Walks in the Kingdom of Siam (page 10 of 11)

There are so many questions that I’ll answer in several parts.

Let’s start with that fruit-vegetable-cheese thing, which earned me some indirect teasing from a participant in other discussions—someone who, by the way, is often misguided. First off, I’ve never been interested in it because you can smell it from a distance in the markets: it starts with a rather pleasant fruity scent, but as you get closer, overpowering odors take over—what I’d call pretty off-putting. A mix of fruit and cheese, with a strong cheese dominance. The fact that you see so much of it means plenty of locals must love it. I learned on this forum that there’s a long initiation tradition. In my opinion, few Westerners ever come to enjoy it. There are at least two different kinds: durian and jackfruit. A participant pointed out that what I had wasn’t durian but jackfruit. Me? I can’t help it—the tree owner told me in his distinctive accent: "doulian." So, I’ll remain permanently and utterly indifferent to any knowledge about this... thing. 😉

Hey Fabien,

Those are jackfruits

So it doesn’t stink at all?

No, it’s really fragrant, kind of like bubble gum. You can’t say it stinks—you’d have to really stick your nose in it or put it in your mouth to smell it. In your mouth, the flavor just explodes—it’s sweet, fruity, pretty strong, and good, but I get that not everyone likes it.

Durian has a strong, rich, and kinda sickly-sweet smell once it’s open. Personally, it’s never reminded me of Maroilles cheese. After that, the texture is soft, greasy, and kinda gross. Once it’s in your mouth, it’s a little fatty, very smooth, and lingers on your palate and in your nose.

If it’s ripe, it’s totally edible—in small doses, though, since it’s really rich and hard to digest.

Click on Google to see the images

Jackfruit can also be eaten when it's young and green, especially in soup—it's excellent raw in salad or pounded in a mortar for nam prik.

I recognize the local gastronomy expert when I see one! 🙂

Hi Fabien,

Thanks for all this info. I went to check on Google like you suggested and on Wikipedia, they mention that this tree is part of the same family as the breadfruit tree. I get why they look so much alike now. But the breadfruit is only used as a vegetable here—we cook it once peeled and eat it like yams, pasta, etc. You can also make a great gratin or mashed breadfruit from it.... The tree produces an elongated part we call totote breadfruit, which we use to make jam or candied fruit.

That’s all.😄

You also have the marang from the same family, which is less strong than the jackfruit. It's not very common in Thailand but a bit more so in the Philippines.

https://tous-les-fruits.com/marang/

Also worth discovering is the soursop, also known as guyabano or graviola, with its delicate and complex fragrant taste.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMtFPDSavGY

https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corossol

Hey Joel,

Among your visits, I find this building really kitschy. I really love this temple. Does the inside match the outside?



Lots of temples with a spectacular appearance have sprung up in Thailand over the last 10-15 years. It’s not just for show, but still... it reminds me of Hollywood: all cardboard and nothing behind it.

Nothing beats a temple that’s one or two centuries old with real beautiful statues and interesting antiques.

These fruits look strangely like the breadfruits we have plenty of back home in Martinique. What do they call them here? You also mentioned the bananas you buy—they remind me of the ones we call "figue pomme" back home, but they look bigger.

Apparently, they taste the same. In the north of the country, bananas, pineapples, and mangoes are delicious and you can get them for a very low price.

Ah, this is the kind of scenery I love to see and that might just tip the scales one day for me to go there.



You’ll find these mostly in southern Thailand, northern Laos, and northern Vietnam. Of course, the biggest deposits are in southern China.

Are the rooms you sleep in air-conditioned?

If they’re not, you don’t sleep—I don’t even know if you’d survive. No intolerance or throat issues for us, though.

Anyway, your waterfall photos are stunning.

I think we haven’t said our last word on that front, but you’ll have to follow along to see if there’s more!

It’s a good thing to start with a positive mindset, to engage in conversation whenever possible, to make your guide laugh, and to show them all the respect they deserve. That’s clearly one of the things Thais appreciate the most. Just using a few words in their language here and there really makes them happy. They definitely take it as a sign of the interest you have in them.

Oh? So that’s your secret, but not everyone can speak a few words of Thai!!! 🤪

A few words after a few years: could do better!

We’ve really put in a lot of effort so far to provide as many details as possible, and as precisely as possible. But the writing time, wow!! It’s hard to keep up that effort over time. It’s true that many people solemnly invoke sharing but only if they get to benefit from it.

So it’s important to give without expecting anything in return—otherwise, you’ll spend your life being disappointed. Personally, I find that just telling the story of a trip lets me relive it, put some distance between me and the tougher parts, gain perspective, and sometimes even get more out of it over time—so that’s already great. 😏

The argument about giving without expecting anything in return rings true coming from you, but it’s also regularly used by those who don’t give anything, just to keep others supplying them. Or by those brave enough to volunteer as the "group organizer" for thousands of selfish people. The arguments are valid on both sides.

Conclusion: we’ve got proof you really read this travel journal. The authors are obviously happy about it!! 🙂

Hi Joel,

They’re mostly found in southern Thailand, northern Laos, and northern Vietnam. Of course, the largest deposit is in southern China.

I’m really drawn to karst landscapes, but after our trip to Ladakh this year, I think it’ll be tough to convince my husband to go back to Asia!! Not right away, that’s for sure.

