Monday, 21 December 2015

2015 Round Up

This year, 2015, will go down in my history as a big year. It was the year that I decided to take a big risk. I took leave from my job, the security and stability that came with it, but to walk away from the stress and worry that also came with it. 

I planned and planned and looking back now I probably planned a little too much, but hindsight is a great thing and at the time I thought that's what I needed to do.

So my great year of travel has meant a lot wonderful content for the blog, some of which I haven't even gotten around to sharing with you. Today I am going to share with you my most popular 11, because I just couldn't leave one out, in no particular order, culminating with my most favourite post of the year, which also just happens to outline the most favourite thing I did whilst overseas.

Zita Hooke blog

I am often told that I am brave and sometimes crazy that I travel alone. For me, travelling is an exciting adventure that I will always feel the need to do. Travelling alone is not always a choice, but as I confessed in my 11th most popular most of the year, Why I choose to travel alone if I didn't travel alone then I wouldn't travel at all, and for me, that just isn't an option.

Of course whenever I fly I put a lot of consideration into what I am going to wear. If I am flying domestically and it's a short flight I will usually wear my heaviest items, especially if I am only taking carry on. But when flying overseas the flight is usually a whole lot longer and I definitely one who dresses for comfort but attempts to keep it stylish at the same time. My post What to wear on a long haul flight was my second most popular post of  the year. It is also one of my most popular pinned posts to Pinterest.


A photo posted by Zita Hooke (@_itstime_blog) on

One of my most popular posts for this year was actually written about a trip I took last year. in September of 2014 I travelled to Vietnam, my first trip to South East Asia. I loved it! Especially Hoi An where I had several items of clothing tailor made to fit my mismatched shape body! My post Getting clothes made in Vietnam has proved popular in providing tips and advice on how you can have a successful experience.

A photo posted by Zita Hooke (@_itstime_blog) on
 
My first stop on my first trip was Thailand, I spent a little over 2 weeks in this beautiful country that is known as 'land of smiles' and it wasn't long before I worked out why. I quickly fell in love with the country and it's people who literally did, have a smile on their face all the time! My post Travel tips for Thailand, sharing tips like, you are more than likely going to get ripped off...get over it! made this post my most popular post for 2015 and also another one of my most pinned posts on Pinterest. 

A photo posted by Zita Hooke (@_itstime_blog) on
 
Spending a month in Cambodia after Thailand meant some time to explore. One place I was so happy to have found and visited was Mondulkiri and in particular the Mondulkiri Elephant Project and meeting it's leader Mr Tree. He, and his team, are doing wonderful things to try and end illegal use of elephants and logging in Cambodia's forests and it really opened my eyes about what is going on in these countries and I wrote a post about why riding an elephant in Asia should not be on your bucket list.  If you only read one of my linked posts in this post then can I please suggest this one! Practising responsible tourism has become very important to me since visiting this area. 

A photo posted by Zita Hooke (@_itstime_blog) on

Cambodia, whilst wonderful and amazing, also had a few little downsides for me which I shared in my ninth most popular post 10 things I will not miss about Cambodia. To be honest, I look back at that post now and see how pathetic some of them sound, but at the time that was obviously how I was feeling. 

After Cambodia I had a few days in Singapore on my way home. I came home for a few weeks before heading off again. Revealing my next destination was obviously something that intrigued many of my readers making my post my next destination my tenth most popular post of the year. 

Now in case you couldn't be bothered reading it don't know, my next destination was the United States and Canada. My first stop was Nashville, where I was in country music heaven for 10 days! It was such a wonderful trip and introduction to America. From there I headed to the big apple where my posts on Where to eat in New York City and my review of my On Location Movie and TV tour of New York have both proved popular. 

A photo posted by Zita Hooke (@_itstime_blog) on

There is still so much to blog about with my trip to the States and Canada, but one I did share was some pictures of the amazing day we spent at Monument Valley. I was a little speechless at the vastness of the area, the redness of the dirt and the height of some of the 'monuments'. Such a famous area that has been used as the backdrop to many movies over the years it's beauty is something that really needs to be seen to be believed. 

A photo posted by Zita Hooke (@_itstime_blog) on

But, with everything that I have seen and done this year, probably the most memorable and favourite thing that I did, and my favourite post of the year was sharing my experience Volunteering in Cambodia. I spent the month in Phnom Penh volunteering at a Child Care Centre for some of the cities most disadvantaged children. Seeing the smiles on their faces each day was so heartwarming and made the experience even more special.


A photo posted by Zita Hooke (@_itstime_blog) on
 
So that's it, 2015 is all but done and this has just been a little snapshot of what I have been up to and what has been popular here on the blog. As I said, there is still so much more to share so hopefully you'll stick around, subscribe even, and join me again in 2016... who knows where it may take us!




***Linking up with Kirsty from My Home Truths and Alicia from One Mother Hen 
and for the first time with the Girl vs Globe monthly linkup***

girls vs globe linkup button 

 All pictures in this post have been shared on my Instagram account...make sure you follow for more great pics!



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