By Agnes Winarti
Published in Bali Daily/The Jakarta Post Wednesday, January 16 2013
Some love public parks for the priceless health benefits they facilitate, others love being in the parks for the chance to make new friends and to bond with family or a sweetheart. Whatever their reason, public parks always have had a special place in the heart of most Denpasar residents, and their popularity has kept on soaring in the past decade.It was a drizzly morning on a regular work day, yet, bare-chested Iwan, only covering his head with a rolled up T-shirt, braved the morning drizzle to complete his seven laps of the day around the four-hectare Puputan Margarana field in Renon, downtown Denpasar.
He was not the only one who was braving the morning drizzle that Tuesday. Others included a group of school kids and joggers wearing raincoats or carrying umbrellas.
“It’s healthier to jog in the rain. I jog and walk here six times a week. Not a day goes past without jogging, except Sundays,” said the 60-year-old hairdresser-cum-businessman, who has been jogging at Renon field since 1996.
“My main motivation is certainly health. But I like to start conversations with other people as well. Here I have met many new acquaintances, some of whom later become my business partners,” said Iwan, while greeting a shoeless jogger covered by a raincoat.
“This the best public park I know. No pollution at all. Even Jakarta does not have any like this. It’s perfect,” commented Iwan about the Renon field that welcomes hundreds of visitors on a daily basis, especially during weekends.
For his fellow jogger, Bagus Putra Baskara, a 47-year-old travel agent, jogging at the Renon field is addictive. “Doing sports is like a drug. If I don’t do it, my body aches instantly,” said the former badminton player.
Security officer Bambang acknowledged doing sports at Renon field had brought him priceless health benefits. “I used to be overweight, as heavy as 81 kilograms, but since I have walked here over the past five years, I have managed to stay at 69 kg and walking is not a torture for me anymore,” said Bambang.
Bicycling enthusiast Endra Datta, who walks around the Renon field every Saturday, said he was grateful for the presence of the public park as it helped bring him closer to his soccer-loving son. “My son loves playing soccer. So, I help him look for a place to train in Renon field. So, while he trains there every Saturday, I enjoy a walk around the park,” said Endra.
Endra expressed his pride in the city’s park, which over the years has become a benchmark for other regencies to follow. “It is amusing to observe the lively crowds visiting the park. They come from such a diverse background, young and old, the haves and the have-nots, the sport enthusiasts and the artists. I noticed that the public park concept in Renon has also inspired neighboring regencies, like Gianyar and Tabanan, to have their own,” he said.
Just like Endra, who expects better trash handling and proportional event-hosting at the Renon park, Udayana University’s spatial planning observer Putu Rumawan Salain acknowledged there was still room for improvement in the Denpasar public parks, including decent public toilets and sufficient park lights.
“More similar public parks must be made available spread around Denpasar, not only a concentrated spot in the city’s downtown, so that more residents can enjoy the benefits of such parks,” said Rumawan.
Other similar public parks around Denpasar include the Puputan Badung field at the kilometer zero spot of Denpasar city and the Lumintang field in the northern part of the city.
Realizing the popularity of public spaces among Denpasar residents, the city and provincial administrations have pledged to continue making improvements to the Puputan Margarana and Puputan Badung fields, to provide more convenience for the visitors.
