Leisure in the city´s life

Abstract

It has been investigate the recreational use people make of their streets in their leisure time. This field study focused on four streets in Maringá, Paraná. The methodology involved direct and systematic observation, with notes being take on a field notebook. Later on, there was the photographic register and the aplication of questionnaires in all the reisdences in the delimited area. The study identified an intensive occupation of the streets as a non-specialized leisure asspace, which demonstrates its playful dimension. Factors such as, age groups, the transit of vehicle, times and temperature are determining in the recreational uses. In the historical constitution of the Brazilian society, the street has taken the role of intermediating between the public and the private. despite the decrease in their recreational use acording to those intenviewed, the streets remain the place for leisure of different age groups, this study suggests that Maringá´s municipal public policies shoul direct their efforts to this type of space.