Cattala (AIN)

[Benedict 3,119]

The cathedral works perfectly with the warm tones of your CJ. Looking forward to more of the Advent.

[ThomasSimpson 466]

Benedict: Thank you, I'm glad you liked it.

Buongiorno and welcome back to Cattala. A few updates ago, we went on a railway journey and I think it was quite a popular one. Well today, we're back in the ol' global warming machines and taking a trip along the M2 Motorway. But since fuel prices are so high at the moment, we can only do a round trip of Vittoria Junction... Didn't you hear, Europe's poor?

This is only a short update because I can't overload my Dropbox account with mosaics. So, here's an overview of the whole junction area, a hub of industrial activity and an important stop off point between Celeste and Calora.

Only six updates to go until we reaching triple figures, so I thought we should visit one of my favourite regions of Cattala - Ontano Island. When I began doing rural updates back in 2010, it was my first time trying to create functional, aesthetically pleasing communities without the hustle and bustle of city life. In the previous update we saw one of my more recent rural communities, Allea, but it all began in South Ontano. This image stands out to me because it contrasted with the usual sunny image of life in the country. Thanks for viewing today.

[vivapanda 422]

The combination of every single thing in this pictures makes my jaw drop

[Benedict 3,119]

I think you do an amazing job of adding in the modern things like freeways, yet keeping the rustic quality to your region.

[ThomasSimpson 466]

Buongiorno. All replies are coming next update when we have a special treat for you all. Today we're approaching the end of a bumper year for rural updates. Last autumn I took you on a tour of the southern island of Ontano in late autumn. Well now, we're exploring some of the mainland in winter. Welcome back, to Lessito.

But it's not exactly the best conditions for it...

Winter in Cattala is not pretty. There's no beautiful snowmen or mountains coated in crisp white powder or snow days (which are wonderful by the way). In fact... our beautiful season is in summer. Remember Yewell Village? It looked much warmer in July.

In some parts of this update, we'll also be looking at autumnal scenes in Lessito, such as in Darna. As the dark nights close in, and the siesta is replaced by early evenings, the leaves begin to fall and the skies cloud over.

Autumn is the last hurrah for Cattala's renowned forestry. Lessito's tourism industry actually spikes in October compared to the end of summer, thanks to the milder temperatures (roughly 23 celcius), and the array of colourful woodland.

It's a time for the farmers to end their harvests and begin preparing for the next season. Over winter, they can, or at least could in the past, put their feet up and have a rest from the early mornings and late evenings.

As December comes around, the rains begin. Cattala gets most of its rainfall in the wet winter period, with an average of 94mm in December alone. If there's no rain now, the likelihood of a summer drought is very high - fortunately, it has been raining over the past few weeks, as the lonesome BP Man can inform you.

The wet conditions can cause problems on the roads, especially in rural areas like Callavre. Heavy lorries often slide off of the roads, which also have to be suitable for the dry summer weather as well as winter rains.

Here we can see the town hall, lit up ready for Christmas celebrations. Unlike other Western cultures, Cattala doesn't go too over the top with decorations and tinsel, except in the big cities.

One thing that we do have in common though, is the problems it causes with the railways. Through much of December, especially Christmas, services to rural stations like Callavre are limited to perhaps three or four a day. For many, this means no connection with their family in Jennai or Calora, or their work in other towns. Those living alongside the tracks enjoy the respite though.

Down further south in Ontano Bridge, the heavy rains intensify from the coastline. But for the farmers, it can be the difference between a good harvest and a bad one.

Traffic to the cities swells at Christmas, with tourists replaced by locals as the main travellers. Many rural communities can become deserted as families visit relatives elsewhere in the country, but equally they can be filled with the cheer and jubilation as children, grand children and great grandchildren return to visit grandma and grandpa who live in the fields.

But of course, one place that enjoys the spirit of Christmas the most is the church. Throughout the kingdom, communities gather at Christmas in their parish churches for mass on the 25th day of the month. The shops are all closed, the roads deserted. It's Christmas, a time for family, community, and God.

