Friday 15 July.

Friday 15 July.

The train to Gatwick was uneventful.  When I arrived at the terminal I found that Westjet were alongside EasiJet – the queue was short and they let me pay for my suitcase - £14.85 one way.  I was told I would have to collect my case and clear customs in Calgary but then drop bag on a conveyor belt close by and would not need to check it in again as I already have the boarding pass for 2^nd flight.  Westjet were friendly, pleasant and efficient.  I recommend them.  When I asked about food on the flight the helpful young lady told me that I could get food on the plane so did not need to pay for it in advance. 

09:10 – having coffee.  Will go for brunch about 10:30 and buy food (sandwich) to take on board (+juice and water) to save paying for food with c/card and incurring charges if they price in Canadian dollars.

Read my book for a while then went to Boots and bought a “meal deal” of tuna pasta salad, crisps and OJ then went to Gate 50 for boarding. It was only as I took my seat in row 4, with wide comfy leather seats, that I realised I had been upgraded to business class!! First time ever!

We were an hour late taking off but soon after, the very attentive stewardess brought round free drinks and a lunch menu (free!).  A glass of prosecco and chicken stroganoff later and I am now ready for a nap!

17:15 local time in Calgary.

The check-in at Gatwick told me I had to collect my bags in Calgary and put them on a conveyor belt outside baggage reclaim.  However, when I got there I was told I had to go through the whole procedure again, exit and re-enter, including carrying my bag through the airport, filling in US customs declaration form, going through passport and security.  The “front of house” was very modern, airy and spacious but having gone through security (who sent me off in the wrong direction for my gate!...) I found myself in the part of the airport undergoing rebuilding – it was awful!!! Exposed pipe work, scaffolding, ancient, dirty carpets, no external windows, things boarded up, few shops – I have seen 3^rd world countries with better facilities!  Not only that, but there were no electronic displays showing the status of your flight or advising what gate you should make for.  My boarding pass seemed to say gate B22 but none of the gates bore letters, only numbers.  When I eventually found my gate there was the display board!!!  The weather was bad when I arrived in Calgary, rain and thunder and while waiting in departures we were told that the airport had been closed and there would be no planes departing or arriving until the threat of lightening diminished.  That situation lasted for 30 minutes then was lifted and flights resumed, but the backlog caused further delays so I was an hour late arriving in Vegas.

As I had gone through American customs in Calgary, and was therefore deemed to be on an internal flight, I did not have to go through customs or immigration on arrival in Vegas and my bag came off quickly and the driver was waiting for me (she assumed she had missed me as she was unaware of the flight delay).  The heat hit me like a blast furnace when we left the terminal building!  They had sent a limo to pick me up, not an ordinary taxi and the ride to the Bellagio was an eye opener!  The hotel is huge!! Hundreds of rooms and enough slot machines to fill a football pitch.  They are not called “Hotels” in Vegas, they are called “Resorts” and they all have casinos, multiple restaurants, shops, lounges, spas, several swimming pools and usually a theatre.  Ours, the Bellagio, boasts the largest, tallest, chocolate fountain in the world, the biggest chandelier - though, technically, it is not a chandelier as it contains no lights but is all hand-blown glass flowers or plates in bright colours below a large ceiling window – it made me think of looking through a barrier reef up to the sun.

Julia and Kevin sent me a text to say they had booked us in and they came down to reception to collect me and take me back to our room – I would never have found it on  my own, the place is so huge!!! Our room does not look out over the famous lake and fountains but to the rear of the hotel, which is a shame, but the bathroom is amazing.  You could get 6 people in the shower at the same time, 2 of them sitting on a tiled seat running along one side!!