Text & photos © Catherine Nichols

YOU CAN FIND the town with the longest name on the island of Anglesey in Wales (southwest Great Britain):

It’s even in the Guinness Book of World Records. Here’s a sound file of someone pronouncing the town’s name correctly.

The feature photo (upper right) is of the town name spelled out in Welsh with its literal meaning given beneath: St Mary’s church in the hollow of the white hazel near to the fierce whirlpool of St. Tysilio by the red cave.

The photo below is of the town name at the train station. Can you imagine the train conductor, who has to say the stop’s name several times per day? What a mouthful! I understand they’ve shortened it to “Llanfair PG.” Certainly much more doable.

Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch

Of my family of five, none of us attempted to say it. We just looked at all those consonants and were grateful to live in a city with a much, much shorter name.

———

Catherine Nichols

Originally from the East Coast, Catherine Nichols has spent the last 29 years in San Diego, and stays in the area because of its extraordinary beauty and a lovely lack of humidity. Accused by her three children of looking at too many rocks while visiting Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon and the deserts of Nevada, she continues to marvel at the ever-changing southwest landscape. With trips to Washington DC, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Portland, and Europe planned, Catherine plans to reawaken her desire to see the world, and leave no stone unturned. Catherine writes in her blog at iBloggoneit.com and tweets as @bloggoneit.