In the north of the country, bananas, pineapples, and mangoes are delicious and you can get them for next to nothing.

They grow in my dad’s garden when it’s in season!!!

If they’re not, you don’t sleep—I don’t even know if you’d survive. No intolerances or throat issues for us, though.

For me, throat or nose problems are more from too much dust than from the AC!!!

Conclusion: we’ve got proof you really read this travel journal. The authors are obviously happy about it!!

Cool!!

I’ll answer here about the photo of the big fruit;

renosu got it right—it’s jackfruit. It grows in almost every garden and even along roadsides. In Isan, they call it "durian-issan," which is where the confusion comes from, but it has nothing to do with durian. It doesn’t smell at all, and you can pick it with your bare hands—something you’d never do with durian, which has to be handled with extreme care. Its spines are super sharp. The vendors who sell and cut them at markets always wear thick leather gloves to avoid ending up in the hospital.

https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacquier

I love durian, but my Thai son-in-law can’t stand the smell—or even eat it, for that matter. Goes to show!

The Wiki page is great, with some really funny quotes.

https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Durian

I’m taking the liberty of bumping this travel journal back to the top. That’s just how forums work—you’ve got to accept it: no matter how valuable it was, what was on the front page yesterday gets pushed into the realm of the anecdotal, the anonymous, the obscure, the trivial today.

I’m doing it for this one because, since you finished it, it still stands, in my purely personal opinion, as a model.

First, for the reader who doesn’t have the luck, the opportunity (or the courage?) to explore this country with such depth—whether in kilometers or culture.

Second, for any potential author, because they’ll find plenty of inspiration here.

This account, where humility shines through every word, this story so beautifully illustrated. What endless pleasure to revisit it, to return to it, to flip through it again...

Thank you once more. In fact, every page gives me something new to enrich my knowledge and personal reflections.

That said, one question has been nagging at me.

I didn’t dare ask before, but now that you’ve so kindly checked in with me via private message, I’ll go ahead: any news about the turkeys?

Yes, very recently actually, but in another Thailand travel journal 😉

From time to time, you’re simply priceless, and heaven knows that in this gloomy atmosphere, it’s worth its weight in peanuts.

Still, my humility is wounded by your praise—my modest getaway instantly transformed into a glorious Odyssey! How wise and prophetic it was for me to choose as my motto: "I came, I saw, I came back."

Thank you for grasping it. Thank you for understanding. Thank you for revealing it. Thank you, quite simply, for being.

Thank you, simply for being.

Sure. But what about the turkeys?

Turkeys?

Where are these turkeys?

This gives me the chance to bump this absolutely fantastic travel journal right to the top (up on the hill) so that newcomers know they MUST read it to go to bed a little wiser tonight... 😉

I’m bumping this thread to clarify that the Wat Jojoone and his wife visited at the end of page 4 and beginning of page 5 is Wat Sunthon Mongkhol Khiri Samakham; it’s located along Highway 11, just past Den Chai on the way to Lampang. I’m surprised you were able to take photos in the free museum, which is mainly dedicated to the Thai Royal Family. The huge reclining Buddha on the main square is Lanna-style—very feminine…

Oh, that reminds me of "Lanna and the King" ;)

I’m also surprised about the photos. I mean, with our noses in the air, marveling at everything—and a bit distracted—we don’t always notice everything. And the guards, glued to their phones everywhere, don’t either. Maybe it’s a good thing, in a way, considering the small tribute we try to pay to this kingdom every year.

The only bans on photography we clearly noticed in Siam were in certain Chinese temples, and for reasons absolutely no one could explain to us on the spot.

Oh, that reminds me of "The King and I" by the way ;)....

The movie is banned in Thailand because it supposedly doesn’t comply with some rules and stuff regarding the Thai Royal Family;

And boom 😎, I’m bumping Jojoone’s travel journal to the top of the list..🙂

He shows us(...) his durian tree



Those aren’t "durians" It’s actually the "Jackfruit," very famous here in my home state of Kerala. The tree is called the jack tree in French. A single fruit can commonly weigh 15 or 20 kilos, sometimes even up to 40 kg, or even 60 kg! It’s highly prized. You can eat it before it ripens, as a vegetable—just like mango. Once ripe, it’s a delicious fruit with a fragrant, slightly tangy flavor somewhere between mango and passion fruit (that’s just my opinion), and it’s very sweet. We make excellent sorbets from it, which Malayalees—and I—absolutely love. We also make chips from it, which I personally enjoy snacking on while sipping an aperitif. You can even use the seeds—huge ones—to cook like white beans. It’s very nutritious and energizing, but it makes you fart terribly—way more than beans! These days, it’s not popular as a vegetable; it’s considered "poor man’s food." However, as I mentioned, it’s still one of the favorite ice creams among Malayalees. The peeling process is awful, though. Maybe that’s why it’s lost its reputation on Kerala’s dining tables. Oh, I’ll explain all the details in my travel journal. Joël, remind me if you’re interested.

Hey, I’ll explain all the details in my travel journal. Joël, remind me if you’re interested.

If Joël isn’t interested, I am! 🙂

Hey, I’ll explain all the details in my travel journal. Joël, remind me if you’re interested.

Thanks, if Joël isn’t interested, I am! 🙂

Okay, I’ll do it, but I need to finish what I’ve started writing first