When the clouds break, the fields glow, but not like in summer. Now they're quite empty of life, the wheat cut down and the fruits picked from the trees and vines. They'll be back soon though, that's for sure.

Now for the final stop on our extra-long journey today. Dallia, one of my personal favourites and a village almost off the grid. Even in winter it's a beautiful place...

Here's an overview of Dallia and the hamlets it encompasses. Still colourful, despite the late autumn setting. The wheat field in the bottom of the picture is almost ready to be plowed back into the soil to add nutrients ready for next year.

Winter. It's a time of waiting, and anticipation across Lessito. The busy harvests are all done, and the dark mornings and nights mean the rural communities hibernate, just like the natural world around them.

But soon, it'll be a hive of activity. Christmas, family celebrations, and the New Year mean a fresh start, and before too long it'll be time to plant and nurture and grow once again.

Until then, have a Merry Christmas, from Lessito.

[Charlie_Zane 963]

Amazing!

All that rain must be pleasing the farmers for sure!

[+Guest Member 193110]

I haven't visited simtropolis for a while, but I can say that you're doing a great job here in Cattala. Keep up the great work!

[Benedict 3,119]

Wow, that's another special update. I'm looking forward to the 'treat'.

[ThomasSimpson 466]

Vivapanda: Thank you!

Benedict: I've never thought of it that way, but rustic does suit Cattala quite well actually. Thank you!

City_Master: Absolutely, as long as their homes are all right!

algis242: I'm glad to see you again, and that you still follow Cattala, thank you.

Benedict: The treat hasn't worked out the way I had hoped, so I've merged it with an update I was planning to do on New Year's Eve. I might introduce elements of it back into future updates though.

Welcome back to Cattala. Today we're having a special end-of-year review, of all the towns and cities that have made up this year's Cattala Journal, and it's 24 updates.

And of course, we have to do it in style. Introducing, the home for our celebration tonight, the Dionysus Arena in Celeste!

Our trip through 2012's memories begins a long time before this year even began. In January 2011, I made an announcement expressing my fear over the future of the journal, because my region had effectively seized up. No demand = No growth = No journal. Through much of 2011 of muddled through, until in November I decided to restart with a new region and new cities.

Five months later, I had a grown region with a natural growth style in some rural villages and towns, but also a giant port and a giant religious centre, the Holy Church of Calora. You can see the finished product from my update earlier this month below.

Between March and June I had my GCSE exams but also did some minor work in the background on Cattala, most notably moving all of my regions and plugins to my laptop, which is where I now do all my updates. This gave me much greater flexibility to play whenever I wanted, even with the 30 minute loading time! However I still wasn't content with the new region and decided to begin again. Again.

The second incarnation of the capital, Celeste, was the biggest project I've undertaken with this journal. Celeste is one of my favourite cities in Cattala and has made up almost a quarter of all the updates so far. This year it expanded from just an archaic neo-Parisian city into a melting pot of ancient, medieval, colonial, international and modern styles to become my biggest city ever. Here's an overview of Alder Hill, the first part of the new city to be completed.

In the summer we began a journey criss-crossing southern Lessito. Last year, one of the centrepieces of the journal was the summertime tour of Ontano Island, and this year I took us onto the mainland and along the route of the A6, visiting hamlets, villages and towns including Callavre.

In August my work on the biggest area of the new Celeste was finally completed, and the first few updates of Aziens were released in September. It included a view of Alder Court Park, home to Cattala's tennis champions, and also the skyscrapers of the eastern wing of the city. The historic Citadel is now close to completion too.

In October, this journal celebrated its second anniversary with a special edition compiling all the cities so far seen. However much of that months updates were focused on Cressa, an interactive village I was hoping to build with your input. It may return at some point in the future.

With my exams approaching, it's unlikely that next year will achieve more than the 25 updates so far seen this year. I very much enjoy Cattala, making this journal, crafting the cities and seeing what the readers think of it all.

