Heavenly H20

Not only was the boutique SoHo Metropolitan Hotel close to where the Who and Pretenders would play, it had a lap pool. At about 40 by 20 feet, it was at least 10 feet bigger in each direction than what we could include in our own Casa.

Thus, we approximated a smaller pool and did laps to determine whether we could comfortably pass each other. Generating impressive waves and enjoying ourselves madly, we swam three of the four days of our stay.

The pool cut through the building, providing two city views. The “Manifesto” discussed our desire for a long, narrow indoor swimming pool on the lake side of our home (now incorporated in an interim drawing from our architects) with a wall of glass that completely opens or closes off the area without hiding the view.

Adding to our sense of wellbeing was the hot tub. During Thanksgiving weekend, we visited our Pennsylvania friends for a soak on their deck. It was a crystal-clear night and all four of us saw a shooting star while the water jets pulsated. We began to think, “If we cannot have a pool, how about a built-in hot tub with bench seats?” As a result of our vacation, we’ve upgraded our desires to include both.

Some flaws in the SoHo’s design will help us with ours.

• Probably to contain humidity, their architect segregated the pool from the rest of the hotel. While we need to protect our house from escaping moisture, our pool is to be both a design and lifestyle feature.
• Ladders as they only way to get in or out. One side of our water feature needs steps.
• On our last day in Toronto, the chlorine levels were out of balance, leaving our eyes red. This reinforced our interest in alternatives to keeping the water clear.
• How much nicer would the water stay without hair gel and body lotion? In Iceland, we appreciated the rule to have bathers shower—with soap—before entering the geothermal spa. Same rule applies at the SoHo, but the women’s locker room was a bit too far from the poolroom. We need to make it convenient for swimmers to shower before jumping in.