Heavenly

I admit it - Shanghai Summer had nearly gotten the best of me.

I felt lonely and isolated, with all of my friends gone.
The heat reached the upper nineties, and coupled with humidity we still carry heat indexes of nearly 110.
We had nowhere to go, no one to see, and nothing to do.

This had my girls entirely pleased, as they're both quite keen to spend their days inside, playing together with their toys. Good news, except that days inside lead to days without naps, and no one is happy when my children do not nap.

But then we were handed the holy grail.

A temporary membership to the Ambassy Club.

The Ambassy Club has typical health club facilities - tennis courts, fitness center, indoor pool, all the rest contained in the health club across the street from our home. But it also has something quite rare in this city. An outdoor swimming pool.

And this is no ordinary Chinese outdoor swimming pool. No, no, no. This swimming pool has lifeguards. At this swimming pool, the chlorine is at healthy levels and does not burn your eyes. This pool is in the sun all day, and still the water remains cool. This swimming pool is built with young children in mind, meaning that it is frequented primarily by families. Yet, this swimming pool is not crowded.

We spent all morning there, and everyone took good naps this afternoon.
We plan to spend all morning there tomorrow.
And the next day.

Ahh, summer.