Durian

By Al S. Mendoza

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – If you like durian, we are buddies.

If you don’t, we are still buddies.

Differences shouldn’t damage friendships.

Durian is virtually the national fruit in this City of Smiles.

People here smile all the time. That’s the reason this place is widely known as the City of Friendship.

Maybe it’s their durian diet that makes people smile here as often as Senate probes end up nothing but grandstanding by our politicians.

Durian is dubbed the love fruit. An aphrodisiac, if you will.

While practically all of Mindanao is troubled by kidnapping and other forms of terrorist attacks, this city is as peaceful as a monastery.

It is said that peace and tranquility reside here because this is supposed to be the R & R (Rest and Recreation) area of the Abu Sayyaf and their ilk.

Because terrorists are human beings just like us, they also make love. And this durian-rich city is the place for love, where only the real lovers are capable of grasping bliss in a delirious instant.

I had just had my fill of durian and you know what? It still feels like heaven one full day later.

I am as energized as a baby having just finished its dose of breast milk from Mama.

No wonder durian here costs more than one’s ordinary fare of fruit budget. Expensive by the everyday-man average.

If you don’t watch it, durian will hurt your pocket – and your family budget if you are the carefree type.

But then, as one former senator loved to say: “What the hick!”

Of course, he meant, “What the heck!”

Durian eaters have one commonality: They are adventurous. Daring.

People who eat durian are as brave as Diego Silang and Dagohoy. Passionate lovers like Jose Rizal and Dolphy.

But, of course, even people who don’t eat durian are as romantic as Caruso. I know of one and you don’t have to look far: Jesus A. Garcia Jr., the cycling legend himself who is now Dagupan’s only certified sports columnist.

I’ve known Biking Jess all these years and I find him to be one of Pangasinan’s most sought-after Romeos. Just ask my compadre, Jun Velasco.

And why am I here?

Jake P. Ayson and I were the Chief Rulesmen in the 46th Southern Ladies Golf Tournament that ended yesterday (Feb. 7) at the scenic Pueblo de Oro here.

The event is Alice Andrada’s babe since time immemorial.

It is the country’s biggest event for lady golfers outside of the Philippine Open.

The game’s top guns battle it out yearly and, during the last five years or so, have had their hands full against an army of young Koreans using our land to hone up their skills before embarking on the U.S. LPGA.

And you know what?

The Koreans have also learned how to eat durian.

And what’s the proper way to eat durian again?

You eat it with bare hands.

If you haven’t tried durian yet, listen to Alice Andrada: “Durian tastes better than sex.”

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