Family, Johor Bahru Trip 2013, SmugMug, Taman Merdeka, park, slideshow in Slideshow, Travels Saturday, January 5, 2013 at 10:59PM 
On the way to Legoland from Thistle, we passed by a public park right next to the Royal Palace. It was called Taman Merdeka. And with the ample green, we explored it after lunch earlier. It was actually quite nice but could do with better maintenance since the location was superb, and I was sure with a bit of effort, the place could go far.
The lake was filled up with red sands which I was sure was from the surrounding development. There was also an amphitheatre which appeared underutilised. Some of the route had fallen into disrepair, which was a great shame.
At least the children's pool - which appeared recently opened - looked to be frequented and was in good shape. There was quite a crowd there when we arrived, and the families there seemed to be enjoying themselves.
There was also a nice restaurant by the main carpark to the park. We thought about going in, but the boys were already excited about going to Puteri Harbour. There was no stalls by the pool though. The park also seemed like a popular place for the newlyweds having their wedding photos taken. We saw at least three couples there during our stop.
The theme for the park was obviously the Independence but mostly from the Japanese Occupation during the Second World War. There were murals around there, but not much information apart from the token billboard. I wished that the place was given some monetary input to be reinvigorated. A 1% slice from Iskandar's advertising budget would do wonders to the place ....... and possibly would go a long way for the common Rakyat.
