How to be a better blogger!

I decided to take a weekend break from the "Owning your City" series currently running on my blog and tell you guys a little about Altitude Design Summit's online classes. 

I read about it on Bamboo Blossom in the week and I know that I still have a lot of learning to do when it comes to blogging. The brilliant thing about these online classes is that it covers anything and everything!

Think about what you would really like to improve your skills on: growing readership, tips and tricks for blogging success, graphic design for bloggers and photoshop for bloggers? Together with Bing's Summer of Doing, you can earn up to four FREE classes! Oh goody goody gumdrops!

So what are you waiting for. Learn how to earn free online lessons here.

Images via Alt Design. I put them together.

Owning your city: Jay

This is Jay, she's a traveler of note. Check out her story.

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Hello SFL readers!  I'm Jay and I blog over at From There To Here.  Two years ago, my husband and I left our comfortable life in Canada for a crazy life abroad and we haven't looked back since.  Our first expatriation took us to Gabon in West Africa.  Don't worry if you haven't heard of it before, I hadn't either before we found out we were moving there!  (Although you might remember that Survivor once filmed a season there.)

Gabon is located right on the equator on the West coast of Africa and while the country is fairly big, the population is just over 1 million.  Much of the country is covered in rainforests and the government has set aside 13 national parks in order to protect the environment and the elephants, lowland gorillas, hippos and other wildlife.  Unfortunately, not many people get to visit this country as it's one of the most expensive places in the world to live (crazy, I know but I've paid $25 for a head of mediocre broccoli!)  

In any case, I'm going to tell you about the little city I called home for 2 years; Port Gentil.  Port Gentil is the second largest city in the country and the oil capital which brings a huge number of expats to Gabon.  The city is considered to be on an island as no roadways connect it to the mainland and while there aren't Starbucks, movie theatres, or really anything recognizable from home, we did have a few favorite hangouts.

The absolute best part of Gabon and Port Gentil has got to be the beaches.  My favorite place to spend a Sunday would have to be Sogara Beach which is in the bay making the water calm and clear blue.  Many people head to the club at the far end of the beach where there's a restaurant but Joe and I prefer the less-visited areas where we can relax with a cooler of drinks all on our own.

The other main beach destination is Cape Lopez which is just outside of town.  The beach is completely undeveloped with sand and sea for miles and miles.  You can take your 4x4 off the main road to find your own patch of beach without a soul around or you can park down by the old lighthouse (apparently built by Eiffel himself) and watch the surfers or take a walk further down the beach keeping your eyes open for dolphins or migrating whales.  

Every Thursday my friends and I would go to the restaurant Lido, which is perched on top of stilts over the sea, for Thirsty Thursday cocktails.  They have a great little covered patio and make a strong drink.  It's the perfect place to unwind from the day, watch the fish jumping in the harbour and catch up with friends.

Last, but certainly not least, is my pool.  While only a select few people actually visit it, it's one of my favourite places in all of Port Gentil.  We would often bring our stereo out, books and beers and spend the afternoon rotating in and out of the patio furniture and pool.

For almost all of you, Port Gentil probably won't be on your travel list but I'm so happy to share some of my favourite places while living there --- especially now that we've moved to Norway.  Once I get to know Stavanger a bit better, perhaps I'll be back sharing the places to be there!

To follow along on my adventures overseas you can check out my blog here and if you're curious about life in Gabon, you can read up here.

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Thanks for showing us a bit more about Africa, Jay!

Owning your City: Sienna

Say hello to Sienna. A real jetsetter! Sienna take the stage.

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Hi everyone! I'm Sienna from Peace, Love, Wander.

I'm kind of a dork, I'm obsessed with the ocean, and I have a severe case of wanderlust. Even though I grew up in California, it feels like I've been away more than I've actually been at home. I've traveled all of my life, and have lived in New York as well as having spent a lot of time in London. When I am in San Diego, though, my absolute favorite thing about my city is the water. 

