July 18

Paris is sweltering. I’ve been desperate for a swim, but I don’t like the public pool near me at the Marché St.-Germain because no matter when I go, it’s horribly crowded. So today I tried the Club Latin Quartier on Rue de Pontoise, which is terrific. It has an airy glass roof and a lane for people who do the breast stroke, medium fast, like me.

The locker arrangement there is most interesting: cabins surrounding the pool on two levels, where you leave your stuff; an attendant locks and unlocks them for you. Next I’m going to try the Butte aux Cailles pool in the 13th arrondissement, built in 1924. It was the first pool in Paris to require swimmers to shower before taking the plunge. Then, maybe, one by one, all 34 municipal pools in the city, which just might see me through what promises to be a long, hot summer.