It is some time since I looked closely at the ClustrMaps map of the locations of visitors to this blog – a link to which has been on my sidebar for a long time. Currently the map shows 1,457 visits, representing only eight days’ hits as it was cleared on 1st August. I was interested to see where some of my readers are, or at least are reported to be by this not always accurate software.
There are some very far flung ones: Baffin Island in the Canadian Arctic; somewhere near Uluru (Ayers Rock) in central Australia; the jungles of northern Bolivia; the desert of central Egypt (or perhaps that just represents the whole of Egypt); and a rural part of one of the poorest countries in the world, Mozambique (I presume that’s you, David Ker).
I also seem to have readers in some startling places: Beijing, China; Pyongyang, North Korea; Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; and Qom, the religious capital of Iran. Well, I hope all of you find my blog interesting. But I doubt if you, or your counterparts in London and Washington, will find anything of political interest here. Perhaps this blog will help you to understand that the churches I write about are no threat to any of you – for the not very good reason that they are too busy fighting among themselves.
A warm welcome to you all, and happy reading!
Peter,
I find the Pyongyang information highly suspect, although strictly speaking not impossible.
-JAK
Justin, I’m sure the North Korean security services have Internet access, and monitor sites suspected of political activity against them. But it may just be that the map is not very accurate, and the dot was really meant to be at Seoul in the south, where I have friends.
Hi Peter, I’ve been lurking on your blog occasionally for the past few months. I came, I think, via Dave Warnock’s blog.
I’m afraid that I’m not from a very far-flung place though – I live in Colchester but work in Chelmsford (Springfield) which I think is just down the road from you!
– Phill
It’s good to meet you on the blog, Phill. Maybe sometime we can meet in person. I live just across the river from where you work, on the Meadgate estate in Great Baddow.
I think those maps were invented by americans. we don’t even exist (thank goodness – best kept secret) and different sorts of visitor metres which identify cities on blogs, always identify me (when I’m not here in the UK) as coming from Auckland – the most unKiwi city in NZ, not even the capital. So for now, hello from Nottingham.
Steph, if you look at the detailed map you will see at least six different NZ locations, not all in Auckland. But I guess if your home town is nearer Auckland than any other major city your dot will appear there.
Auckland is the other end of the country from me – generally. And I would have expected, if I was Wellington, the capital, it would say Wellington not Auckland. But this occurs on other types of visitor metres – not the type here on your blog. You have a map. There is nothing south of Australia on your map – at least on my screen there isn’t. I don’t mind. The less people, the better 🙂
Steph, I don’t know what map you are looking at. On the map as I see it, in both Firefox and Internet Explorer, in the both the thumbnail version in my sidebar and the bigger version you see when clicking on the thumbnail, New Zealand is clearly visible with clear multiple red dots. Are you working with a very limited screen resolution?
Yes I too read your blog and have enjoyed some of the topics…. the recent prevention advice regarding swine flu sent out by the Archbishops, and the subsequent comments were very interesting. On your map I am not too far fom you!!
Thanks, Eluned. It’s always good to hear from first time commenters as I think you are. I have found where you live as reported by http://www.geobytes.com/IpLocator.htm?GetLocation, not sure how accurate that is but if it is you are about 2½ hours’ drive north of here.
Ok I’ve worked it out now. We were off the edge of the screen. Shame though – I didn’t want anyone to know about us. 😉
Sorry to say Peter that your locator is not accurate at all!! I am about three quarters of an hour south west of where you are!!
Well, Eluned, I’m not that surprised. I had slightly hoped you were in Lincoln, my mother’s home town. So you are somewhere in Greater London, I would think. That’s great!