And Yet People Eat Them

I was sitting on my “veranda,” it sounds so grand when I say “veranda,” and in the neighborhood below I heard a loud speaker truck. I thought it was probably an election routine. I noticed that the repeating word sounded a lot like “durian,” the incredibly disagreeable fruit that is unaccountably so popular here. Then I saw the truck, a real nice covered bed pick up, new looking, and sure enough, it was full of durian.

This thing smells so bad and so strong that it is not allowed on public transportation here and most hotels have signs that forbid “dogs or durian.”

But people like them. It’s like eating butter, it’s so rich. It’s like a super-concentrated banana flavor. Too much can kill you. I didn’t believe it either, look it up.