Last Updated on 2016-06-21 , 9:11 am
Remember the good old days when kids used to enjoy messing around at the HDB void decks? Now with all the extraneous contraptions set up, it’s plain for everyone to see how our lives are changing and how much we have all grown. My memory was roller-blading to the mama shops to get ice-cream and sweets three blocks away and then blading back to my void deck where my friend and I would gather around the curved stone table to talk and laugh. Nothing was better than spending the weekend doing that.
What else do we remember of the old HDB void decks? Below are some from my memory.
Hop Scotch
If my memory serves me well, the initial hopscotch design was drawn onto the floor with multicoloured chalk. After some time, the game became an imprint on the floor and many a kid would use 5 stones to mark their progress. This game provided so many hours of fun and laughter and made us so many friends in the interim that it’s not possible we will ever forget about it.
Chess Tables
I remember the older uncles who would sit around to either play chess on the chipped chessboard imprinted on the stone table or just have their kopi and chit chat. Young ‘uns like us seldom sat at those tables though because we thought they were dirty and were only for old people.
Ping pong tables
Ready ping pong tables meant we only needed to bring our own bats and balls down to play. Another game that provided many a student with hours of exercise and fun while waiting for dinner to be ready. I remember that it also provided a way for a boy to see the girl he had a crush on who happens to be living in that particular HDB block. He would get another one or two of his friends to purposely head to that block to play ping pong while waiting for the girl of his dreams to show up. It gave him the chance to see her and also to show her how much of a sportsman he was.
Curved sitting table
Ah, this was the table we young people would usually hang out at. Since the seat was curved like a crescent moon around the table, it was not only a good place for a group of friends to chill, but also a spot for young lovers to spend a little more time with each other before going their separate ways for the day. I remember having a few dates at the one below my then block. And it was easy not to get caught too as the material of the seat was smooth enough so that we could easily slip away from each other if we saw someone familiar coming our way.
Bicycle parking areas
Those little metal protrusions along the walls. Can you believe how confident we were back in those days that we allowed our bicycles to be left at the void decks? My friends and I used to sit on them and try to keep our balance, usually ending up with a rather sore behind because the metal protrusions were really thin.
Public phones
The new generation will never know how important the public phone was to us in the days before mobile phones were created. I used to date this guy who would, after sending me home after school (don’t judge), use the public phone downstairs to call my home’s landline and we would continue talking. And then my mum would scream at me to get off the phone because she needed to page my dad. Another story for another time.
Mama stores
The all-important mama store which almost every HDB block had at that time. It was a daily must-go for both my brother and me after school and the day wouldn’t be complete without a trip there. I remember some of my favourite snacks though – those red and green crispy flavourless wafers and those Bobdog sweets that looked like sticks of cigarettes. That was the only way we could look grown up before we reached the legal age.
Bird singing corners
The bird-rearing uncles would gather at that particular corner every single day to let their birds “socialize”. I think it was more for them, though. Sometimes they would hold bird singing contests and the noise could be so deafening that you just run past and as far away as you can. That area would also usually be dirty as hell.
Indoor playgrounds
I never really had a chance to experience these before but I knew they were a thing for awhile. Quite a pity though I never got to try these out as I was probably too old by then to play in playgrounds. I have to admit they looked really fun though.
Stone benches
You know those stone benches at the sides of the walls that can only seat two people at any one time? Yea those. Besides being a young lovers’ paktor seat, I’ve seen uncles and even aunties lying on them in the middle of an afternoon taking a nap. Yes, Singapore in the past was THAT safe. Those seats were so cool and nice to the touch I really couldn’t blame them when it wasn’t common for every household to have air-conditioner back then.
So there you go! Which one or ones make up your fondest memories of the old HDB blocks? If you are scratching your head wondering what the heck have I been reading, you are too young for this awesomeness. Pass this on to an older sibling or cousin now!
Here’s a simplified summary of the South Korea martial law that even a 5-year-old would understand:
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