I hope you also found Cattala as enjoyable as I did, and leave you with one of my favourite pictures of Vittoria, the suburb of Celeste. Have a wonderful Christmas and New Year, and thanks for watching.

[vivapanda 422]

Gorgeous, I can not find any other words

[ThomasSimpson 466]

Thank you vivapanda, that's very kind of you. And thanks for being such a regular commenter!

Buongiorno and Buon Natale! Welcome back to Cattala, where today we're visiting a brand new town south east of Calora, in Fieranti province. A few updates ago we followed the M2 motorway from Celeste up to Vittoria - well now we're heading one step closer towards Cattala's second city as we enter its suburbs.

Welcome, to Cydonia.

Cydonia isn't just another Mediterranean town with the multicoloured walls and red rooftops we're used to seeing in much of Cattala. Perseni Heights is a modern development on the edge of the town, between the railway line and the motorway. It's an assortment of stylish apartments and also an industrial park which we'll take a look at a bit later.

In the heart of the original town though, there are plenty of red roofed traditional homes, which are synonymous with Calora and its surrounding regions. Modern developments have introduced some whitewash to the area in recent years, especially in desirable areas like this well-to-do part of the town above its winding streams.

There are many traditions that remain, of course. The Church of Cydonia is a Baroque masterpiece and for centuries it has, and continues, to dominate the skyline. The Church's grounds used to extend far into the forests, but now its immediate lands are dissected by the roads coming off the motorway. It's a good job the cemetery was moved out of town, or it wouldn't be suitable for the mourners any more.

In the town centre, modern offices and towers have been built alongside the railway station, which connects the Calora mainline with Celeste and Jennai. This prime location means that many businesses and developers are eager to tear down some of the older buildings and create more boxy offices like these 1960s designed council offices with their dodgy fluorescent tube lighting.

Towards the north of the city, the traditional employers still remain, although diminished. Industry and trade had always been the focus of this town and now the railway links to Calora, Celeste and Jennai ports mean manufacturing does still play a role in the town's economy.

Nowadays commerce is the breadwinner. The Cattala Chamber of Commerce has one its head offices in the town's historic quarter and there are many independent shops spread out across Cydonia, with little competition from multinationals, many of whom are banned from the town.

But one of the key industries they've encouraged recently in Cydonia is high technology, specialist engineering. With its good road and rail connections, the town's Perseni Industrial Park has become a leading employer and is one of the country's most successful industrial centres of recent times.

The future of Cydonia is rooted in Perseni Heights, whilst its past is across town in amongst the compact roofs of the old quarters.

The last couple of updates haven't featured a Memory Lane because of their length, so we've got two today. Both are from Hellas Province, in the far north of Cattala. The town of Amano Bridge clings to the river and hasn't changed for centuries. Nestled in the hills that dominate this sea-faring island, Amano Bridge is one of the few crossing points in the hinterlands of Ionia.

In the south of the island, the city of Ionia is a contrast to the traditional communities elsewhere on the small outpost of the kingdom. Tilia was featured 50 updates ago in April 2011 and highlighted a vast development alongside a boating lake in the suburbs of Ionia, Hellas' port and main town. A hotel and leisure complex was under construction and near completion at the time. Will we ever go back and see the end result? Perhaps.

Thank you for reading Cattala today and I wish you a Happy New Year!

[Benedict 3,119]

Love the rail images in both of the recent updates. Your capital project yielded beautiful results, and I love the island and bridge in that second last image. What a great year!

[Fox 1,444]

Nice update, the mixture of architecture types surprisingly work well together to give a sense of old world style and yet modern feel.

Love the churches and I'm in interested in hearing more about this ban of multinationals in Cydonia.

Definitely a +1 from me for this update.

[ThomasSimpson 466]

Fox: Thank you. I should do an update on Cattala's businesses, and its limits on supermarkets someday. I've written it down so perhaps it'll come soon.

