King of the fruits

(potp: don't take this on the bus!)

STINKY OR NOT?

The picture above has been taken on the bus on one of my commuting trips. It is not really surprising that smoking, eating and littering on the bus will make your wallet less heavy quite soon. This is common sense. Nevertheless, there is one more sign, depicting a thorny fruit called 'Durian'. The name comes from the Malay word 'Duri', which basically stands for 'spikes'.

Why would it be necessary to focus on this particular object, you ask? Well, as always, beauty and maybe the quality of smell lies in the eyes of the beholder. However, one day when I went for a walk on a local market my nose was suddenly exposed (let's put it this way) to a distinctive, nauseating smell, which was situated somewhere between a very old tropical fruit that had been neglected and forgotten in the back of the kitchen or very ripe cheese.



The first of the two pictures shows a typical durian fruit which can grow up to 40 cm in length and 30 cm in diameter (wikipedia). The other one depicts a stall on a market in Kuala Lumpur (please note the electric installation in front of the picture..this is worth another post...). At first I did not know where the smell came from. I have been told before that Durian smell was phenomenal (in a positive way..by a local Singaporean, of course), but that day KL offered the first opportunity to get a genuine personal and permanent impression.

An even better description comes from Richard Sterling (as quoted in "The Travelling Curmudgoen") who says that "..its odor is best described as pig-sh*t, turpentine and onions, garnished with a gym sock. It can be smelled from yards away. Despite its great local popularity, the raw fruit is forbidden from some establishments such as hotels, subways and airports, including public transportation in South East Asia."

Additionally, I should not forget to mention that Durian is often referred to as one of the most dangerous fruits in the world, since the combination of heavy weight and spiky surface can lead to serious injuries when it bumps into your head while you are strolling around under the trees.

THE BRIGHT SIDE

On the other hand Durian ("the king of the fruits") is being processed to many at least deliciously looking things like cakes or tarts (have not been bold enough to try it yet..but one Durian cake is waiting for its famous moment in the fridge), which are supposed to be almost free of the overwhelming smell.

Maybe I am going to give it a try in the next couple of days when I run out of chocolate. I will keep you posted..

Maik

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Durian