Schwimmbad Zolikon

Morning breakfast and card games

So this morning I actually managed to wake up before the majority of my children. Only Alex beat me out of the blocks: I found him wrapped up in a blanket on the couch. Instead of my usual "Good morning, momma," he greeted me with "Mom, did you know that there are twenty fives in one hundred? It's just something I was thinking about this morning." Kiddo, I scarcely remember my own name before I have my morning coffee.

About a half-hour later, Ella bounded out of bed, all dressed in her warm-weather clothes, chirping "Hey Mom, is there any chance we could go swimming today?" I hated to do it, but I pointed out the window, where the sky was dark and the pavement was damp.

But I'm tired of putting summer on hold, so I went and researched indoor pools in the area. The one that was most highly recommended was kind of tricky to get to by public transportation: it would have been just fifteen minutes by car, but it was closer to an hour by bus. But you know what? It's summer, and we have nothing but time these days.

But before we headed to the pool, we had a very important appointment. Dennis has been talking enthusiastically about the food that they've been serving in Fork, Google Zürich's Asian-themed cafeteria. He wanted us to try to come in, and since they change the menu each week, it had to be today. So we scooted in before the crowds formed, for an 11:30 lunch.

We were in the lobby a little before Dennis. Every time I bring the boys to Google, I spend a good deal of energy trying to keep the kids away from the guitar that's always in that lobby. But today I figured if Google was going to leave a loud instrument at kid height, they could pay the consequences. And I even took a little video of Joey's soulful ballad. I can't make out all the words (musicians these days!) but he's saying something very deep about flowers shining in the moonlight...that's before he starts going all heavy metal on me.

Alternating fried rice and ice cream

For lunch, we sat outside on the patio, which was lovely until the storm clouds blew in. But the kids were scraping the last of their ice cream out of their bowls when the rain showed up, so it was no great tragedy. And the food was pretty excellent: Joey let out a most impressed "WOAH" when I lifted the lid from my bento box, and he ate just about all of my chicken tiki masala. He decided he wasn't too keen on salmon sushi, however. Talk about first world problems.

After we left Google, I suggested to the kids that we hide under an awning until the rain passed--we had a book that I could read them--but Ella and Alex were both too excited to go swimming. And, they reasoned, quite logically, we'd be completely soaked, anyway, once we got to the pool. So we soldiered on through two trams and a bus. It went smoothly until we boarded our bus and I realized that I'd forgotten to write down which stop to take. The driver certainly could have told me, but I didn't want to distract him. But then a smiling mom and a little girl with a swimming noodle boarded the bus, and I knew all would be well. I asked if I could follow them to the pool, and they went so far as to take me to the ticket window and then the locker room. Where would I be without the kindness of strangers.

Walking around in the rain in south Zürich, I suppose.

But instead the kids and I got to enjoy a really fun afternoon at the pool. This was a private aquatic complex, meaning they weren't covered by our Zürich swim pass. But the facilities were really nice, and I was so glad to have a warm, dry place to take the kids.

There were three large pools in the indoor complex, as well as a little paddling pool where Joey and I stayed. Alex alternated between the baby pool and the shallow kiddie pool, adjacent, where I could keep an eye on him. But Ella, she took in the whole complex and came back with full reports.

Half of the lap pool was taken up with a high ropes course: there were literally kids swinging from the rafters, and every few minutes, one would squeal and then plummet down to the deep water below.

I was incredibly jealous.

So much so that, at the end of the day, right before we left, I bundled Joey up in a towel and put him on the bench next to the lifeguard and his equally watchful sister, and then shimmied up the rope with Alex, who was equally jealous. And then I took my own plunge: I had to.

The second pool was flanked by two water slides. Ella's favorite, a tube slide, was completely enclosed and dark, except that the tube had pinpoint punctures so that it seemed as though you were shooting through space.  Many parents were taking their infants and toddlers on the slide, and I tried my hardest to convince Joey to go with me, but he told me, no, he preferred his little slide. 

And so he did: he rode down the little ceramic-tiled slide in the kiddie pool at least fifty times, and most times he reported back to me, triumphantly, "I did it!" holding his hand up for a high five. His proudest moments were when he accidentally slid under water. He loved it: "I swimmed!"

As much fun as Joey had, I actually wasn't too much of a fan of the kiddie pool.  All of that ceramic tile scared me with visions of cracked sculls. I watched so many little ones lose control and slip and fall. On their padded bottoms, thankfully.

Joey, pontificating at the top of the water slide

And so I don't know that I'll go back any time soon, especially not during the summer, when our pool is open and so close.  And that's why I took the kids outside to see the exterior aquatic complex, despite the temperature.  It did look like a lot of fun...enough to tempt the kids into the cold water so that they could scramble around on the pirate ship playground.

The outdoor splash pool

Lounge area, with giant chess boards

The Spielplatz, with an adjacent
restaurant

Dejected Joey, at the kiddie pool

Joey walked mournfully around the kiddie pool, which had been drained for cleaning during the cold weather. He kept asking me "W-w-w-where? Where water??" Such is his supreme faith in me. Joey was convinced that I could somehow make it work out.

We ended up staying and swimming for over three hours: it was still drizzling when we got home, where I dressed the kids in their warmest pjs and put them in front of the television for an evening movie. Both boys could scarcely keep their eyes open through their bedtime stories, which I always take as a sign of a job well done. Although Alex gave me a little affirmation: "Momma? This was a very good day."