Heather Cowper's blog, Heather on her travels, was the first travel blog I started following once I realised a) there is such a thing as blogging and b) people were blogging about travel! So it came as a very pleasant surprise to find out that she tagged me in Tripbase's My 7 Links challenge. Thanks Heather! It's given me the opportunity to have a little review of my posts so far.
It's very difficult to decide which post is the most beautiful. How is this beauty defined - the prose, the pictures, the topic, the combination of all three? In the end I decided on the memory of a beautiful day - A Visit to Stony Point Penguin Colony. Although it was the type of windy day you'll only find in the Cape, we had the most wonderful time walking along the ramparts, getting to see the penguins up close, smiling at their antics and taking loads of pictures of the scenery. Definitely an experience that I will remember for a very long time to come.
My Most Popular PostWell this one is easy, seeing as it's the post with the most hits on my blog. In January 2010, Gareth and I went Camping in the Kruger National Park. It was one of the best short holidays I've had in a long time. We spent our mornings and late afternoons on game drives, our middays cooling down in the pool, and fell asleep at night listening to the sounds of the wild just a stone's throw away from our tent. It was bliss.
My Most Controversial Post I don't really try to be controversial (although I have been known for the occasional rant), but my post about Why I Will Never Camp at Pilanesberg Again seemed to rub certain readers the wrong way. In it, I tell about the unpleasant experience we had while camping in one of South Africa's most popular game reserves and why we never pack beetroot anymore.
When I started writing this blog, I made a decision not to turn it into a smaller (and much less successful!) version of a Lonely Planet guidebook. I didn't want to write about train schedules, ticket prices and bus routes, but rather about my own thoughts and experiences at wonderful destinations. However, after having recently done the research while Planning a Visit to Granada's Alhambra, I thought I might as well share the knowledge and make it a little easier for others planning the same trip.
A Post Whose Success Surprised Me Funnily enough, one of my most popular posts has very little to do with travelling. While the title, and SEO being what it is, might have something to do with it, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo seemed to amaze and outrage some people just as much as it did me. In this post, I describe the consequences of a rash decision I took while on holiday in Phuket, Thailand, more than ten years ago.
A Post I Feel Didn't Get the Attention It Deserved I've been told that not everyone is as interested in history as I am. Hard to believe, but I suppose it must be true. That's probably the reason why my look at Malta's Historic Highlights has never drawn much attention. I like this post because not only did I get the chance to explore that wonderfully interesting little island's history, I also got the chance to reminisce about the week Gareth and I spent there and to link everything I learned while researching for this post with the sights we saw while there.
The Post That I Am Most Proud Of This will have to be awarded to two posts discussing the same topic, one that makes my blood boil whenever I think of it. The first is a plea to Save Our Rhinos! In September 2010, South Africa had lost 210 rhinos to poachers who cut the horns from these majestic animals while they are still alive, and then leave them to die from the wound. My follow-up post, State of Our Rhinos Report, gives some feedback on how the country has been dealing with the crisis. I believe creating awareness to the plight of our endangered animals will go a long way towards helping people understand that there is a problem and that we need to do something about, even if it is only something as small as spreading the word.
And there you have it. Please let me know if you agree with my choices.
Next up, I nominate the following bloggers to also participate in the challenge:
Labels: misc, My 7 Links, Tripbase
My Most Popular Post
My Most Controversial Post
