Okay, this has been covered endlessly already on the net, but here goes: I’ve now opened my eyes underwater without goggles for the first time ever. Learning to swim I always used goggles, or shut my eyes tightly on days where I’d forgotten to bring them along.
I have 3 major observations:
- It’s incredibly hard to override a strong habit/reflex you’ve had since you were a kid.
- It seriously doesn’t hurt at all. Our pool is chlorinated and well-cleaned – YMMV with other substances – but my first reaction was “wow, that’s barely even irritating”.
- It’s completely and utterly pointless. All you can see is blurredness in the vague shape and colour of the bottom of the pool. Bleh.
So in conclusion, wear goggles.
