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One Japanese YouTuber's love for durian is unrivalled—so much so that she was brought to the brink of tears after tasting it for the first time in years.
The YouTube channel, iChang RM, is helmed by a Japanese couple, iChang (whose real name is Ai Nishida) and Jimmy (whose real name is Yusuke Nishida).
The pair are fans of Malaysian cuisine and often document their foodie exploits on their channel.
Due to the travel restrictions during the Covid-19 pandemic, the couple was unable to visit Malaysia from Hong Kong, where they live.
"Long time no see"
When they finally made the trip to Malaysia once borders opened up, the couple did not hesitate to visit their favourite durian stall in Selangor once durian season commenced.
In a video titled "After 3 years...Reunion with Durian in Malaysia...😭", iChang and Jimmy shared that in the past, they would stick to the more expensive varieties of durian such as Musang King and Black Thorn.
This time though, they decided to simply follow the crowd.
They bought several D.Kampung durians, which are cheaper, but appeared to be the most popular among locals.
iChang and Jimmy also appeared to be familiar faces at the stall.
The cashier at the durian stall said: "Long time no see."
The text in the video suggests that perhaps the cashier recognised iChang from her distinctive durian-shaped wallet.
Savour the durian
Then came time for the durian tasting.
It had been more than two years since the couple last had eaten durian in Malaysia.
In fact, the first time they tried durian was at this exact location.
Upon savouring the creamy flesh of the fruit, iChang seemed overwhelmed.
As the camera zoomed in, her eyes appeared slightly watery as well.
Blissfully engrossed in the moment, all iChang had to say after was: "Now, I'm in Malaysia."
Her husband had a similarly euphoric reaction to durian.
The couple then washed the durian down with some coconut juice.
Reflecting on the experience, Jimmy asked his wife if she cried again, like she did the first time she tried durian.
iChang replied, however, that she held back her tears as she was "shy to cry in front of people, so [she] didn't."
She added that she used to be rather picky about the durian she eats, but "after more than two years of struggle, I eat whatever durian."
You can watch their full video here.
If you're craving durians now
Top photo screenshot from iChang RM / YouTube