Strange Fruit

I’m sure they’ll be in the markets here eventually, but this is the first time I’ve run into the rambutan. I think nature meant for them to be prickly, but they turned out rather hairy.  The vendor was clearly amused at my bemusement and told me they tasted like lychees – but he did not offer me one. A massive bunch like this would definitely be more than I could handle in a week or two! Strangely, they never turned up at breakfast anywhere we stayed, though I thoroughly enjoyed the fresh mango and papaya and multitudes of melons and dragonfruit available almost everywhere.

You may notice right behind the rambutan in the photo are what appear to be potatoes that are still attached to the stem. Not sure again how that is possible – I’ve grown potatoes and they don’t stay attached very well, but everything seems to grow a little differently, a little more rapidly and rampantly in Asia.

Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia are simply hotbeds of amazing cuisine. The only bad meal I had was breakfast on the second morning of our stay in Medan – it seemed to be leftovers from the previous morning. My aversion was affirmed when I noticed all the businessmen staying at the hotel were also sticking to toast. Every other meal was some mouthwatering delicacy, and most of the dishes were new to me, despite my love of Chinese, Indian and Malaysian cuisnes.

Damn! I miss it already! But not to worry – I’ve got a lunch date on Saturday with a Singaporean friend. We’re going to check out a new Malaysian restaurant that just opened here in Auckland.

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