I've been boating since I was a little girl, and having an oasis away from the city is such a welcome escape from life sometimes. 

There's nothing I love more than spending days on my family's boat, taking the ski boat down to Coronado Island, water-skiing for hours on end, and spending early mornings on the fly-bridge with my family, overlooking the open ocean before me.

San Diego has one of the best bays and getting to enjoy it from out on the water is truly spectacular. 

Thank you for having me!

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Thank you Sienna, for showing us your lovely city!

Owning your City: Nikki

Lee Jeans South Africa recently launched a new campaign called 'Own this City". It's about the things that make the city you live in unique, and what makes it your city. It's about the things that you love, the little restaurant around the corner where only locals go, the park, with the mountain, the streams, the memories.

I thought that it would be a cool concept for a few bloggers to tell me and you about their favourite spots and hangouts in their cities. It also gives you a little insight to what people love and live for! 

First up is Nikki. She's a cutie! 

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Hi y'all! I’m Nikki and I blog over at The Pink Growl. 

Miss Megan reached out to me to participate in her Owning Your City series so here I am! A little bit about me…My blog explores the everyday adventures of a Southern belle wanna be. I'm a girly girl, soon-to-be cop's wifey, doggy mama, and TN Vol for life. If it glitters, is gold or growls then I probably love it. I keep it real on my blog talking about everything from weight issues, the urge to get married & reproduce, planning my wedding and any random crazy ideas that comes into my head. Come on over and help me figure things out, one normal girl struggle at a time!

When Megan first threw this idea out to me, I was definitely intrigued. I LOVE the city I live in - Knoxville,TN. Obviously, I'm probably a bit biased but maybe I can sway you to believe me! Knoxville is the 3rd largest city in Tennessee, behind Nashville & Memphis. It's located in East TN along the Smoky Mountains. Knoxville is a college town, home to the University of TN - my alma mater. The humdity is high, the accents are deep and the land is beautiful. One of my favorite things about living here is the plentiful lakes & rivers and also the mountains. It's definitely not a flat, boring terrain!

There are MANY tourist spots around this area. We are 40 minutes from Gatlinburg and a national park in the mountains. You can visit the 1982 World's Fair Site with the pretty sunsphere (as featured on The Simpsons). Lots of reasons bring people to my town.

While all that is well and good, I'm sure you want to hear about the fun places that locals hang out in Knoxville. First on my list is Market Square. Market Square has been a hip downtown spot for ages. Recently the downtown district went through some renovations, which has led to an influx of unique restaurants, boutiques and lofts in this area. Market Square is the central hub of downtown. It hosts businesses, restaurants with patios, salons, boutiques, bars and clubs. This is where many festivals, outdoor concerts and parades are held too. They also have a farmer's market on Saturday mornings, which is amazing! No matter what you are looking to get into, you can find it on Market Square.

Next up has got to be football. Football is a way of life in the South, so that goes for TN too. Every Saturday me and 107,000 of my closest friends go visit Neyland Stadium to watch the boys in orange play. I've been going to games since before I can remember. It's just what you do around here on Saturdays in the fall. We wouldn't know any other way.

At least we tailgate in style! Even if you don't love football, you can appreciate this turnout each and every week. It's how we roll in a college town!

Next up is one of my personal favorite restaurants - Calhoun's on the River. Calhoun's is an East TN staple and has been around since well before my time. They are known for their speciality brewed beer and their delicious ribs. There are several locations spread about town, but this one on the river is my favorite. Their food is yummy, drinks are strong and the atmosphere is fun!

It was so hard to choose which areas to highlight to you. Knoxville is a rapidly growing city, and awesome chic places are popping up everywhere. There is a great shopping district called Turkey Creek in West Knoxville that has anything you could ever want to buy there - but I couldn't find any good pictures of the complex to show you. Just remember if you want to blow some major cash, go to Turkey Creek!

If you ever come to visit Knoxville, please look me up! I would love to show you around! Thank you for having me, Megan! I hope to see you soon over at The Pink Growl!