It's that time of year again where I go home to visit my family. Last year I surprised Mum by turning up at her doorstep Christmas morning. This time I'm coming back to welcome my niece into the world.
I flew with Singapore Airlines and booked a nine hour stopover in Singapore to hang out with my friend Ken from university days.
As soon as I was out of the airport, I relished in the change of environment. Reality had hit that the UK was a far far world away and I was back onto more familiar territory. The air and pace of life felt different and the sun...well it exists and it's shining.
First stop was to the Chinese acupuncturist Ken introduced me to years ago. She's works in a tiny shop and often treats two clients at a time. My back was in knots after trying to sleep in awkward positions on the plane and my ankles were swollen. It was only 40 SGD for 45 mins. After the massage, I walked out feeling drunk and languid.
We visited a kaya toast place and then headed off to Orchard Road. We ate at a new Indonesian place on the top floor of Far East Plaza. (Because the epic Hainanese chicken rice place was shut.) The food was very good and a refreshing change from European food. The meals came out in a flash-just as Ken returned to the table after putting in our orders. I could only fit in a dish of soft shelled crabs. The chilli sauce was so spicy it blew me away.
We walked around Orchard Road which was brightly lit with Christmas lights. It was really busy even for 9pm on a Sunday.
Unfortunately our favourite durian pancake place in Takashimaya was closed so we took a cab to Geylang for fresh durian. Historically a dodgey part of town, it's still home of durian stalls in Singapore and frog congee restaurants.
The streets were full of durian stalls. There are all different kinds ranked by their flavour, size and seed shapes. Eating durian here is nothing like how you can have it outside of Asia. Most durians are exported from Thailand and are frozen to halt fermentation (and mainly it's smell).
The best durians apparently come from Malaysia and nothing beats fresh. We found a stall recommended by friends and cracked open two durians at a rustic table setting by the street. There were giant baskets around us, within throwing distance for disposing seeds and skin.
As soon as my friends tasted this stinky fruit, their eyes lit up with delight. "It's REALLY good!" They exclaimed. So trusting their judgement, I got my hands dirty and dug in. The fruit was very creamy and flavoursome. If you've never tried durian, you must. My advice is to taste with your tongue and not your nose. It's creamier than avocado and the flavour is complex, even slightly alcoholic due to natural fermentation. It's pungent with the aromas of onion juice and caramel and is soft as icecream encased in a thin sac, You have to eat it with your fingers. Sounds awful but you gotta try to believe it. You might even love it despite it's smell which lingers in you or whatever its stored in.
Afterwards it was time to go back to the airport. We bid farewell for another three weeks and hailed cabs. I went back to the airport and the next chapter of the return home begins.
