Plas Llwyngwern, Pantperthog, in Machynlleth, Powys

I have been to the United Kingdom (UK), AKA Great Britain, AKA England, AKA Britain, AKA the British Isles, more than a few times, but I never thought much about the differences until recently, when I saw the above location referenced in a news article. Yikes! Try saying that 10 times. Try saying it even once. I assumed it is Welsh, but it motivated me to do a bit of research. So this is a brief educational lesson on geography, some of which I'm sure I learned back in 5^th grade, but damned if I can remember much of it.

The first thing I learned is that Plas Llwyngwern is a guesthouse, “…located on a quiet back-lane, that runs between the village of Pantperthog and Corris via. Ceinws and Esgairgeiliog.” (Ceinws is a small village to its north and Esgairgeiliog appears to be just a street name.) I learned all of this because Plas Llwyngwern has a Facebook profile. (Who would have thought?) Machynlleth is a larger town to the south of Pantperthog, and Powys is a county in Wales. 

Wales, as we all know (wink), is a country on the western border of England, which is also a country. Wales is one of four countries (Wales, England, Scotland and Ireland) that are now known as the United Kingdom, although its official name is, "The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland." The reason for the “Northern Ireland” part of the name is that way back in 1922, most of the counties of southern Ireland decided to become independent. However, if you say “Great Britain,” then you are only referring to England, Scotland and Wales.

What about the ‘British Isles', you ask? It includes all of the above, as well as all of Ireland and a lot of other islands (5,000 of them). These include more notable islands such as The Isle of man, the Isle of Wright, Hebrides, Shetland's, Orkney's, Isis of Scilly, and the Channel Islands. (There will not be a quiz at the end.)

I still don't know how to pronounce, “Plas Llwyngwern, Pantperthog” or “Machynlleth, Powys,” but if you wish to know more (which I doubt), I recommend: http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/customs/questions/britain.html

They have pictures!

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Note: Brian left me a message about the above which merits mention. (Brian didn't say where he was from, but I must assume that he is from one of the above-mentioned countries.) His comments include the following:

"Saying the UK is AKA England can cause real offense over here because they are very different and doing so you can be perceived as belittling Wales and Scotland. Also, when you talk about the UK it can also cause offense to say Ireland is part of it. It isn't. Northern Ireland is. Our political history is wrapped up in rivalry and conflict as well as unity...so it's best to be careful."