Holiday to Gran Canaria

 I've been away for a week visiting my youngest daughter who is living in Las Palmas on Gran Canaria in the Canary Isles for 6 months. She's volunteering at a local school to help with her Spanish - which she's studying at university. 

It probably sounds very exotic - but going to visit her brought back some fairly grim memories of arriving to live in a country where I didn't know a soul, and usually didn't speak the language. I went to a hypermarket one day while she was at work, and something about it freaked me out. Had to take deep breaths to calm myself down - which isn't like me at all! Something about the smell, or the sounds...and I realised that the supermarket was usually the first place I went to alone in a new country, once Adrian had gone to work and I'd dropped the girls at their new school. It's where it first sank it that I didn't know anyone in the whole country. Quite a scary thought!

Of course, I always survived and enjoyed the places I lived, but it's certainly character-building, dealing with all that comes with a new country and a new language. And now Jenny's doing it! So I feel her pain!! She's got a nearly 2 hour and 2 bus commute every day, plus she's also having to deal with an Airbnb flat that has developed mould and a landlord who keeps talking loudly AT her in Spanish, while not listening to her at all.

Hence taking her out to lots of nice places, for loads of yummy meals and generally spoiling her. We went to White Night at Carnaval, where they chuck talc over each other and the streets literally turn white. We went to the Botanical Gardens - which were epic - and saw the largest dandelion I've ever come across. We went to the Aquarium - where an octopus actually moved while I was watching it - gross!! We went to the beach and enjoyed some lovely sunshine on our winter bones. And we ate vast amounts of delicious food. Some photos below.