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Weekly5: Outdoor playgrounds for children
JPThe rainy season has almost ended and itâs time for outdoor activities for the children
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JP
The rainy season has almost ended and it's time for outdoor activities for the children. One option is to hit one of the ever-larger number of waterparks in Greater Jakarta, but the capital offers some different, more pastoral ways to amuse young urbanites. Here are five examples:
Ecopark
Ocean Ecopark, located inside the Ancol recreation park, is a 34-hectare green space equipped with various recreational facilities for children.
The park, formerly Padang Golf Ancol, is divided into several themed zones: Eco Care, Eco Nature, Eco Art and Eco Energy.
Besides exercising, children can engage in outdoor activities, cruising, canoeing, paintball, ceramics-making and watching the Fantastic Magic Fountain multimedia show.
The park is also ideal for children who want to learn about farming. They can learn about bee-keeping and types of vegetables and how to plant them, and play with buffalo.
They can also learn about alternative energy like biogas and organic fertilizers in the Energy House.
The park is open from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Ticket prices for each activity vary, ranging from Rp 25,000 (US$1.90) to Rp 180,000. The Ancol management offers an annual pass for six activities for Rp 100,000.
Mekarsari fruit park
Mekarsari tourism park is located on Jl. Raya Cileungsi-Jonggol Km. 3 Bogor, West Java. It was established in 1992 by the Purna Bhakti Foundation, chaired at the time by Siti Hartinah or Tien Soeharto, the country's first lady for 30 years.
Today, the park, with a ticket price of Rp 25,000 per person, is a favorite outdoor destination owing to its vast collection of tropical fruits, including the rare and the hybrid. For example, besides developing regular melons plants, it also develops them in the shape of cubes, hearts, triangles and stars.
There is a small wooden train to enjoy a short tour of the 264-hectare park. From rambutan to durian, the park seems to have it all. It also features a small man-made lake and an outbound area where children can play flying fox and enjoy other activities.
The park bases its calendar and events on what fruits are ripe for harvest, so visitors particularly interested in certain fruits may want to check its website, mekarsari.com, before visiting the park.
Tanah Tingal
Tanah Tingal is an outdoor facility for adults as well as children in Jombang, South Tangerang, close to Sudimara railway station.
Built in 2000, the 9-hectare site has a swimming pool, a canoeing lake and a host of fun outdoor activities.
Although making a reservation as a large group is better for visitors to enjoy all the facilities, individual families can enter at a price of
Rp 15,000 per person, getting access to the swimming pool and the children's playground set in parkland.
Large groups can arrange more activities like growing vegetables, learning to grow orchids and birdwatching. During harvesting season, visitors can also pick fruit or harvest rice.
No canteen or food stalls are available inside, so it is better to pack up some lunches before coming.
More information: tanahtingal.com.
Kuntum Farm Field
Located on Jl. Raya Tajur No. 291 in Bogor, West Java, Kuntum Farm Field boasts a village-living experience for children. Before entering, visitors can buy a small plastic bag of fish food to feed the numerous fish in the beautiful long pond.
Children can feed goats with milk in bottles, play with rabbits and feed chickens. The farm also has a large open area dedicated to vegetables and herbal plants as well as a spacious green garden with a river and ducks swimming about.
Visitors, who pay Rp 25,000 each for entry, can also buy fresh vegetables and cow's milk from the farm to be brought home. Lunch is also available at a nearby food court.
Rumah Perubahan
Founded by motivational speaker and business consultant Rhenald Kasali in 2007, Rumah Perubahan in Bekasi is actually designed for business training courses, with facilities like meeting rooms, classrooms, a gym, dorm rooms and guesthouses in a natural setting.
The facility, however, also provides a biweekly program for children from four to 10 years old. The next batch this month will be on March 22, continuing every other Sunday subsequently.
At Rp 50,000 per child (parents accompanying children do not have to pay), children participate in the program called 1000 Petualang Cilik (1000 Little Adventurers) from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m.
'In one batch, we can cater to 150 to 200 children. They grow vegetables, feed cows, learn how to make tempeh, catch fish and bathe water buffalo. Don't worry, we have five buffaloes,' said Ikhlasul Amal, a member of staff at Rumah Perubahan.
Rumah Perubahan (rumahperubahan.com) is located on Jl. Raya Hankam in Pondok Ranggon, Bekasi, near the toll road exit Jatiwarna on the Jakarta Outer Ring Road. - JP
