After the ‘execution’ Part 3
A continuation :
There were lots of stuff going on in Penang at that time. According to Ah San, many people were going to the New World Park. It was air-conditioned and the people were amazed that it could be winter in Penang. The populace used to go to cool off as well as enjoy themselves. It was like a never-ending fun-fair.
Courting couples used to go there as well as whole families. Courting couples spent more whereas families went there to be seen and see with little money spent except for the entrance tickets. Bachelors had a place to go where for a price of a drink and some tips, a bachelor or a ‘married bachelor’ could get a girl to dance with him. This was like ’scandalous’ back in those days …but it never failed to fill the dance halls.
Ah San could still remember an entertainer, Miss Rose Chan. She swept to fame and conquered any man who stood in her path. Ah San however couldn’t remember any specific year so the years she performed cannot be verified. However she was among the very first to introduce strip tease dancing. It was unlike any that we can witness today. She performed with pythons and cobras….supposedly :). The men went wild wherever she went.
During weekends he used to go to the old esplanade near Fort Cornwallis to be near the sea and enjoy the sea breeze.
Smoking was cool back then. Nobody told them smoking was bad for the health. It was cool for a young man to hold a cigarette between his fingers and blow smoke…when they could afford it. Instant Macho Man.
The rich people lived in their own houses, and many rented houses when they could not afford to buy houses. It was not uncommon to see entire families renting just a room in the pre-war houses.This consequently gave rise to problems like having to queue up for the bathroom and the single toilet.
The house Ah San was living in at that time used the bucket system. As Ah San used to go to the toilet very early in the morning, it was not uncommon for him to see a hand coming up from behind him and hauling the bucket away to be emptied. Ugh…gross but common at that time.
To be continued
My friend told me and I came to see. Ah ‘San’ died of cancer years ago. He was a good and friendly man. Many attended his funeral.