A Postcard from Paradise

A wave of humidity swept over me as I waded through the foot bath and into the chlorinated biome of the Subtropical Swimming Paradise. I could see grey clouds through the glass roof, but inside it was hot and bright; a greenhouse full of warm, wet people, fake tropical plants wrapped around real ones, steep slides, water rides, a plunge pool and a sandwich bar. My family have been coming to Center Parcs since we were little, and now we were here again with our own kids who were just as excited by a 30°C swimming pool as we always were. And it was Ash’s first time in the water. He loved it - eyes as wide as soup spoons before, overstimulated by the chaos, he fell fast asleep on my shoulder. So I sat with him in the shallows and watched the world float by.