JP/17/NAT

Natsuko Shioya, a quiet library with beautiful panorama

Library to commemorate the neverending love story

Though Yogyakarta boasts itself as a student's city for being a home to dozens of universities and scholars, in fact it has more shopping malls than good public libraries.

Now, if you want to find a library with a pleasant reading atmosphere, come to Sumberan village in Sariharjo, Sleman.

Located about two kilometers north of Yogya Kembali Monument, the village has a library called Natsuko Shioya, which is named after a Japanese woman.

The library building that is dressed up in Japanese style, is designed to create comfort to visitors. The reading room, measuring 10x20 square meters are walled with large glass windows so as to allow fresh air and sunrays to intrude into the serenity.

Through the windows, visitors are invited to enjoy the visual feast of beautiful Japanese garden, located at the west and north sides.

Also, they can also read at the garden, which is furnished with a gazebo to drink tea, a small pond where turtles and koi fish racing with each others.

The restful atmosphere of Japanese garden is further enhanced with bonsais and bamboo trees.

When you are tired of reading, you can take a glance at Mount Merapi that is at the north of the library. Green paddy fields added the beauty like you usually see in a postcard, only that here you can witness the paddy sways to the right and to the left after the winds, dancing like the waves of the ocean.

There is no room for noises, including those from the motorized vehicles. The only sound you hear is the chirping of sparrows, the bells of the cows that are ready to plow the paddy fields or the bleating of herded goats passing in front of the library.

If you wish to feed your intellectual appetite while rest your body, you can go on a small physical exercise since there is no public transportation stopping by this area. Moreover, the library is located rather far from the heart of the city.

The library which has opened since August 2002 has a collection of some 2,300 books, mostly children story books like the Walt-Disney's. There are also novels, books of philosophy, biography and even encyclopaedia.

It turns out that the library has many children as well as adult as regular visitors.

There was one afternoon when six-year old Wulan and her friends were spotted reading picture books enthusiastically.

"I am already on the first grade, I must tell stories in front of the class," Wulan said.

On another day, two Japanese women who live in Yogyakarta came with their children, reading books and played in the garden.

"Everyday, at least 15 children come to this library," said SP Sedyaningsih, one of the librarians.

Natsuko Shioya is possibly the library with the most comfortable atmosphere in Yogyakarta. To be frank, most libraries in the city are always noisy, dusty and "shabby", and the buildings are not equipped with convenient and comfortable facilities.

Anyone may come to Natsuko Shioya and you do not have to pay for reading the books or browsing the magazines in the library.

However, if you want to borrow to finish your book at home, you should become a member. The membership fee is Rp 50,000 (US$6) for children under 15 years old and R 100,000 for adults. They can borrow the books for a week duration.

But who is Natsuko Shioya?

Natsuko was a Japanese tourist who regularly visited Indonesia.

In 1996, she visited Sosrowijayan international kampong in Yogyakarta where she met Glen Goulds, a tourist from Australia. They fell in love at the first sight and travelled together around Yogyakarta and also Bali.

"Natsuko enjoyed visiting temples," said Goulds, who now lives in Yogyakarta.

However, the love story has a sad ending.

In August 1997, Natsuko died tragically when a heavy machine who was operated to make building foundation fell down and crashed her house at Saporo, Hokkaido. She was 23.

"I am broken hearted," Goulds said. "She was very kind; she never got angry and modest."

Goulds, 44, works as the quality control consultant of CV Satria Grafika in Yogyakarta. It was his company that built the library while the concept and the idea were from Goulds.

"All the beauty in the library is the reflection of Natsuko," said the man whose favorite books include The Prophet by Khalil Gibran.

But the library also has a more stimulating function.

Here, visitors are expected to make use of the library as a place to search their true self through meditation, which can be done in the gazebo located at the back of the library.

A dedicated bookworm, Goulds reads not only newspapers, but also three books and three magazines in a week. His favorite activity also inspired him to build a library.

"Besides, I remembered the suggestion of (musician) Sawung Jabo when I asked him what I could contribute to the little people. He suggested that I make a library to help grow the reading culture among the nation," he said.

Most of the collections are children books because Goulds believed that the reading habit should be nurtured at the early age.

Goulds' vision seems to have been materialized. Even though the library does not have many members, it has encourage the people to regularly visit the library and read books.

The library has started to "shine" beautifully like the smile of Natsuko, which, according to Goulds, was as beautiful as the sunshine. -- Bambang M.

Yogyakarta is popular as a student's city and a cultural city. It has dozens of universities with a huge number of students and many scholars also have opted to live here.

Ironically, Yogyakarta has more glamorous shopping malls than good public libraries.