Redefining the Separation Wall

I grew up in a typical double storey terrace house with tiled front yard. We were very lucky to have a very good neighbour living next door. Our front yard is separated by a metal fence on top of a low rendered wall, but that did not stop us from climbing over the fence to visit each other. 

We exchanged regular greetings and conversations by the fence. We always looked out for each other. We loved to share delicious food. Sometimes we left them on top of the fence so our dear neighbour could enjoy them at a convenient time.

Over the years, this fence has lost its original purpose as a separation wall between two neighbours. Although it was fun using this fence as a play wall or a badminton net, we continue to search for our next house together. We were determined to look for two new houses that are next to each other.

In 2004, we both moved into a new housing estate together. This time we built a low wall with openings so we all can roam freely in our front yard and exchange delicious food in our house or kitchen. We continued to look out for each other and take care of each other’s pets and garden for many years to come.

*Penang Stories is a series of short stories with architecture illustrations created by Jaslyn Ng, an architecture educator and experienced senior architect based in Melbourne, Australia. Jaslyn grew up in Penang, Malaysia. She migrated to Melbourne to study architecture in RMIT and continue to practise architecture in Melbourne. These are the stories of how Jaslyn remembered Penang.