Peanut butter or Vegemite? Australian school days remembered

My twin sister and I both love chocolate and ice-cream, and I have a very “sweet tooth.” We attended a Catholic Primary School in Western Australia, and it was a terrific school, with a wonderful canteen and even an ice-cream kiosk!

The kiosk was part of the building with a hatch you could open to take orders and to give ice-creams and collect the money for them.

Boy, we loved the Canteen, and at morning play-time, my sister and I would patiently line up in a long queue (or queues, by going to different queues) and if our parents gave us extra money, we would buy a delicious match-stick.

Other than that, I would without fail buy a peanut butter roll.

Without fail, my sister would buy a vegemite roll. How we adored those rolls! They were fresh half rolls with amazing real butter — and the “cream of the crop” for a hungry young school-child, with each girl’s chosen treat —a sweet treat (peanut paste) for me and a savory one for my sister.

To this day I am amused that not once during our 7 years at that school, did I buy a vegemite roll or my sister buy a peanut butter roll! Each of us definitely was biased. I prefer crunchy peanut butter (and don’t like smooth all that much).

My favorite icy-pole was Orange Maid but at around 15 cents, I think it was, we couldn’t afford it many times; so had to opt for a woeful “Ducky Double” which not only cost less, but we could share it, as it came in 2 halves.

When we got to our last year, Grade 7, we had the privilege of working in the ice-cream canteen and the only trouble was that we were too small to dig into the ice-chest to get the last ice treats at the bottom of the freezer.

So one of us would dangle over the edge, like abseiling or parachuting, with the other hanging onto her legs so she wouldn’t fall in. We were determined to sell all ice-creams possible to our eager customers.

Those were the days when there were bottles of soft-drink which could be opened by the bottle-cap openers which were found everywhere that drinks were sold.

The best thrill of our eating repertoire at primary school was being given money and a permission slip from our parents, to walk to the fish and chip shop just down the road.

When you got back to the school grounds with your divinely smelling package of wonderment, you would be sure to be surrounded by complimenting friendly children. They wanted a share of your lunch.

The last great thing about food at school, that I remember, is that for a while, the little ones got free milk, courtesy of the government.

Pint size glass bottles of milk with lovely silver caps were delivered in crates, and at the times appointed by the Sisters at the school, the kids would have their milk. This Commonwealth scheme stopped in 1973 but was reintroduced in 1994.

For the record, I do like vegemite, especially on warm toast, but it probably is an acquired taste. As I was raised since a baby, by an Australian-English couple, I soon got to have vegemite, and there were and are lots of times and places to eat this famous Australian spread.

Because we like to collect some nostalgia, my sister and I got to acquiring vegemite themed stuff. I have “borrowed” her vegemite clock because I love its colors and boldness.

I got myself a vegemite radio, and we both got Vegemite place-mats.

I don’t know about any exciting peanut butter themed souvenirs, but I eat crunchy or super crunchy peanut butter on toast, so don’t need them.

As for vegemite, I have even written a blog post about this food-stuff that some people either love or hate.