I too grew up in Balestier, in 4Q Jalan Ampas and my parents ran a small provision shop selling sundries, coffee and drinks. I hope you remember my parents since our shop was quite visible next to the big monsoon drain so we get lots of customer traffic from the Shaw Brothers studios.

I am 41 years old so we might have been neighbors who knew each other but have since lost touch. I remember when I was age 4 to 8 playing hide and seek with a big group of kids from the neighborhood. I flew kites, fished for tadpoles, played with spiders and lots of pranks during the ‘kampung’ era. I used to ‘explore’ the big lallang covered wasteland near Lorong Ampas across the Whampoa River, now Jalan Rajah HDB flats.

I hope there is a way to exchange email addresses through this weblink and if Ian can help, I like to correspond with Florence to trade old photos & memories with her.