Naked in central London

To celebrate leaving work early yesterday, I went for a swim at the Oasis Leisure Centre. It's near Covent Garden and has an outdoor pool. It's also the only area (as far as I know) in central London where you're allowed to sunbathe topless.

Not that I have. I used to work in an office overlooking the leisure centre's sun terrace. I felt my image as a professional would be somewhat undermined should my colleagues catch sight of me in just a pair of pants. Especially over lunch.

Anyway, I went there last night and had a swim in the rain. Apart from a nippy sprint out to the pool, it was great. I also managed to squeeze in a quick sauna.

Squeeze being the operative. There were already three guys crammed into a very tiny space; picture a small heated shed with a bench. On entering, I found myself loitering next to the coals while the guys rearranged themselves to fit me in. I thought about leaving, but felt that would be socially awkward. The less socially awkward option was to remain, squashed in between the sweaty men. So, a typical Tuesday, then.


(Stats: 30 mins' swimming - no idea of lengths, but not many. 10 minutes in the sauna before awkwardness and heat got the better of me.)

Don't stop believing

When I was a little girl, I had two dreams: to live next door to a sweet shop and to own a swimming pool. The friend I'm staying with in Bristol has a pool and it's absolutely brilliant. You roll out of bed and the next thing you know you're doing lengths. This morning's dip was especially welcome given my poor calf muscles needed soothing following yesterday's long barefoot run. To be fair, last night's three-hour 80's dance-a-thon didn't help. And neither did the three-inch heels. Thankfully, this morning's swim relieved the pain a little, which brings me back to how brilliant it would be to own your own pool. Unfortunately, we don't have room for one in our back garden but I shall continue to dream. And, on the plus side, we're only a couple of minutes from Tesco's and they sell sweets, proving that that some dreams do come true.