Vulvas and Vaginas

What’s the difference between a vagina and a vulva?

Let's go with a neighborhood analogy:

Imagine the vulva as the entire front yard of a house. It's what you see when you walk by on the sidewalk. The vulva includes all the elements of this yard: the lawn (labia majora), the flower beds (labia minora), the garden gnome (clitoris), and the mailbox (urethral opening) right next to the front door (vaginal opening).

Now, the vagina is the cozy hallway inside the house, right behind the front door. It's where you enter to get into the main rooms of the house (like the uterus, if we're keeping with the anatomical theme).

So, in essence, the vulva is the whole front yard that anyone can see from the street, and the vagina is the hallway you walk into once you go through the front door!