We’re just back from a week in North Wales. And no, we didn’t stay in Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch, but we were just the other side of the Menai Straits in a lovely cottage near Llanllechid.
I mention Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch simply because of my embarrassment at not being able to get my tongue around the Welsh language at all. When I visit a foreign country I like to do my best to learn what I can of the language and to enjoy as much of the local culture and, let’s admit it – food and drink, as I can.
Why then do I find it so hard to pronounce a Welsh place name, not just the one mentioned already in this post (and which I promise I will not mention again), but even a nice short one like Llanllechid?
And I’m also wondering why it is that when posting my photos on Flickr I use the English “Rome” rather than “Roma” and yet the Welsh “Conwy” rather than the Anglicised form, “Conway”?
And speaking of Conwy (there I go again) – what a wonderful place. I’m generally not too keen on “seaside resorts”, but Conwy really appealed. I think it might have been the rich tapestry of history that you can feel oozing out of the place. Conwy still has a remarkably intact set of medieval town walls and a wonderful castle, not to mention Plas Mawr, an incredibly intact and splendid Elizabethan town house.
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August 7, 2008 at 9:14 pm
Just let me know if you want me to provide a sound file with the correct pronunciation of “Llanfair PG….”
Glad you had such a lovely time in North Wales – I have fond memories of Conw(a)y from my childhood, as my grandparents lived just along the coast in Rhyl, so many a daytrip was enjoyed in those there parts. Plas Mawr also looks fantastic, if the photos on your Flickr page are anything to judge by (I still need to find time to look at them properly, though).
August 7, 2008 at 9:33 pm
Oooh, please Bexxi. To show my age, I still remember seeing one of the McWhirter twins (can’t remember which) saying that one on “Record Breakers”.
I sort of fell in love with Conway and I hope I get the chance to go back to stay sometime. Plas Mawr is certainly well worth a look, and especially so for us as we’ve been English Heritage members for yonks so Cadw (and I don’t have a clue how to pronounce that either) let us in for free.
I sure took a lot of photos in Wales, but there’s nothing that special. Nice as it is to visit these places with Family, it would be even nicer if Family were also all photographers. I just always feel so rushed. The only times when I seem to be able to relax and shoot things I’m happy with are when I’m alone.