15 The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Places of interest

Southern England

• Canterbury - The spiritual centre of the Church of England, The Cathedral was built between 1000s and the early 1500s. The destination of travellers in The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer.

• Brighton - A beach resort; the Royal Pavilion here was built as a residence for the Prince Regent.

• Stonehenge - Prehistoric monuments - circles of huge stones - erected more than 3,500 years ago.

• Plymouth - A historic seaport. The departure and return point of Sir Christopher Drake's voyage around the world. Departure point of the Mayflower, which carried the Pilgrims to Massachusetts in 1620.

• Bath - A health spa with warm springs used since Roman times; with beautiful town architecture dating from the 1700s.

Central England

• Stratford-upon-Avon - The birthplace and the burial place of William Shakespeare;

theatre performances and many sites connected with Shakespeare's life.

• Coventry - A striking modern cathedral replaced the older cathedral destroyed by German aircraft in 1940.

• Oxford - The UK's oldest university; 33 colleges including Christ Church.

• Cambridge - The second oldest university; its colleges include Trinity College with a famous library.

Northern England

• Liverpool - A major seaport and industrial city; two modern cathedrals; the Maritime Museum; the Home of the Beatles

• York - The York Minster (cathedral), the largest Gothic cathedral in England; several shopping areas with medieval atmosphere; medieval fortification

• Hadrian's Wall - Around AD 122 Roman Emperor Hadrian ordered a wall to be built in northern Britain, the then part of the Roman Empire, to keep out enemies

Scotland

• Edinburgh - A hilly city that dates back to medieval times. Edinburgh castle is connected to the Palace of Holyrood house by the Royal Mile. The Annual Edinburgh International Festival takes place in late summer.

• Loch Ness - A legendary monster called Nessie is said to live in the lake.

• Aberdeen - An important city in northern Scotland; centre for North Sea oil

• Glasgow - An industrial city and a seaport; the largest city in Scotland

Wales

• Cardiff - The capital of Wales; a centre of light industry and financial services. A university; a castle built in 1100s in place of a Roman fort. The Wales’s national game is Rugby. The title of the prince of Wales is given to the oldest son of reigning English monarch. Cardiff has many landmark buildings such as the Millennium Stadium-the second largest stadium in the world or Cardiff Castle.

• Llangollen - Home of the International Musical Eisteddfod, a famous festival of dance and music (songs)

Northern Ireland

• Belfast - The capital city of Northern Ireland; an industrial port and university city surrounded by hills; the Ulster Museum and Botanical Gardens Giant's Causeway: A natural wonder of the northern coast; a causeway formed by hexagonal columns of basalt rock