by Loti | Feb 14, 2013 | Food, Thailand
A typical fruit plate at The Four Seasons Elephant Camp in Thailand has papaya, watermelon, pineapple, grapefruit, rose apple and dragon fruit (the one with the black specs). Wait rose apple and dragon fruit? Am I on a different planet? Rather unassuming in taste (meaning it had very little in my opinion), the dragon fruit is beautiful to look at with a bright red skin and white flesh with black seeds. And unlike the durian fruit it has no smell. So why don’t we have them in the US? In an interesting twist of nature, the large flowers of the plant, which resemble a vine like cactus, only bloom at night during a full moon. In their native habitat, bats and moths pollinate the flowers. The US apparently doesn’t have the right species of bats and moths needed. So farmers in Southern CA trying to grow them have to pollinate by hand under the full moon (which is expensive and can be dangerous since we all know werewolves hang around during full moons). But, while you are out pollinating, maybe you can quench your thirst with some of the new products being flavored with dragon fruit. Skyy has a vodka, Celestial Seasonings has a green tea and there is a cream liqueur called Dragon Kiss available. So here’s to dragon fruit....
by Loti | Feb 13, 2013 | Animals, Thailand
My elephant, Bounma, responded to my simple commands. The 2 most important being Pai, go forward, and the very most important (at least to me) How, meaning stop. The card around my neck has all the basic commands which I referred to often on our 2 hour jungle trek. But Bounma didn’t talk back. Other than to snort, trumpet and generally make elephant noises. Which made me even more nervous than I already was sitting on this huge, although, gentle animal. But Koshik, a 22 year old Asian elephant, has stunned researchers by imitating human words. And in Korean, no less, which is considered one of the hardest languages in the world to master. He can say hello, sit down, no, lie down and good. I wonder if he knows stop? He places his trunk in his mouth to make the words which has never been seen before as a method of vocal production by elephants or any other species. I am continually stunned by what I learn about these amazing creatures. Falling in love all over...
by Loti | Feb 12, 2013 | Food, Thailand
Bangkok. A fruit described as having a rich custard flavor with a hint of almonds. Sounds delicious yet the durian is banned from most hotels and all public transportation in Singapore including subways and airports. It is illegal to eat in public places in Malaysia. And if the fruit falls on you, it can kill you. Meet the world’s smelliest fruit. Descriptions range from raw sewage to smelly socks to rotten onions. No wonder it is banned from so many public places. But my beloved elephants love it and can smell it from a half mile away. So there must be something to it. Many in Southeast Asia regard the durian, which grows to be 2-7 pounds with sticky thorns all over it, to be the King of fruits. It is native to Malaysia and Indonesia and has quite a cult following. You either love it or hate it. Sadly we did not get (or take) an opportunity to taste or smell it. Used often in desserts, it was featured recently on one of my favorite TV shows, Chopped. Four chefs are given four ingredients from which to make a dish. The worst dish gets the chef eliminated (chopped). For dessert the chefs had durian, won ton wrappers, peanut brittle and Marsala wine. Wish I could have tasted that one!...
by Loti | Feb 11, 2013 | Malaysia, World heritage Sites
Malaysia. A World Heritage site. What exactly is one? We saw several Heritage plaques in our travels thru Malaysia and Thailand, but I wasn’t sure what they meant or signified. Well, I have learned there are 962 sites throughout the world in 157 countries, each designated by UNESCO (United Nations Scientific and Cultural Organization). They represent properties having outstanding universal value to humanity. A pretty tall order in my book. This is one of 3 sites in Malaysia, Khoo Kongsi, a Chinese clan house built in 1906 which is located in the heart of the oldest section of George Town, Malaysia. The entire town is designated a World Heritage site as a result of its unique multicultural heritage and architecture not found anywhere else in East or Southeast Asia (or at least that’s what the Internet says). What are some other sites? The Grand Canyon and Statue of Liberty in the U.S., the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, Stonehenge in England, the Taj Mahal in India and 5 sites in Thailand. Even Laos has 2. Oddly, Singapore has none. Now I just have to figure out how many I have visited....
by Loti | Feb 10, 2013 | Laos
Looking out from my balcony at the Four Seasons Elephant Camp in Northern Thailand (this also happens to be the view from my outdoor shower which was by far the best part of the tent), you can see the mountains of Laos. The only landlocked country in Southeast Asia, it is also one of only 5 Communist countries remaining in the world with single party rule. Rice dominates the agricultural industry with 80% of the arable land used for rice production. Almost 70% of the population are Buddhist and while much of the country lacks adequate infrastructure, tourism is the fastest growing industry. The pace is said to be laid back and relaxed (as much as it can be in a Communist society with no freedom of speech). So I was horrified to learn Laos holds the title of the single most bombed country per capita in global history. Laos was dragged into the Vietnam war by their neighbor North Vietnam. During the war, the US and our allies undertook a massive arial bombing, dropping on average one B 52 bomb load every 8 minutes, 24 hours a day for 9 years on Laos. There are only 6.5 million people (smaller than the city of Bangkok) in the entire country and yet we dropped over 250 million bombs over 9 years. And the US State Department estimates there are 80 million unexploded bombs left today in Laos still posing a deadly problem for most of the rural countryside. Wow, you just can’t make this stuff up. ...
