Mya Islands

[diablo_del_bano 3]

The Mya Islands

I'm very proud of this region, so I'm going to post pics of it.

 First, the capital city, Mya 'Niana

Mya 'Niana is the capital city of the Mya (pronounces Mia) Islands, A stunning group of islands on the edge of the Caribean. The largest, Mya, contains the capital along with some stunning mountains, fertile farmland, and beautiful beaches. The island has always been settled by native people, but was found by the Spanish in 1694, and the British took it over in 1727. Because of this occupation by the british, the most spoken language on the island is English. They began to create a government, and a capital city. They chose the settlement of Mya 'Niana for their capital, and renamed it Queenstowne. They built most of what are now considered the old buildings in Mya 'Niana. They Held control over the island, and protected it from attacks by both the French and Spain, and even breifly the US durring the War of 1812. On February 19, 1902, the British granted the island indepoendence after the Mya Islands, with help from the US, declared their Independence. The British granted them independence on October 24, 1902. After being granted independence, they established a formal government on January 12, 1903. Since then, the islands have been slowly growing, but in the past 20 years that growth rate has accelerated greatly. Because of the Island's excellent education system, which is all free, they have attracted many high tech businesses to the islands. They are the largest financial power in the Caribean, and as a result have their urban centers growing at a very fast rate.

The Islands have also had Hurricanes to deal with. In September of 1911 the most powerful hurricane ever to hit the islands devistated them. the category 5 storm flooded most of the low lying areas of the island, including the State peninsula and the Museum, destroying over half of the priceless works of the islands. Downtown was flooded in 1911, but it is on higher ground, so it only get's flooded when the winds are high enough, like a cat 4 or 5. Now, I will show you the cities and other areas of the Mya Islands.

^ The CBD durring the day

^ The CBD at Night

^ The Entertainment District, including the City Arena, the Golden Bay Casino, the Mya 'Niana Convention center and attatched mall, and the Baylanding Stadium

Mya 'Niana University, with the quad, the stadium, the medical research center, and the art and engineering building.

The Bayland Theater, alng with the Bayland Arts College on the adjacent block (excluding the blue tower)

Old Colonial Square. Pictured is the Courthouse and the old civic center, both are now museums.

The State District, is actually it's own peninsula. It contains the Capitol, the SUpreme COurt House (the circular building) and the Capitol Office Tower (the half circular one) It also has the Mya Centenial Tower. Construction officially began in March 2001 so the tower could be completed for the Island's Centenial Celebration on October 24, 2002.

Mya 'Niana Museum of Art. The Museum was flooded in the 1911 hurricane, but they recovered a great many of the art works, and it is the premier museum in the Carribean.

The Zoo and Aquarium. They aren't the best on the Island, but they are both in the top 3.

Bayside Cruise Landing. All of the major Cruise lines come to the ports on the islands. This is on the northern side of the coty, and has bus access for tourists.

The City Airport. There are plans to make a larger Airport outside the city, but for now The crowded Mya 'Niana Airport will have to do.

Well, there you have it. More will come as I get around to taking the pictures. Later I will show you more of the metro area, Including the suburbs and other major CBD.

[diablo_del_bano 3]

Would someone help me with the thumbnail links in imageshack? they don't seem to want to be displayed properly.

[eggie99 6]

I love the story and the pic, keep it on!

Edit: read the pm for imageadvice, I hope it would help!

[nycsc4 5,251]

looks great, can't wait to see more!!

[Zelgadis 638]

*whispers "turn off the grids before you take pictures."* 

Well, that aside, this looks like it's going to be something really amazing.  Can't wait to see it!

ISF

[Camedia 0]

It looks beautiful, another great resort. Look forward for the update =D

[crazychickensc12 84]

Looks very nice so far!!

[Menotyou 0]

Very good, but there seem to be something wrong with the runway in the last picture.

But beside that it looks good!

[Cjah 15]

Not bad...I may only see one picture...but I like it...lol

[jacqulina 162]

hey i like the name of your cj,great start looking good so far looking forward to more

[mayorron 0]

I love the midrises in your city. Specially the ones in picture 2.

[diablo_del_bano 3]

@ eggie99: Thanks, the cool thing is that the story just came to me as I was making the city. I love imagining a history for all of my cities.

Oh and thanks for the help, but I was having problems with adding the thumbnail images, it kept loosing the linked part of the thumbnail.

