Fruity

Now the local fruit season is upon us

we've been quite good at trying new things, but less good at taking in focus photos so, some are from http://weloveourbangladesh.blogspot.com


Lychees
starting with the familiar.  I think I must have known that lychees grow on trees, but didn't realise that they grow in big bunches

here they are sold with the leaves still attached per bunch of 50 or so, too many for me to eat before they go bad as Lon doesn't like them (they remind him of eyeballs), so the driver and maid both get a share.  Oh and I buy the expensive ones which are 1.50 for the bunch of 50.

 

Day 2 in the bowl.  By day 3 we have some mouldy ones, and the skin on lots are discoloured, which makes me think the imported ones in Europe must be treated to prevent this happening.

The verdict - delicious and much juicier than I've had before (running down your arm juicy). Must get more as the season is so short.

Rose apples

we tried a similar fruit in Thailand.  They have a nice crunch to them, a bit like an unripe conference pear but juicier, but no discernible flavour as such.  Verdict, not worth the bother

Taal fruit

these fellas grow on the Asian palm - when ripe and brown they are used to make alcoholic toddy.

I saw some at the market and thought they were odd shaped green coconuts.  I asked my friends driver the name, and he said they were a bit like lychees but not so sweet

Back with our own driver, I asked him to stop if we saw any for sale - he later presented me with some peeled in a bag. Palm sized, clear gelatinous blobs.

The verdict? on biting in there was a watery centre, which was unexpected (and so messy) - the fruit itself was like unripe coconut flesh in texture, but with no particular flavour. It felt like eating a jellyfish.  I'd like to try the toddy though!

Jack fruit
The national fruit of Bangladesh.  They are everywhere on the trees in Dhaka and grow on the trunks and branches of the trees in huge numbers - some are less even than others.  They grow huge as well (bigger than a basketball).  Unripe they can be made into chutneys and curries, but bangladeshis just like to eat them ripe.  The ripe fruits have a strong almost unpleasant smell (penetrating in the same way overripe melons can be, but less appetising).  I think that they look almost like cancerous growths on the trees.

Incredible texture on the skins

I'll be getting mine from the street vendors when the time comes (not yet- but soon, they are in the markets already)

the flavour falls somewhere between a pineapple and a banana, with hints of mango; the texture, depending on the ripeness of the fruit, can be mildly chewy


Mangoes
Season is just starting! Lon is a happy bunny. They are around a euro a kilo now, and will go down as supply increases

Monkey!

a few weeks back as our aqua aerobics class was about to start we found a different onlooker than the kind we often attract.

This time it was a monkey who had come to the area because of a ripe lychee tree. There are apparently a few troops around our neighbourhood, but this is the first time I saw the evidence.

Doctors and Dentists

Now that we have been outside NL so long, I don't think we are registered any longer with our previous GP or dentist, and even so, we aren't based in the Hague any more, so I prefer to have our health care providers sorted out in the country where we spend the majority of the year.

The ICDDR,B (International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh) has a travellers clinic which offers GP services and vaccinations. I think I had my first sit down health chat with a British GP for decades! Prescriptions are then either very expensive (imported medicines) or incredibly cheap (locally made ones).

I also had the chance to visit the better of our two local hospitals with facilities that are up to scratch (-ish). A friend needed an MRI scan to rule out anything too serious with a bad knee, so I kept her company at the Apollo. We didn't see much beyond the entrance and radiology unit, but I was impressed at how efficient the whole process was (particularly receiving money!) but even with an appointment the scan took place an hour later than planned.

Entrance / admin area

disposal instructions on the bin in the loo

 

Lastly, the dentist. Least favourite health professional group. We'd received recommendations from two very different sources for the same dentist, so I decided to bite the bullet and get a check up and cleaning session. I also needed a couple of fillings which are now in place. Ouch.

The dentist is nice, the equipment is outdated but cleaned, but it is an open office with partitions, so you can hear your neighbours drill too. One other difference than in europe was the use of my chest to keep the instruments on (on a towel) rather than a tray - but the pick thing pricked!

Queensday and Quiz

Not news for our facebook friends, but anyway

Queensday was of course celebrated with style this year.  Dutchies were invited to the residence to watch the live abdication of Queen B, and to eat cake

Later in the day we went to the magically transformed tennis courts at the dutch club for the official reception.  The coronation was screened as well.

And then finally the "oranje" part of the night, partying until late 

Sadly between the reception and the party we came home to find this - our crockery cupboard had collapsed on itself, breaking three quarters of the pottery collection from our travels

A few days later came the Dutch Club Quiz (Lon in camouflage)

 Our team came fourth out of 18 teams, and won this splendid Bollywood wrapping paper

Day out in Dhanmondi

We've been lax at updating lately, but have been busy with one thing and another - back at the end of April, on a rare hartal free weekend we made our way into the busy (arty?) neighbourhood of Dhanmondi.

we visited some shops selling handicrafts and clothes - and I admired the WC's in one very much

We finally found the Dhaka Arts Center (which isn't where it's listed in the guidebook), but were too early to go into the exhibition that was on

 and instead went to the rather hip cafe attached to the Arts Center

 while we were there there was an immense thunderstorm and rains, which meant we hung round longer than intended - but no worries

in the much cooler afternoon now, we took a stroll round the lake and amphitheater and gawked at a film crew