I brought my family (spouse + 16 month old daughter) to the Botanic Gardens for a leisurely walk on Sunday afternoon.

It was a relatively inexpensive excursion, just the price of petrol to get there and $0.54 parking fee and some drinks at the basement food court.

The older my daughter gets and the more I can bring her out to public parks and places of nature, the more I realise the simple pleasures of life in Singapore can really be had for a small price.

Enjoy what your tax dollars pay for

NParks (National Parks Board) has invested millions of our tax dollars in sprucing up our nature reserves and parks to be enjoyed by all. There are websites such as Seen This Scene That that feature reviews of places of interest (including public parks).

There are many public parks in Singapore scattered all over the island. I was recently at Labrador Park and walked along the tree covered path from the broadwalk area (next to the sea) up to the top of the hill overlooking the park.  The parking there is free as most NParks public parks have free parking. The only downside is that they are not so accessible if you take public transport. But parks such as Botanic Gardens are quite accessible by bus.

Take a break from consumerism

Sometimes we need a break from the cycle of shopping, eating out and buying stuff. A home-made picnic or a weekend outing to a public park allows us to break free from the hustle and bustle of city living and mall hopping to let us get some fresh air, sunshine and to sweat out the toxins in our bodies.

If you are planning to do something this weekend, why not plan to take pleasure in simple things like a walk in a public park?

Be well and prosper.