In Malaysia, it's common to see the doors in Indian houses of the Hindu faith decorated with mango leaves. Mangoes are natives to South Asia; India, Pakistan and Myanmar included; growing wild in the forest and the leaves, I suppose are auspicious especially to the Indians. Indian mangoes are different from the wild mangoes in Borneo island, that is if they are indeed mangoes. Borneo mangoes are big and brown. Called assam embang or embawang by the Malays in Sarawak, mawang by the Ibans or bambangan by the Sabahan, the fruits have thick skins and their supposedly sweet and aromatic yellow flesh is rather fibrous. A colleague who came back from Sarawak treated us to the fruit but none of us like it. Maybe instead of eating it raw, the fruit should be cooked with fish and chillies like what they do in Borneo. What do you think?
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