@ nycsc4: thanks, hopefully you will

@ zelgadis: Yeah, I usually have the grid off. I will remember in all of my future pics. Thanks for the complement, I hope to fulfill that expectation.

@ Camedia: Thanks, that was what I was aiming for. Well, here's your update

@crazy chickensc12: Thanks!

@ menotyou: Thanks, the runway is the runway for the standard regional airport, with all upgrades. I plan on making a larger airport for Mya 'Niana and another city in the metro area, which I will show later.

@ Cjah: Well, thanks. I hope you can see them all later...

@ jacqulina: Thanks, I was going for a tribal kind of name, I also made some cities with british names to represent the british occupation.

@ mayorron: thanks, I was going for a more urban city without the sea of skyscrapers like you find on other ones like it. Plus, it makes a downtown look more realistic to have the high rises surrounded by midrises.

and now, the update!

Today we shall go to Isle Kiriana, the small resort island to the north of Mya 'Niana. It is a part of the Mya 'Niana Metro area.

Isle Kiriana Began as a small fishing settlement accessable only by boat. But, over the years the wealthier citizens of Mya 'Niana decided it was a great place to have a secluded summer beach home. The fact that it was only accessible by boat and had a population of about 20 only made it more inviting to them. But as popularity of the island rose, more people began to discuss the tourism possibilites of the island and in 1912, the English Isle, The first resort hotel on the island was opened. This paved the way for more tourism on the island, and in 1923, the central commercial district project was completed. This project was concieved as a way to provide more shops, restaurants and services to the visitors and residents of the island. The project was a huge success, and it spawned many more projects like it, both commercial and residential. In 1934 the effects of the deppression in the US and the threat of war in Europe began to negatively affect the tourism on Kirianna, as well as the islands as a whole. The Island decided to allow gambling in on the island in order to attract more tourists. The wealthier inhabitants of the island were mostly opposed to allowing gambling, and many moved away. But, not all of them saw it as a negative thing.

In 1936, Robert Kinsey Turned his estate on the Island into the first large casino on the island. The Golden East had all the ammenities you would expect of a five star resaort: spas, pools, various sporting facilities, seven five star restaurants, a 24 hour buffet, serving a variety of regional and international cuisine, beautiful rooms, all with a view, and an attentive wait staff. Sadly, the Casino was partially destroyed by fire in 1952. The fire took out most of the guest rooms, but fortunately the opulent public areas and gaming hall could be saved. In 1965, Hurricane Betsy hit the islands and flooded much of the island, including the Golden East. At first it seemed that the damage to the Golen East was only water damage, but further inspection showed major structural damage, and the complete loss of the famed East Gallery Collection. The East Gallery Collection was a priceless collection of paintings, sculptures and other artworks kept in a gallery overlooking the eastern shore. The Paintings were all lost to water damage, and everything else was swept away. One of the sculptures was found on the coast of northern Mya 'Niana mostly intact, and was generously returned to the resort, and now sits in the lobby as a testament to the perserverance to overcome such disasters.

But the structural damage to the hotel was so severe that the building couldn't be repaired. Kinsey wanted to rebuild, but he wanted all of the historic opulence that had made the hotel famous. So, he had everything that could be salvaged from the building removed and taken to be refurbished. He then had a brand new 5 floor Casino and resort built on the location. But sadly, RObert Kinsey didn't live to see his beloved resort rebuilt. He left the Golden East, along with his entire estate to his sons, Richard Kinsey II and Jonas Kinsey IV. The brothers finnished the resort and, in 1968 the Golden East was back for business. After the rebuilding, business went even better than before. So good, that in 1983, Jonas Kinsey suggested that they move to a more profitable location near the beaches. Robert didn't like the idea, saying that their father would never agree to the idea of moving the resort to another location. So, in 1984, Jonas Kinsey IV gave up his stake in the Golden East, and built the only other large casino on the island. SInce then, Robert Kinsey II has increased the size of the Golden East, with a large new 23 floor hotel tower and a new shopping center, including 67 upscale shops, and 13 additional restaurants.

Jonas Kinsey bought a plot of land near the beaches and decided that a beach themed resort and casino was more suited to the island than the upscale Golden East. So, in 1989, the Sunset Springs Resort and Casino was opened. Jonas thought that a cheaper resort with all of the amenities would bring in more business, especially the families. He also opened a cruise terminal, and in 1994, the English Queen was launched, and now sails a regular carribean route.