Benedict: Absolutely, thank you. Celeste has been the focus of my year and the results of it, especially the modern Aziens area, are above and beyond what I expected. Aziens is the first urban CBD I've built in... a very long time, and the first one I've done using custom content. It's been a great year for Cattala, and thank you for all your kind words throughout.

Buongiorno and Felice Anno Nuovo! Welcome back to Cattala, and today's special update from two cities. Calora and Celeste have been centrepieces of this City Journal over the past two years and 97 updates, so I thought it fitting that we see off 2012 with fireworks from both. But first, an autumnal mosaic of Cydonia.

The annual fireworks displays in all three of Cattala's main cities is a rivalry that dates back for decades. Once upon a time they went to war over small things - now they fight with fireworks. Jennai always has the largest budget, but Celeste and Calora have a fierce battle over who can produce the best display with a smaller budget than the country's largest city.

Alder Hill has always been a focus for Celeste's displays, but in recent years the glistening steel of Azien's skyscrapers, and its two huge stadiums, mean that many of the displays now end over the modern quarters of the capital.

This year, for the first time, the Calora display will be held over the historic bay after the Church of Cattala agreed to allow fireworks near the city's cathedral. You can catch a glimpse of what has been built since the Advent update. Perhaps some suggestions about the slummy houses were listened to?

The mythical Jennai has been mentioned many times over the past 97 updates - back in September 2010 I was asked when it was going to be built. I did begin building the city, home to 1 million of Cattala's 4.2 million people - in summer 2011, but abandoned it soon after. I have skirted around the city, with border towns like Santa Cecilia, Confini and Elloria, but the metropolis hasn't emerged yet. If it does get built, it will be an enormous project and perhaps it will happen once Celeste and Calora are done. Aziens is the only modern urban CBD I've built. Maybe it will turn out to be a dry run for the jewel in the crown.

Thank you for reading Cattala today and I wish you all a wonderful 2013.

[Fox 1,444]

Beautiful fireworks and love the colours of the trees ..

I hope you have a great new year.

[vivapanda 422]

I'd love to have witnessed these shows!

Stunning firework over beatiful cities

[wwetom1 831]

Those trees look great! Same with your fireworks!

[SimCoug 5,973]

Each picture is beautiful - the fall mosaic especially stands out in my mind. Great work.

[ThomasSimpson 466]

Fox: Thank you, I'm glad you liked it.

vivapanda: Yep, Cattala's cities always go full-on for New Years celebrations. Celeste now has its own viewing platform over the coast just for these celebrations!

wwetom1: Thanks! I know you like using trees a lot so I'm pleased you liked what I did with some amazing MMPs - thanks go to girafe and the VIP team for those.

SimCoug: Thank you; those Girafe trees are wonderful and I love using them. Everywhere.

Welcome to Cattala, and our first 2013 update. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and New Year! Now today I'm going to show you Jennai. Of course, I haven't even begun building Jennai yet, as I explicitly said last update. So, here's some countryside outside Jennai: it's Tamer.

The eagle eyed amongst you may have spotted my little lie there. Tamer is in Fieranti, and is north-east of Cydonia. So... if we're in Fieranti, why did I say we were in Jennai...?

Because we are. This is Rene, in Jennai. The actual city.

Rene isn't the nicest part of town, that's why we're in the car with the blacked out windows today. Despite government expenditure on new housing projects to try and improve the housing stock and the lives of residents, this borough remains one of the poorest in the city.

Just yesterday five men were arrested for the murder of a teenager in a gang shooting outside Rene Elementare. With government cuts beginning to bite, it seems unlikely that this part of the city will be turned around any time soon.

Thank you for visiting Cattala today - perhaps next time we'll visit a nicer place? Somewhere sunny, like Santa Cecilia maybe. That would be nice.

[Charlie_Zane 963]

Rene looks nice for a poor area! Much nicer than some in other places around the world!

Santa Cecilia looks nice, looks much more cleaner and friendlier!

[+Guest Member 193110]

Great work.

