Monday, August 19, 2024

The Wave Pool

Like most things in Darwin, the wave pool and its aqua aerobics class is best tackled with a sense of humour and pool noodle. 

Okay, the aqua aerobic class does not require a pool noodle, but the sense of humour is needed to deal with the fact that the day before your 56th birthday, you've taken yourself off to an aqua aerobics class, the domain of "old people". I mean, it's not enough that at this age you go up a section on most forms and that your Seniors Card is only five years away from being mailed out to you - and that the obligatory poo test will be sent by the government to your postal address in the not-too-distant future. All that fun crap. 

But aqua aerobics is the domain of the oldies. 

But what they don't tell you is how much fun it is. 

And it is a completely judgement-free zone. 

You're surrounded by around forty other middle-aged to late-middle-aged people who are jumping about in chest height water. for forty-five minutes. 

I turned up on time lathered up with sunscreen, stashed my stuff on a sun lounge and got in. 

It was so much fun. Also, the locals who turn up to these regular classes are very friendly too. 

Such a good way to start the morning. 

After class and feeling as if I'd done a reasonable work out, I lay on a sun lounger reading under an umbrella reading my book until the actual waves were turned on. 

I don't understand how they get the waves working in the wave pool - other than they turn them on for 20 minutes and give what feels like a three-foot swell for about 20 minutes. It's great fun. You don't get sand in your bathers, the waves are not unmanageable, and they flatten out after a bit. They have lots of tyres and pool noodles around the place to help you float. Brilliant fun. (Although the Uber driver who brought me back from the art gallery this afternoon swore he would never go back - he said he nearly drowned there. When I asked him if he could swim, he said he had a few lessons but was no good at it. Personally, I reckon anybody coming here for more than three months should have the ability to swim up there with English proficiency. When a large majority of people who drown here are recent migrants, this might help the numbers go down).

Anyway, after a turn in the waves, where the most frightening thing was a kid in an inner tube, I got out, went and had breakfast at a favourite cafe and came home, knowing I'd had a little too much sun and a quiet afternoon was in order. 

Regardless of exercising with people who are in the next age bracket on standarised forms, a touch too much sun, it's been a good day. 



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