Freelance Announcer Aika Kanda Celebrates the Start of Pool Season

Strategy for the summer balcony

Our balcony is fairly spacious. In late February 2018, just before our wedding, my husband and I visited the apartment for a viewing and both thought, “We want to relax on this balcony!” That was enough to decide on purchasing it. Within about a month, we completed the purchase and moved in, quickly setting up a low table and two chairs.

During the first year, we spent pleasant mornings in spring and autumn drinking coffee or making pancakes on the balcony. It was elegant and made us appreciate the balcony’s charm. However, in summer and winter, the heat and cold made it impossible to spend long periods there, so it felt underutilized.

In the second year, Christmas 2019, we tried to solve this problem by stringing lights along the balcony railing. During the crisp winter air, the lights sparkled more than expected. Turning off the room lights made the glow reflect on the interior walls. It was the first time I truly felt the Christmas spirit in my life. We had discovered a way to enjoy the winter balcony without stepping outside.

That left only summer. In the spring of 2020, the third year, the COVID-19 pandemic hit. My husband couldn’t go on his favorite location shoots, and he was also refraining from golf and walking, so he seemed bored. The only diversion was stepping out onto the balcony—but in summer, it was too hot. I thought, “This summer, we need to find a way to enjoy it!” and secretly bought something: a large inflatable pool, three meters long and two meters wide.

On a scorching day filled with cicada cries, after my husband went to work, I dragged the hidden pool onto the balcony. Its sheer size made me freeze in place. Just inflating it left me drenched in sweat. With no water source on the balcony, I ran a hose from the kitchen and, using chairs and the table to create a slope, filled the pool—taking two and a half hours.

Excitedly waiting for my husband’s return around 5 p.m., I stayed in the living room instead of the usual greeting at the entrance. He sensed something unusual and asked, “What’s going on?” When he spotted the pool, he exclaimed, “Ahhh!! What is this—!! A pool!?” with a huge grin, ran over, dropped his bag, stripped off his clothes, and, within seconds, changed into his swimsuit and plunged in. He slowly swam to the end, surfaced with a big breath, and shouted, “Thank you!! This is amazing!”—his smile reminded me of a happy hippopotamus.

As the sun set and the lights came on, their reflection on the water made it feel like a hotel night pool. I changed into my swimsuit, joined him, and enjoyed champagne while telling the story of setting up the pool. That was the moment we truly conquered the summer balcony.

Almost turned into a neighborhood dispute!?

One day, after enjoying the pool several times, the apartment manager contacted us. “Excuse me, Himura-san. Someone on the first floor said that on nights this summer when it didn’t rain, water was pouring from the upper floors into the rain gutters as if it were a heavy downpour. They said it was scary. Do you know anything about it?” I immediately realized—it had to be the water from our pool! On pool setup days, we always drain and put the pool away at night, so it had to be that. I explained honestly, the manager understood, and the situation was resolved peacefully.

Since then, opening the pool on the balcony has become a summer tradition. Every year, about a month in advance, the two of us set a date, saying, “Let’s have the pool opening on this day!” and work hard while looking forward to it.

This year, we successfully opened the pool on the last Sunday of July. Now, we even have a simple sauna and a relaxing chair set up. My husband sweats it out in the sauna, then jumps into the pool, listening to Hawaiian music while unwinding, repeating this process endlessly while the sun is up. As for me, since I dislike tanning, I keep an eye on him to prevent burns, prepare water and Hawaiian coffee, and stay busy indoors. When the sun sets, I change into my swimsuit and join him in the pool with a glass of champagne in hand.

We’re a 45- and 53-year-old couple. At this age, we thought there wouldn’t be many chances to wear swimsuits together, but it looks like we’ll still be doing it for a while. At this rate, maybe I should boldly buy a new swimsuit too.

★ The author’s first book, compiling this series, “Where Does the Royal Road Lead?”, is now on sale and very popular!

Aika Kanda / Born in 1980 in Kanagawa Prefecture. After graduating from the Department of Mathematics, Faculty of Science, Gakushuin University, she joined NHK as an announcer in 2003. She left NHK in 2012 and became a freelance announcer. Since then, she has mainly appeared on variety programs and currently serves as the main MC on the daytime program Pokapoka (Fuji TV network).

From the August 22/29, 2025, issue of “FRIDAY”