It was a hot summer day (just as all of the other days), and my friends and I decided that it would be fun to go to the public pool. We got there, and there were many aspects of the experience that were surprising to us. First, the pool deck was so crowded that a person could not even move. In the United States, public places have mazimum capacities. However, if this pool had one, it had been exceeded.
The next big difference we noticed were the many different activities a person could do there. There were a series of platforms a person could jump off of, the highest being approximately 45 feet. This aspect of the pool is made even more interesting by the fact that most Romanians do not know how to swim, and just stay in the shallow end of the pool where they can stand. I jumped off this huge platform, and it was really fun. However, after jumping, I realized the last major difference between this pool and a pool in the United States.
There were NO lifeguards. My friends and I were shocked to discover this, but it was true. Not one lifeguard in sight. The thought then crossed my mind of "What would I had done if I landed wrong in the water or something?" In the United States, almost every pool has a lifeguard on duty, expecially when there are some semi-dangerous activites available such as 45 foot platforms to jump off of.
As much as this thought bothered me... I jumped again...
Way to take a leap of faith. Twice! Glad you survived.
ReplyDeleteThat is a difference that I had never thought of looking for in a different country. I'm glad you noticed it so you and your friends could look out for each other.
ReplyDeleteI had a bad experience when I lived in France. We went to a water park and they told us "Speedos only". We then had to rent them from the park...quite awkward.
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