(Extreme) Durian
It’s great !!! SIGIR’08 is held at the same time as the durian (IPA: [ˈd(j)ʊriən, -ɑn]) season; a fruit that is unique only in this South East Asia region. Many love this fruit and even revere it as “The King of Fruits”. Many others misunderstand and loathe it so much for its “unique” odor. I warn you, some of my friends (especially those not from this region) even treat this fruit as a disease =) Below is the picture of the fruit.
The Singaporean government has a love/hate relationship with this fruit. On one hand, it loves the fruit as such it makes a national icon out of this fruit. Take a look at the picture below and you’ll understand what I mean. Arguably, this iconic building is better known as “the durian” rather than “the esplanade” (I have no idea to spell it correctly and this is my fifth year in Singapore [Eds. note: it's correct 
] ).
On the other hand, it “hates” it as such it forbids the fruit to be carried in the train, bus or taxi. You can always try to hide the fruit with your unique creativity, but I don’t think you can hide the odour =) Oh ya, the penalty varies, but it’s perhaps similar to buy 100 more durians. Here’s the sign to watch out.
Now, I hope I can convince you that it is worthwhile to eat “this king of fruits”, the follow up question you may have is where to get it. The answer is it’s everywhere !!! You can just call the cab and tell the driver: “Uncle, durian”. They’ll all know. But, there is one favorite place I often go because of the price and the nuance. The place is called Geylang and I show it here. The stall looks like a market place and the fruit is priced at 10 SGD for three. Three durians is really a lot of fruit.
A last word: this fruit is high in cholesterol, so you have been warned. A traditional way to reduce the hazards (the cholesterol as well as the strong odour to some extent) is to pour water into the empty shell of the fruit after the pulp has been consumed and drink it. Or you can eat it alongside mangostee (nicknamed the Queen of fruits), which is considered to have a cooling effect to your body.
Last but not least, enjoy the conference and don’t forget the durian.
Posted on July 19th, 2008 by hendrase
Filed under: food
Durian is the only fruit in Singapore that gets “hawked” or “touted”. You’ll even find durian sellers in the middle of NTUC supermarkets. Prepare to try your skills at haggling the prices down!
Durian does not have cholesterol. I have no idea why this myth is perpetuated, but cholesterol is produced by animals, not plants. It is high in sugar content, but so is most fruit.