The Unsung Parks of Singapore
Dear Papa and Mummy,
Hope that everyone is fine over there in KL and having good fun this weekend! As for us (your loving family in Singapore), we're all doing fine too. Perhaps we were a little down during the last few days, both in body and mind, being hit hard by the flu. But we are on the path to recovery now. And it helps that there are these little unsung parks scattered around the island, that play a big part in reviving the body and soul.
Singapore, being the Garden City that it is, surely has its share of beautiful parks and gardens. Amongst these are East Coast Park, West Coast Park, Kent Ridge Park and MacRitchie Reservoir Park, which were part of the itinerary during my Coast-to-Coast adventures. But there are also many smaller parks, local residential parks not found in any guidebook or even mentioned in websites, for example, `The Top 50 Parks of Singapore'. To the uninitiated, they might even appear as afterthoughts in the mind of the city planners, just to patch up the little spaces around residential or business real estate. But to me, at least, these little, unsung parks are life-savers. (Think Bukit Purmei Hillock Park along my walk from West Coast to East Coast, or Tavistock Park on my Coast-to-Coast trail)
The Therapeutic Garden of Bukit Batok
After my lesson at Bukit Gombak one evening, I thought that I should visit one of the nearby parks, just to wind down. Sort of instinctively, I crossed the street over to a tranquil neighbourhood path which cut through clumps of trees and housing estates. With the aid of Google Maps, I soon found myself on track to the Bukit Batok Hillock Park. However, I only encountered one side of a forested hill, with no way up. I surmised then that the entrance was on the opposite side. As I still yearned for a walk in a park that evening, I checked the map again for alternative parks or Gardens close by. Luckily, there was a green space labelled as a 'Therapeutic Garden', which was not far off. Finding my way there, I realised that this Garden was essentially the 'garden' for the blocks of flats in the vicinity, taking up the space between the void decks and the street that ran alongside it.
But it nevertheless lived up to its 'therapeutic' label. I felt peaceful just walking along the path, and whatever worries I had seemed to dissolve just as naturally as the afternoon heat was dissipating from the garden's tarred path and grassy surfaces, as evening descended. Groups of migrant workers must have felt the same, as they congregated in the more concealed areas of the garden to chill out after work.
Following Google Maps on the path to Bukit Batok Hillside Park
Crossing over to the Therapeutic Garden across the street
A serene path weaving through the HDB estate
When I left our apartment building this evening, it appeared that I had already been to so many parks and green spaces in Singapore, that there would be nothing left to surprise me. Thus, I felt quite a lot of resistance in leaving the house at all! Finally, I decided that a walk would still do me good and opted for a simple, nearby route. I would walk up to Mayfair estate and just enjoy a leisurely stroll to Hua Guan Avenue and the residential estate that it led to, before coming back home. And indeed, just to enjoy some fresh air, open space and sky above was rejuvenating.
There was some wooded area and houses on the right side of Hua Guan Ave that lent a further air of serenity.
Residential estate at Hua Guan Ave
Unlike my previous walks though, I chose a slightly different route coming back. It would bring me a little deeper into the private housing estate, but I wouldn't sweat the small difference it made.
However, as soon as I was in this new neighbourhood, the promise of greenery and open space drew me across a quiet road. Then, looking down below me, I spotted it. Ensconced in a small valley in between private houses, was a simple rectangular park. It could not have been simpler- A few wooden benches, exercise equipment and a swing, all arranged along the perimeter of the park. And yet, in the fading glow of the evening sun and a desire for peace of mind and tranquility, I was drawn to it like an insect to a table lamp.
Finding myself in the park, I scanned the scene around me. It was indeed a picture of tranquility.
I was now drawn to the swing. It was a garden swing, exactly like the one you have in Malacca, with two seats of wrought iron facing each other. I took a seat and gently pushed off. The orchestra of cicadas had begun their performance and dusk was settling around me. But I felt cocooned in a world where time stood still. I could have been in your garden in Taman Sentosa with the bougainvilleas as a roof over my head. A world with no room or appetite for quarrel, hate, anger, victory, defeat. Perhaps it was the world of a child, where what mattered was the here and now and the joy that it beheld- the joy of moving in harmony with the world on your garden swing.
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