Throughout my trip I've had the privilege to eat fruit local to this part of the world, such as rambutan, lonzones, and durian. Not only are these naturally sweet, but also loaded with lore.
Lonzones have the texture of gelatin; just don't bite the seed or else taste its bitterness. According to my cousin's husband, a planter's happy mood contributed to lonzones' sweet taste. Thus a mean-spirited planter would harvest only sour-tasting lonzones.
They are not only nice MERIENDA to eat while watching TV, CAMPING, or waiting in line, lonzones can be used to ward off mosquitoes. My aunt saved the lonzones' skin, dried them, and burned them to smoke out those bloodsuckers.
Another fruit, which is reputed to "smell like hell and tastes like heaven" is durian. According to most, a well-ripe durian has the consistency of a jack fruit. The one we ate was over-ripe; it was mushy like pudding. It definitely smelled like hell, if hell smelled like old onions and mustard emanating from one's unwashed underarms. Our mush was paradise lost, but its candy version at least gave us a hint of heaven ( milk and honey ).
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| Left: Durian, Papaya, Plum, Rambutan, and Mango. |
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