It is the early 1980s and an extremely tall British boy is delighting his nursery school teachers in Singapore. Not only is the blonde-haired lad friendly and cute, he is also communicating with everyone in Putonghua.
'Zao an, laoshi (good morning teacher),' he says and everyone smiles. But it never crosses anyone's mind that this skinny son of a commercial copywriter would go on to become one of the most recognisable players in the English Premier League.
Peter Crouch spent three years - between the ages of one and four - in the island nation after his father Bruce took a posting with an advertising agency. The England and Tottenham striker does not have clear memories of his stay in Asia - but browsing through family photos helps prompt vague recollections.
'I don't remember too much of it, but Mum and Dad only speak fondly of the place and it looks lovely,' he says. 'My first words apparently were in Mandarin, believe it or not. But I didn't keep it up, which is a shame.'
We are speaking - in English - at Tottenham's training base at Chigwell in Essex on the edges of greater London. A recent tabloid scandal involving the beanpole forward has the Spurs' PR team on medium alert but when questions turn to his younger days, Crouch relaxes and is happy to share.
Turning 30 in January, the hard-working Crouch is in the prime of his career, leading the Tottenham line in the Premier League and in their first Uefa Champions League campaign. His hat-trick against Switzerland's Young Boys in August ensured qualification for the group stages and next week, in Matchday 3, he will take a trip to northern Italy to face the holders, Inter Milan - coached by his former Liverpool manager, Rafa Benitez.