Pasir Ris Park

Pasir Ris Park is a beach park located in the north-eastern part of Singapore. It stands at 71 hectares of land, including 6 hectares of preserved mangrove forests and some reclaimed land.Boardwalks are built into the mangrove forests. Mud crabs, mudskippers and mangrove trees such as Rhizophora and Bruguiera are found in this park. Also in this park, there is a beach which is relatively popular to Singaporeans. There are also many other facilities like a cycling track, barbecue pits and dining. Some resorts near the park have gates linking to the park.
I could say that Pasir Ris Park was a place where I grew up in. Since the age of 3, my mother often brought my siblings and I to the beach or to the park to play in the sand. We would often climb up the spider-web, run around maze and stroll along the paved concrete roads, stopping occasionally to buy a ‘potong’ ice-cream stick.
Today, Pasir Ris Park has changed somewhat significantly from how I saw it as a child. Rows and rows of restaurants have now been erected along the coast. ‘Fisherman’s Village’ was termed as the place known to many Singaporeans. Though I felt that these rows of restaurats though strategically placed for a desired atmosphere for dining, it has blocked out the view to the sea when walking along the paved concrete road. However, I was glad to realise that further down the coast, most of the other parts of the beach were left untouched. I was more afraid of how commercialized this peaceful part of the island would become. The peace and serenity of the place was attractive to me.
Architecturally, it couldn’t be compared to the many other beaches on the island of Singapore. But the shelters built to hide-away when it rained was something I identified with this park. The rounded pitch roof shelther had a space large enough for 20 people yet when seen from a distance it doesn’t seem like it’s terrorizing the space too much.
The landscape of the beach is also beautiful. Rocks were erected for people to seat as close to the sea as possible, the number of palm trees were just enough for sea breezes to ventilate the area and yet still provide sufficient shading for picnic-goers. There are also enough open spaces for people to have fly a kite, kick a ball and play catching.
A space enough to stay in your memories should be a place worth visiting.

Adeline Toh