The island as a whole had benefited from the tourism and it has greatly transformed the island into something completely new and different, and it's always changing.

The overview of Isle Kiriana. Until the bridge was built in 1999, the only way to get to the island was the regular ferries that crossed the starit between the island and the peninsula to the east and to the mainland in the west. Despite the bridge, the ferries still run, mostly because the traffic on the bridge can get bad, as it is the only way to the island.

The commercial area of the island. Also visible is the Golden East Resort and Casino

.

The beaches on the west end of the island. The tower is the Sunset Springs Resort and Casino.

Sunset Point is the development of and around the Sunset Springs Resort and Casino. Visible is the peir for the English Queen and the old English Isle Hotel (the Maxis Resort). It now includes a small casino, and is one of the most popular hotels on the isnald, mostly because of it's pristegious history, it has hosted leaders from 27 Nations, encluding the US, Britain, France, germany, the Netherlands, and Brazil.

And now some region shots

satalite:

Transportation:

So there you have it, I hope it isn't to long, but as I was writing the story I got really into it and came up with all sorts of details that I omitted, because I didn't want to make it too long.

[Zelgadis 638]

Holy tapdancing polecats! 

That island is incredible!

Can't wait to see more of this!

ISF

[crazychickensc12 84]

Very nice island, keep up the good work!!

[Menotyou 0]

Wow! Isle Kiriana looks really nice and the region shots are cool!

[diablo_del_bano 3]

zelgadis, crazychickensc12, Menotyou: thanks for the complements!

Very quickly I will now show you the other major downtown in the area: Ni Mobi

Ni Mobi was started as a small village on the bay bearing the same name. The people of the village were mostly fisherman and traders, with some farmers, though the wetlands surrounding the village made it almost impossible to farm outside the city. Instead, the village grew from trade, first within the islands and then in the reat of the Carribean.  Fishing and Hunting in the wetlands and the coastal waters also benefited the entire region, with the city sending food to much of Mya Ita, the largest isle, and many of the smaller islands.  After the British annexed the isles, they moved much of the port functions to the provincial capital, leading Ni Mobi into an ecconomic reccession. The locals tried to compensate the loss of trade money by increasing the hunting and fishing in the wetlands. This brought in some extra cash for the citizens, but by 1860 when the British did an ecological study on the area after reports of dissappearing speicies, they discovered that as many as 5 speicies of fish, mammals and reptiles were extinct and many more were nearing extinction. Because of this, they banned all hunting and fishing in the area, creating the first wildlife refuge on the island. The Ni Mobi Wetlands are now considered one of the islands most precious and endangered treasures, mostly due to developers bribing government officials. The government has been working on stamping this out, and has been actively trying to close loopholes in various legal goccuments that have previously been explioted to gain access to develop these lands.

In recent years, the city has seen a return to it's former ecconomic stature, not because of trade, but because of tourism. Ni Mobi, Like Isle Kiriana, legalized gambling to try and bring tourists in, because it was beileved that is would bring in the tourism, and it did.  But unlike Isle Kiriana, it was the attractions built in the city that kept people coming back for more. They built restaurants, shops, and the largest mall complex in the country, the Mya Ita Galleria.

The Mya Ita Galleria was built in 1994 to answer the rising retail space needs of the growing city. The complex as a whole has over 3 Million square feet of retail space. The Main Mall has 4 floors of retail space and has over 600 stores, both upscale and lower end.  The surrounding buildings vary in height, but most of them are one floor.  The mall has certainly brought in tourists, and is also very popular with the island locals, more so than any other attraction on the island. The other factor in this island's success are the sports and conventions.  Unlike Isle Kiriana, Ni Mobi has the room for stadiums and large convention halls, bringing people from around the world. This Tourism and all the amenities have brought corporate interest to the city as well. Many corporations are located here and employ people from around the metroplex. The city has also grown to have it's boundries and suburbs intertwined with Mya 'Niana, forming the Mya Ite Metroplex. Recently they will share a large new International Airport, due to begin construction soon.

Now, I will show you some images from the city in this micro-update (I promise more pics later, and a new area soon after.)

Downtown at night, with the convention facilities and sports arenas. Also visible is the industrial clusters and the commercial Highrises.

The same place, only from the ocean.

Here is my progress on the metroplex: (you'll need to use the link, as it is too big to post)

[GMT 389]

this is cool work here!

waiting for more