I ALWAYS feel proud when foreigners praise Malaysia. I usually remain silent (which is quite difficult for me) and absorb the flowery terms that are used to describe this wonderful land.

The sights and sounds that they experience are things that we sometimes take for granted and, therefore, I am all ears when people describe their travels, the people they meet and the things that they find fascinating.

Many of us have become so comfortable that we do not take bus and train rides, preferring the car even to go to the mini-market, which is 500m away from the home while walking there is better for the heart.

Many tourists, armed with bus and train schedules (yes, they do exist) and a map in hand jump from one transportation mode to another to get to places they want to visit.

When I meet some of them and if I have the time, I usually offer to take them sightseeing and a day-trip to Malacca with lunch at the Seafarer's Restaurant in Klebang (where the food is delicious) or a visit to the Butterfly Farm in the heart of the city (how many of you have gone there, I wonder) is usually accepted with glee.
My recent expedition was to take a New Zealand couple and their two children to trek up to the Chilling waterfall in Kuala Kubu Baru where the cascading two-tiered waterfall plunges into a deep pool where the adults and children had a whale of time splashing and swimming.

It was a pleasure sitting cross-legged at the picnic, listening to the wind blow through the bamboo plants, enjoying the fresh aroma of the greenery all around and to note that my handphone had no signal, thus I was assured that the outside world will not be getting in touch with me.

My "jungle man" friend G. Danapal and I hope to embark on the long- awaited trip to Kampung Peta in Endau-Rompin, having spent 10 days in the jungle previously.

With limited rations, it was exhilarating to be on "survivors' mode" but actually it was made easy with the help of the Orang Asli guides who are adept at finding water and food in the jungle.

Among the travel buffs who make it a point to catch up with me and my friends every time they hit Kuala Lumpur are Eddie Bonici and his girlfriend Yuko Hatanaka.

My friend Sasi usually drags them to Las Caretas or House of Lords in Subang Jaya to meet the "boys" where we chat about everything that is happening in Malaysia and around the world.

Working for a lightning protection company based in Singapore, Eddie, who is an Australian, loves travelling around Malaysia checking out all the tourist spots, eating local food and spending time with the local crowd.

He feels at home with Malaysians since he finds us very opinionated and love to talk about everything under the sun -- whether we are well versed with the subject or not.

Being free-spirited, he is uncomfortable with rigid rules and, thus, finds the Malaysian lifestyle easygoing and the people very relaxed.

He insists that allowing people to sell fruits and other items by the roadside is a cool idea as it allows travellers to break journey and enjoy the local fare while the hawkers get to earn a reasonable income instead of selling their stuff to middlemen for a song.

"In many countries, you need to apply for a licence to do this.

"I know even here you need a permit but many local authorities are flexible about this.

"It is not like these people are making millions of ringgit selling things by the roadside," he said in his usual pragmatic fashion.

As he painted a wonderful picture of Malaysia spewing anecdotes from his travels, he mentioned that whenever he was on the road, he would stop and buy Malay apples.

Sasi, Prathap, Ravi and I looked at each other dumbfounded. I, the resident expert on everything, told him apples did not grow in Malaysia.

He burst out laughing and told me that not only does he buy and eat them regularly, he has even gone to the extent of reading up about the Malay apple.

Curiosity got the better of me and I decided to check up on the Malay apple.

I must declare that I did not know that the jambu merah, which I enjoy as much as Eddie does, is called by that name even though it is not part of the apple family.

Botanically identified as syzygium malaccense, the fruit is also called Malay rose-apple and mountain apple. The French call it pomme de Malaisie while the Spanish have named it pomarrosa Malaya.

The fruit, which is a native of Malaysia, is also commonly cultivated from Java to the Philippines and Vietnam, also in Bengal and South India. Portuguese voyagers carried it from Malacca to Goa and from there it was introduced into East Africa.

It spread throughout the Pacific Islands in very early times for it is featured in Fijian mythology and the wood from the tree was used by ancient Hawaiians to make idols.

Indeed, it has been recorded that, before the arrival of missionaries in Hawaii, there were no fruits except bananas, coconuts and Malay apples.

In Hawaii, the flowers are considered sacred to Pele, the fiery volcano goddess.

In Puerto Rico, both red and white wine are made from the Malay apple.

According to the publication Hawaiian Herbs of Medicinal Value, the bark has been much used in local remedies.

It is pounded together with salt, the crushed material is strained through coconut husk fibre and the juice poured into a deep cut.

"The patient must exercise absolute self-control as the liquid seeps into the flesh and nerves," said one article that I read.

I also discovered that in the olden days, Malayans applied a powder of the dried leaves on a cracked tongue (I am not sure whether this is still done).

Also a preparation of the root of the jambu merah tree is a remedy for itchiness. The root acts as a diuretic. The root bark is useful against dysentery.

Having read about the fruit and its properties, I began to wonder why we call it jambu merah or jambu air when the whole world calls it Malay apple. Should we not call it Malay apple, too?

Won't it be wonderful when people stand in buffet lines in hotels all around the world and dessert counters where the fruit is displayed carry the sign "Malay apple".

I read how a fruit called Chinese Gooseberry, with dull green-brown skin and bright green or golden flesh with rows of small, black, edible seeds, which is native to southern China, was later grown in New Zealand.

The fruit was renamed for marketing reasons in the mid-20th century, first to melonette and then to kiwi fruit. Today, kiwi fruit is found all over the world indirectly promoting its adopted country.

Since the Malay apple has a strong historical link to Malaysia and countless documents exist calling it by the name, it would be appropriate to return to the name and promote it as a Malaysian product just as it was done with the kiwi fruit.

Coming back to Eddie and Yuko, I thanked them profusely for making me more knowledgeable about local fruits.

There were also many more hours spent discussing similar subjects, including whether in 1891, Queen Victoria offered a knighthood to the first person to bring her a fresh mangosteen having heard about its delicious taste from travellers to Malaya. (Well, that's another story).

It is sad that Eddie and Yuko have since moved back to Melbourne which has denied us the opportunity to delve into other interesting local topics.

My friends and I have given them an open invitation to return here anytime to check out places they had missed out.

During one of the dinners before they left for Australia, the conversation moved to music. And the phrase "Goodbye doesn't mean forever" came up. Being Bread and David Gates' fans, my friends and I quickly jumped on the topic and sang the lyrics of Goodbye Girl much to the chagrin of the other patrons in the outlet, since we were awfully out of tune.

This is when we discussed that during our lifetime, we meet so many people, some briefly, some for a few years, and they remain in our lives for a long time.

This means we get to say goodbyes all the time but there are different degrees to it since it depends on how long we know them and what the circumstances are surrounding their departure.

The good times that we had with Eddie and Yuko made it even more difficult to conjure up the strength to say that powerful and heart-breaking word "goodbye", but then we realised that in this age of handphones and emails, it is really difficult for people not to keep in touch, especially if they want to.

With travelling becoming so affordable, my friends and I are thinking of a golfing trip Down Under, which would also give us an opportunity to catch up with Eddie and Yuko and many other friends whom we have known over the years.

It will be also be an opportunity for the friends and strangers for whom I had played "tour guide" to reciprocate.

So David Gates' words "Goodbye doesn't mean forever" rings so true when we bid farewell to people, and Eddie and Yuko can rest assured that I will be knocking on their door by the end of the year.