The small-town Chinese restaurant is firmly woven into the fabric of the quintessential regional Australian experience. We are all familiar with the classic tri-fold paper menu and iconic dishes like honey chicken, but we rarely hear the complex backstories of the restaurant owners and their rich life experiences outside of the commercial kitchen.
My parents are the owners of the Chinese restaurant, Yee’s. Having served four generations of customers, Yee's is one of the longest-standing businesses in the small town of Branxton, New South Wales, which lies on Wonnarua land. In 2022, I interviewed my father about his experience as a Malaysian-Chinese immigrant in the late 1970s, and how, in finding his new home in Australia, he did not return to Malaysia for 13 years.
13 Years / 十三年 details my father’s search for work in Australia, which took him through Sydney, Darwin, and regional Victoria, before settling in Branxton, New South Wales.
“澳大利亚每个小镇上必有一家中餐馆”已经牢牢地融入了典型的澳 大利亚乡村特色。经典的三折纸质菜单和蜜糖鸡等标志性菜肴我们 都耳熟能详，然而，我们却很少听过餐馆老板背后曲折的故事和他 们在厨房嘈杂之外的丰富生活经历。
我的父母是中餐馆“Yee’s”的老板。这家中餐馆已经服务了小镇四代人，是新南威尔士州布兰斯顿镇(Branxton)历史最悠久的生意之一，布兰斯顿位于旺纳鲁阿地(Wonnarua)。2022年，我采 访了自己的父亲，听他讲述了自己在20世纪70年代末作为马来⻄ 亚华裔移⺠的经历，以及他在澳大利亚找到新家后，13年没有返回马来⻄亚的原因。
13 Years / 十三年描述了我父亲在澳大利亚寻找工作的详细过程 ——从悉尼开始，到达尔文，再到维多利亚州乡村地区，最后选择在新南威尔士州布兰克斯顿定居。