Juan Mercado, 37, comes to Lake Konya Konya at least twice a week to exercise. Take advantage of the track around the water mirror, about four kilometers long, to run and try to stay “in shape”.

Juan, who lives in the neighborhood of El Sausalito (in the municipality of Colcapirhua), several blocks from the lake, takes advantage of the fact that this place is empty in the morning to go for a walk. Sometimes he arrives with his brother, but he always does it alone at seven in the morning.

He asserts that this is the only place, near his house, where he can run without major shocks, “because it is quiet and few people.”

In recent months, Konya Konya Lake properties have become a recreational space for neighbors who live in their surroundings and even for those who arrive from far away, several kilometers away from this green area.

Like Juan Mercado, Miriam Morales, 24, arrived at Lake Cunha-Cunha, but in her condition to exercise on machines located in the northern part of this space, a few meters from Avenida de Urbigny.

Part of this workout gear is in the middle of the scrubs, Miriam says, but it serves its purpose, which is to work out her muscles.

Coña Coña Lagoon is officially closed to the public, until further notice, so people entering these properties do so through dozens of holes in the Olympic grid that covers the entire ocean.

On the weekends you can even notice some families, in small numbers, who come to this green area to breathe the less polluted air, appreciate the tree species that are still standing and take the opportunity for a little walk.

A neighbor of the area, Lydia Mamani, and her two children usually come to the lake to “walk and see the birds that live among the plants in the glass of water” and sometimes even share a meal.

Lydia points out that she prefers to go with her children to the lake, because the municipality’s urban parks are filled with many people when it is open and prefers not to risk her health, so that the cases of coronavirus “double”.

In this dry season, the water level has dropped dramatically, but there are still enough native birds and other migratory birds to nest among the reeds and cattails.

In this lake, in the northern sector, there are also abandoned mechanical toys, in the middle of the bush, without use, for which a few thousand Bolivians have invested.

Elvis Gutiérrez, an official in the mayor’s office, confirmed that people are entering the Konya Konya lake property due to the broken nets some people have made over the past few years.

Gutierrez said the lake properties have become a recreational space for the area’s families, but the venue needs to be improved, a work that will be a priority in this department.

He pointed out that at the moment there is no cleaning service for the aircraft, so it is expected that signing a contract with this case will lead to the corresponding cleaning procedure.

However, he noted that this only means maintenance work and then it will be necessary to know what action is being taken in the long term to improve the characteristics of the lake.

“That decision will be made by the mayor as soon as we meet,” Gutierrez said.

Antioch Lake Konya Konya, better known by the inhabitants of the region as Antioch for a factory that was located on the western side of the water glass, is located in District 4 of the municipality of Cochabamba, on the border with Colcaberhua. This lake is located on an area of ​​about 25 hectares.

In 2001, the mayor’s office opened some mechanical rides that were to become a Disney-style entertainment center, however, this project was abandoned due to the neglect of municipal authorities.

In 2017, then-mayor Ivan Telleria announced that he had three projects in the pipeline to revitalize this natural space. Among the works that will be carried out are the installation of a treatment plant, the dredging of water glass, the reforestation of the place with no less than 2,000 trees of 16 native species, as well as environmental education.