Gran Canaria 11 Nov 2017

The taxi arrived as booked at 6am for our flight to Gran Canaria.  Despite being up for ages we were only just ready. The journey to Stanstead is not long and the traffic at that time of day is light, so we were soon dropped off.  The experience at Stanstead was not great, the 'miles' of retail under harsh bright lights was an unwelcome experience at any time, but especially early in the morning. So we walked through that as quickly as we could and found the gate.  There it was peaceful with only a few others like ourselves who had avoided the retial trap.  We were, by then at least 45 minutes early.  Jet 2 were very good at the gate, as the time to board arrived we were told by the representitive, not an announcement, where to go and to board from the front of the plane.  We had paid the extra for confirmed seats and were near the front, the best place to be.  The aircraft was like a flying bus - very basic, but unlike a bus, quite comfortable.  No video screens, no films on the flight, and we hadn't booked any food, so just bought drinks when we needed them.  Next to us on the plane was a lady who we later identified as Sonique, who was going to Gran Canaria for the 'Pride' festival (nothing to do with lions).  She was full of energy, always getting up and sitting down, ordering things from the staff and 'dancing' in the aisle.  Otherwise the flight was uneventful.
On landing, we were again met by staff who ensured that we got to the right coach for our transfer to the hotel. The coach was hot, more so because we were still in our winter coats and bundled with luggage.  We left the coach on the main road, then walked down the '50 metre' access road to the Vistaflor Bunglows hotel. The rooms have tiled floor throughout and belie their name by having the bedroom and bathroom above the loungs and kitchen.
Jo had been unwell for a couple of days prior to our journey, and was now exhausted.  So the usual explorations would have to wait.  We did find the local shop to purchase water and a few other basic supplies, but that was the limit.  We ate in the hotel restuarant and enjoyed the warmth, lying on a lounger outside until late and in my case re-reading 'Hothouse' by Brian Aldiss.

Our phones are connected to a service provider in a different time zone (1 hour ahead) which is very confusing.