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Sorry Michael - the link before was in deed not taking you to a page that would allow new specification to be put into the search - I have added a better link in the post above.
All browse pages in the explore section do allow countries etc to be added to the search once a category/subcategory has been chosen.
So you can chose United Kingdom from the drop down for countries and be more specific too - like adding Cornwall for example.
The order these list in without making choices is based on the order we listed them when we put them into the site before it was launched around 4 years ago. So we just worked through one country at a time for around ten solid months. We started at Europe then went outwards. The USA was that last country that we went through for holidays and clubs.
This post was edited by
Anna ANW at March 24, 2023 6:48 AM GMT
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I think sharing is so important. When we first wanted to explore naturism together it was so tough to get information. We would spend hours trying to establish where a beach was and if it was in deed naturist etc. Some woukld say it was others would say naturists were not welcome at all, some would say get to the beach via some steps while others would say the steps no longer existed.
On a bigger picture all we saw of people on the internet sharing naturism was not really what we would call naturism at all. It was all exhibitionism and voyeurism.
We did see that there were some great websites run by clubs and by federations but found that they were either narrow in their subject matter - promoting naturism in Newcastle for example - or the information is rather hidden away behind a membership barrier. And who wants to pay to join a club simply to find out about going to a beach while on holiday.
They also were rather grey about what naturism is, who enjoys it, families etc.
We basically started to think about building ANW around 15 years ago. Purely because we were frustrated by feeling like we were alone as naturists and didn't know how to connect and find information. Something I feel the BN fail in is that they do not attempt to encourage people to become naturists before joining them. We know of so many people who have spent time on ANW who have then moved on to join the BN, or other national bodies, find local clubs, swims etc. People mention being encouraged into the lifestyle by Steve and I, our blogs and videos and ANW. Just yesterday a couple joined and said they are new to naturism and found the courage through us.
Too often naturism is pictured as a mysterious world, hidden away from all but those that are already part of it. But that creates a locked circle. Even trying to expand like the EveryBody idea fails to actually paint a real picture. Is it just naked partying for adults? The FAQs may state it is non-sexual but how many get that far into the website? They forget that they are selling naturism to people who do not yet understand it.
As far as we are concerned ANW is really about sharing - knowledge, experiences, frinedships and naturism with everyone all over the world. Bringing us together and making us stronger. There is strength in joining together as small groups just as RnR are saying with this topic but also on a much grander scale. A network of individuals, small groupos, larger groups, nations etc working together for naturism. That is what we want for ANW.
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I very much like the idea of meeting with like-minded people and would jump at the opportunity.
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We really enjoyed the Google Meet, again lots of points of view, and most importantly we realised there are a good few people who either want to do more, or have a good wealth of information on places people can visit, and we feel that is the key... Sharing information.
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Years ago I was invited to join a mid summer full moon midnight get together on Pedn Vounder beach organised by the regulars. Everyone bought tuperware pots of food and people could help themselves to a buffet. There was a bonfire and the various children had a great time in the sea. It was a little hairy heading down the cliffside by torch light but it was a wonderful time just happening through word of mouth. Maybe 30-50 people there - everyone knew each other just from using the beach as naturists.
This is a perfect example of what can be done with the right intentions and connections. Anna and I would love to help people do this all over the world through ANW.