In the world of durians, it is an uncommon sight to find a Caucasian person being near the fruit, what more tasting it. However, many times we have been surprised that some actually do love the king of fruits despite its heavenly smell.
Well, this is true for an Australian man, but he is no ordinary person. That’s because he is the Mayor of Adelaide, and he loves durians!
Recently, Penang Island City Council (MBPP) prepared a feast of local fruits including durian, cempedak, rambutan and mangosteen for Martin Haese who went at the durians like nobody’s business, which obviously made the MBPP team very delighted.
“This is my second round in two days having the durian. I had some in Singapore earlier. I also had them when I last visited Penang in 2013,” said Haese yesterday (July 12) after the feast at Armenian Park.
“I also love durian ice cream and the other local fruit also tastes great.”
Meanwhile, The Star reported that Haese is leading a delegation on an official visit to look into new areas of mutual cooperation. Penang was founded by Captain Francis Light while his son, Colonel William planned the creation of Adelaide from scratch. This links the two cities historically, which makes Adelaide and George Town sister cities.
“I am also here to congratulate MBPP mayor Yew Tung Seang on his appointment,” Haese said, adding that he was amazed by the restoration and conservation of heritage buildings in George Town, and mentioned that the city has changed tremendously since his last visit in 2013.
“The council has done a great job in maintaining the cultural and heritage characteristics of places and buildings.”
In his welcoming address, Yew said that Adelaide and George Town were similar in many ways, which go back to the era of Captain Francis.
“I am impressed with the Smart City initiatives by Adelaide, especially the recent launch of Australia’s first fibre optic network providing speeds up to 10GBps under the ‘Ten Gigabit Adelaide’,” he said.
Do you believe that one day, majority of Caucasians will love durian as much as we do? Tell us what you think in the comments!
Also read: This Super Semangat American Durian-Lover Knows All 65 Durian Farms in Penang!