Be jealous. It's lychee season.

When I tell people my name in Chinese (Li zhi -- pronounced Lee jr), they sometimes laugh and ask if my name is Lychee.  It's pronounced the same way in Chinese, you see.  They're homophones.  I smile and say no, and tell them the characters for my name (beautiful and sesame: it refers to a mythical flower, I was told).  I don't mind.  I mean, I wouldn't really want to be named Cherry or Peach (or Apple) in English, but I'm not really named after a fruit, and the fact that it sounds the same doesn't bother me, because...

I LOVE lychees.  They're not my favorite fruit.  That's summer Georgia peaches (nectarines if I'm eating them whole) but they're delicious.  And cool looking.

So the outsides are red and the insides are white, with this pretty, smooth, brown seed/pit in the middle.  The flavor is mild, a little sweet, and light.  I've had canned lychees, and they have the unique flavor, but it's just not quite right.  Like all canned fruit, it's just off from the taste of the fresh.

So for the next few weeks, while lychees are in season, we will be eating as many of these as we can stand.  Then they'll be more expensive and we won't have them often.  Gotta get them in while the getting is good.

Next up, I believe, is mango season.  *drool*