The invaluable use of ethnography in researching educational settings has been demonstrated through many studies and furthered by many passionate researchers. One of such leading lights is Geoffrey Walford. In this paper, Walford's discussion of groups in two public schools, as depicted in his book "Life in public schools", serves as a basis for my investigation of the "lived experiences" of Southeast Asian boarders in St Andrew's School, a private all boy's boarding school in Perth, Western Australia. This article introduces this group of boarders and examines their perceptions that maintained their group identity in the boarding house environment. Interviews conducted with the boarders are drawn into this inquiry, underlining their views that group identity is important to living in a boarding school. (Contains 2 notes and 1 figure.)