Adventure in Lanzhou

We had the afternoon free and decide to go swimming. What an adventure.

The website made it appear that there was a pool at the hotel, but when we asked where it was, we were given a business card on which they wrote the name of the pool, and offered to hire two taxis. I confirmed with them that the pool was open and found out how much the admission would be – 6 RMB so less than a dollar each. Another 7RMB (one dollar) for the cab ride and it seemed worth the risk.

Driving here is insane. Cars jostle and posture for the best position, ignoring lanes, curbs, pedestrians. Our driver went into one space between two moving cars that was so small I was shocked we didn’t scrape along both sides of the car. He turned left against traffic, honked at pedestrians to say ‘Here I come!’ without slowing as they stepped back. When we stopped, after pulling a Uturn to get into a driveway, he pointed vaguely to a large building and we piled out.

We went to the building he directed us to, but it was not a pool. We walked around another building trying doors and lucked in on the third or fourth door. We tried to ask if Julie needed to pay admission to just watch, but decided it wasn’t worth the effort and paid for her to go in.

We were wearing our suits, so all we had to do was take off our outer clothes. I had to use the squatty potty (a mini adventure within the larger one) and by the time I came out Julie was cornered in the change room by five women who seemed insistent that she take a key for our bags. We tried to explain through words and gestures that Julie would hold the bags so we didn’t need a locker but they were impossible to put off. They even resorted to using a cell phone to translate “locker” into “chest, cabinet…” I tried to just walk out, which made them even more agitated. I peeked out of the waiting area into the pool area and Steve saw me. He gave me a key he was holding and said he had ended up just getting a locker (that would have been the easy way) and he’d take it. I showed the women the key, and they explained it was for the men’s room, with great dismay over my stupidity. I said “HUSBAND!” and either they understood or they gave up, one or the other.

FINALLY Wen and I were able to hit the pool! The pool itself was very neat, a wading area with a centre island that had stairs giving access to several little slides. I put AnnaWen on one slide and slid her down, then she and I went down a bigger one together. She was laughing and grinning with excitement – she loved it! Meanwhile, Julie – who came to take pictures even though she didn’t feel like swimming – was reprimanded by the smoking lifeguard (I mean ‘smoking’ as in cigarette, not ‘smoking’ as in hot) for taking pictures, which is forbidden. Less than 10 minutes after getting in, another man came by and shouted “Mouza” at us, gesturing to his head. I guess bathing caps are required too, which none of the hens in the change room, or the attendants at the desk had mentioned. We decided to cut our losses and leave – the girls were shivering already anyway. The man fished a cap out of the desk to give me, but it was too late, we were out and drying off.

Back in the change room three of the women came to smile at AnnaWen in her suit. AW was shivering badly and whimpering about being cold. They clucked and sympathized and then jumped in to help me dress her. Apparently I wasn’t efficient enough. They hovered a few moments after she was dressed and I wondered if they were going to dress me as well!

We left the pool laughing, and walked to a nearby park to take some pictures and watch the locals watching us for a few moments. We caught two cabs and showed them the card asking them to take us back to the hotel and survived another death defying ride back to the safety of our familiar hotel. In the elevator we discussed dinner and the consensus is we’ve had our fill of adventure for the day so we’re staying in for another buffet in the restaurant here.

Update: After supper now... we're seeing a different side of AnnaWen and MAN are we in trouble. She's been defiant, hitting, scratching and biting. She's got a good fake cry, and protests whenever she can't do something she wants from playing with a specific toy to dumping water all over the floor... SIGH.

N