Writing and Wayfaring's Year In Review (Or, Stuff To Read If You're Staying In For New Year's)

So I've been at this blog nearly a year now. I genuinely appreciate the interest of all who have stopped by and taken the time to read my posts, check out my pics, and maybe even leave a little comment. I even appreciate all you accidental seekers who stumbled upon my blog by searching for things like "weird potted plant" or "brooklyn bridge rusty bolts" or "where does rick steves buy his shirts" (according to Blogger Stats).

Since this blog is about a year old, and since it's the end of the year--meaning, that time when list-mania seems to take over the world--I thought I'd compile the 10 most visited posts from my blog and let folks see what travel stories other folks especially like to read when they've landed here.

Below are my top 10 most popular blog posts, by number of views recorded with Blogger Stats. I must say some of them surprise me--beginning with #10, Blister Blues, a post I wrote while on the Camino de Santiago and when I was thinking of giving up the walk. My hunch for why this post made it into the top 10 is that this was around the time when my elderly parents finally figured out how to find my blog, and once they did find it, they obsessively kept checking back on this particular post to see if I added anything. I'd put money on it.

Some of the top 10 don't surprise me. I'm glad the one on the small, old mining town of Galena, Illinois (#9) made it--it is a witty post, and I hope whoever read it enjoyed it. And my post on the Salar de Uyuni in Bolivia (#6) is one of my personal favorites. Meanwhile, the top 4 are not only all about Ireland, but about a particular place in Ireland--Inis Oirr, the smallest of the Aran Islands. Clearly people like it when I write about my memories of Inis Oirr. I can't say I blame 'em--Inis Oirr is a very beloved place of mine, and I write about it with a great deal of heart, and I suppose that comes through in the posts about it. It helped too that the Aran Islands blog got wind of my Inis Oirr posts and shared them on its Facebook page.

Still, I think now would be good to let readers know that I do write about other places in Ireland than Inis Oirr or the Aran Islands--places like the North, Croagh Patrick in County Mayo, and even a place in County Down where you can get a seaweed bath. I also write about places other than Ireland--like Texas, Australia (both the Outback and Melbourne), New Orleans, New York City, and France (Paris, Marseille, and the lovely Poitiers countryside). I've even written about quirky tours, quirky people, and quirky places, as well as about travel books, travel heroes, and travel heroines. Got no plans for New Year's Eve or New Year's Day? Well, here--I've got your loner countdown reading material all cut out for you!

10. Blister Blues (the Camino de Santiago in Spain)

9. Galena, Illinois: Chicks Paradise (a small former mining town in northwestern Illinois)

8. Catalans & Canadians (the Camino de Santiago in Spain)

7. Trip Tips (travel tips)

6. The Bitterest Place On Earth: The Salar de Uyuni (the salt flats of Bolivia)

5. 5 Reasons To Take A Women-Only Tour (guess)

4. Hurricane Katia Comes To Inis Oirr (the Aran Islands, Ireland)

3. Aran Islands Walks (Ireland)

2. My Life On The Littlest Aran Island, Part 2 (Inis Oirr, Ireland)

1. My Life On The Littlest Aran Island, Part 1 (Inis Oirr, Ireland)

Thanks for reading!! Happy and safe travels in 2012!!