Another lovely day of sun and swimming

And tomorrow we'll probably go again.  The weather is staying hot and we're out of school, so we're keeping up this swimming-at-the-Stadtpark thing.

Getting dressed this morning meant "putting on my swimsuit and sundress."  Indra and I went to the park around 11.  We didn't go to the Naturbad today because we knew it would be packed (due to its being a hot Saturday).  Instead we found a spot on one of the lawns near the dock on the north side of the Stadtparksee.  We stayed for about four hours.  Our routine goes something like: Put on sunscreen, swim until we start to get cold, get out and lie in the sun until we're too hot to stand it anymore, then repeat the process.  While we were lying out, we nibbled on grapes and apples and listened to Der König der Löwen on Indra's mp3 player (one ear bud per person).  Indra also read, and I drew people around us.  More life-drawing subjects than I could ask for!  (For the record, most of the time in the Stadtpark people don't nude-sunbathe--they have a few designated areas for that--so everybody at least has their swimsuits on.  Don't be alarmed, ladies and gentlemen.)  It's been so interesting to me to see the European summer culture in comparison to the California one.
Europe: Gelato, white skin, lying out on grass, calm-water swimming
California: Cold Stone, tan skin, lying out on sand, surfing and diving under waves
I have to say, the European summer scene is neat in a way because there is less overall obsession with having the "perfect body."  Lots of people here are concerned about looking good, of course, but nobody here looks artificial, and although there are of course exceptions, people generally look more natural--fewer tattoos, spray tans, piercings in weird places, etc.  It's the exact opposite of spots like Huntington Beach.  People of all ages, from 2 to 82, strip down to swimsuits, no matter how ghostly white their skin is or how saggy or lumpy they might look, and just lie out in the sun or get in the pool.  None of the "Oh, I can't wear a two-piece suit, I haven't stuck to my diet this month" speeches.  It's refreshing.  Not to mention that it makes for more fun and interesting drawings!  Who wants to draw a bunch of people who look like Barbie and Ken?  There's no variety in that!

The Naturbad was SO crowded today!  (Which is why we didn't go there.)

Today was so hot that the initial plunge into the lake felt cold but incredibly nice at the same time.  We decided the lake needed a legendary monster, so we invented the Flachmonster (Flatmonster), which is a giant monster that is flat (obviously) and lives on the bottom of the Stadtparksee, eating the litter people throw in and saving the occasional distressed swimmer.  He has a velvety hide, rather than a slimy skin like a stingray.  We also tried to see what was on the bottom, but the main part of the See is so murky that you can't see anything until it is six inches in front of you.

On the way home we got a quick ice cream at the place at the end of our street.  I was glad I only got one scoop, because it had turned into a sorbet soup in the cup by the time we got to the front door.  It was only a little after 4 and we weren't quite ready for dinner, so we watched a movie Indra has been telling me about all semester called Les Choristes (The Chorus).  It is a French film about a music teacher who comes to a boarding school for "problematic" boys and teaches them to sing.  I really, really enjoyed it.  Indra had to pause it periodically and translate things for me because she had streamed it online and we didn't have subtitles.  My one semester of French did not serve me well for watching this movie.  But I still enjoyed it despite my lack of comprehension of the dialogue.

We made bruschetta (one of Indra's favorite dishes) for dinner.  It was really delicious.

Ugh, it's after 9 and it is still so hot!  My window is wide open, but the outside air is exactly the same temperature as the inside air.  Even the little bit of wind is doing absolutely nothing to cool things off.  Usually in the afternoons and evenings, the courtyard and backyards between the buildings are noisy because people are eating out on their patios and balconies and all the kids from the apartments are running around and playing.  Today it has been absolutely silent--no noise whatsoever since we got home from the park.  I think everybody is just sitting in their houses and moving as little as possible so they don't melt away.

Tomorrow I am playing worship at City Light!  I enjoy doing it.  I've learned lots of German words that way, and I can now sing multiple songs in German!

In the meantime I have to try and sleep . . . I wish I had a fan in my room . . .