This is not what I signed up for.....

People often ask me why I moved to Gran Canaria, and although there are numerous reasons, the weather was a huge appealing factor. I hate the cold, I hate the rain, snow, frosty mornings, and everything connected to winter. Therefore, moving to an island that boasts 364 days of sunshine was an instant appeal. However, I have since learnt that the travel magazines lied, and there are far less days of sunshine in GC.

If you had told me seven years ago that winters here in GC could be cold, I would have laughed for a long time, and doubted every word. I should have seen the warning signs coming, especially when we moved to the Culo Del Mundo, where there are chimneys on houses, with smoke coming out. Where the locals great you waving a gloved hand, and bikinis are reserved for special occasions.

My favourite household items have become the kettle and the oven, as both give off heat, which I find myself hugging on a regular basis. I often tell my friends in the UK of the cold, and they laugh, no one seems to believe that I do not walk around in jeans, socks, boots, and three layers of clothing for the fun of it everyday.

The local people around me are used to the winters, which puzzles me why none of the houses are suited to the winter months. All Canarian houses leak, now is it because the rain in GC is toxic and melts through the brick work, or are the houses badly built. Surely by now they would have worked out how to build them correctly.

There are no carpets in Canarian houses, which is brilliant for cleaning, not so good for freezing cold feet in the winter. All windows are single glazed, which means that when the wind blows it gets through the cracks. I find myself resorting back to my days of being a student, where I would huddle under the duvet and put on another jumper.

I have decided that having so many animals in the house is in fact becoming a fantastic idea as the cats function as heaters. We have one that loves being under the duvet, and it is amazing how much heat one small cat produces. The only downside is that when they want feeding they REALLY want feeding, and I often wake to find a cats nose millimetres from mine with that look of get up NOW or I will kill you!

No matter how much you explain to people that have recently moved to GC that the summers are unbearably hot, and the winters painfully cold, they never listen. Often they think that you are lying to decrease the population, or have been on the Arehucas far too early.

The weather as with everything in GC is diverse, and although I may be sitting here in my three layers, and woolly socks I know that soon we will turn the corner, when the blue skies will return, and we will all spend six months moaning about the heat, dust and lack of air. Human nature shines through again, as every culture loves to discuss, moan and debate the weather, even Fraggles!