down the years, how his life went. I learned recently, that he was killed in a motorcycle accident in '84. I've ridden myself, for 30 years. Rest in Peace, brother.
Peter, if you're ever in Western Australia, look me up.
Looking forward to the next reunion.
Selamat!