June and July is durian season, so i decided to go Ubin to see those durian trees and also to try my luck. I have managed to pick up a durian last year around the same time too. People do not call it Kampong durian for no reason. It is very different from those fruits we can buy from the market. The Kampong durians’ fruits are usually very large seeds and very thin flesh. The bonus is they are free! With more people shifting to stay in the main island, more durian trees are deserted. Along the way, we saw many bicycles loaded with durians.

(bicycle with durians)

Yes, i realised another mistake! We should have rented those bicycle with the basket! I went in the direction provided by a local and we found the first durian quickly.

(Our bicycles and durian)

Something was strange. There were two Malay boys around the area but they did not touch this durian. They left this durian behind. From the outer appearance, the durian looks good to eat (You can see my greed growing). So i decided to put it into a NTUC bag and tied it to the handle and continue the journey to the Chek Jawa. It was going low tide.

(durian in ntuc bag)

On the way to Chek Jawa, we continued to see many people of different races and nationals (China, Indian and even Japanese) walking along the roads checking on the durians. Some even brought they trolley along. They must be expecting very good pick. The durian hit my knee a couple of the time due to the bumpy roads (Ouch! The start of my suffering).

After we arrived at the parking place outside the Chek Jawa, we can see some more bicycles with one or two durians in their basket.

(Other bicycle with durian)

We decided to leave the durian tied to the bicycle and preceed with the Chek Jawa walk. Doing so, there were pro and con. The pro was the bicycle is easily identified. The con is someone may take the durian. Since the durian is free, i managed to tell my mind to let go for the moment. With the completion of the coastal walk, we proceed to the coffeeshop for lunch. When we asked the staff to help to open the durian, they turned us down (suffering!). After a while, one of them decided to offer to help. I saw her trying to use a chopper to chop the durian. She tried and tried but not very successful (transfer of suffering). So she passed the durian to another regular eater at the shop (transfer of suffering x 2). She tried with more strength and i saw her poke a finger into the opening and concluded the durian is unripe! (suffering). This regular eater and her friends also managed to pick a few bags of durians. After i returned home, i saw those cuts on my knee (suffering).

(cuts from durian)

What we learnt:
1. Remember to rent bicycle with basket.
2. Eat the durian on the spot. If the durian is no good, you can Move On. You do not carry the suffering with you.
3. Sufferings can be transfered.
4. Learn how to pick durian from the expert. This will greatly increase your chance to pick good durians.

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