[vivapanda 422]

Thoug it's not a nice place it looks great!

[Darth Apple 54]

Looks incredible! I love the overall detail that you put in your work. I remain impressed.

[ThomasSimpson 466]

City_Master: Oh no - but Rene isn't meant to look nice! Oh well - I'll have to go find some proper slums. I'm pleased you like Santa Cecilia though. That was my first effort at a tourist resort town on the coast of Cattala.

Algis: Thanks again!

Vivapanda: Exactly what I think I was going for. Thank you!

Darth Apple: I love your name, that's great. I'm glad you like Cattala.

Welcome to Cattala, and today we're doing a special update which was actually the brainchild of a random comment about Cattala's shops by a commenter in this section. See, you guys really do influence what I do.

Welcome back to Rene, in Jennai. This neglected wasteland has benefited of late from upgrades in its railway services - although it isn't connected to the Jennai Metro, it now has more regular InterCity rail services, along the Southport branch line. This has fuelled some new development in the area.

Rene's role as a transport intersection mean it has attracted commercial interest too. One of Cattala's largest supermarket stores, Tesco Rene, can be found in the borough. Tesco once dominated the Cattalian urban market, after it was granted a trading licence in the 1990s to operate in the three metropolitan areas of Celeste, Jennai and Calora. However, it has seen its market share slide sharply after a series of ethical scandals and price disputes with local suppliers.

In efforts to shore up its business in Cattala, against rising local competition, they began building new homes and businesses on adjacent land to their stores, claiming to provide low cost housing for Jennai's poorest. This backfired when it emerged that Tesco's was making tidy profits off every sale.

Local rivals, such as Cooperativa, have taken over the market from Tesco. Multinational rivals such as Carrefour and Auchan have made efforts to muscle in on Tesco's downwards spiral, but failed to gain licenses after public campaigns to stop the multinationals forcing out local suppliers and shops became mainstream. This small convenience store in Rene is an example of their efforts; it is a joint venture between Carrefour and Cattalian chain Rammoza. These ventures are highly restricted and limited only to Jennai and Calora.

The general public have been suspicious of supermarkets since the Tesco scandal began in 2004. Efforts by regional governments to loosen the laws have been met with fierce opposition, even in cities. Rene is an example used by the anti-supermarket campaigners. Since the Tesco opened, six local shops have closed and fifteen other stores have seen profits fall by at least 33%.

The last of our series of my most favourite updates is Elloria, in northern Jennai. This was one of my first opportunities to explore the woodland of rural Amosseri/Monte Calida/Jennai's borderlands, and also where I experimented with truly rural, undeveloped territory. I really like the result of this update and hope you did too. So, all ten pre-100 images are now done. That means one thing only - the next update, is the big one.

I hope you all enjoyed that insight into the reasoning behind the lack of supermarket chains in Cattala. As you've seen in past updates, there's a lot of local shops and Cooperativa alone has around 400 partner shops throughout the country. Tesco's now has just six stores in Cattala, down from a peak of 32, after losing its trading licenses in Amosseri, Lessito, Roumeli and Monte Calida. Monte Calida and Lessito provincial governments were scathing of Tesco after it attempted to create 50 local shops across the provinces, and were the first to revoke its licenses in 2003 after public protests in major towns and cities throughout the country.

Apologies about the lack of updates through January - my exams really did take priority and drained me of time. Unfortunately updates will continue to be in short supply probably for a while now - but I do have a very exciting plan in prospect for after we pass 100. See you then!

[Follarch 326]

I should have been keeping up with this ten pages ago! Your playstyle makes me think quite a bit of Italy or Sicily, is that right? And your attention to detail is very appealing, even the quaint, little scenes draw you in, make you explore every square yard of the images. And one more point to make is the nice surprise i got from seeing you use the NWM. It's so easy for me to forget about that nifty thing and when i see it in cities it makes a ton of difference for the quality of the image.

Very nice work indeed.

[Fox 1,444]

Love the look of the run down areas.

Nice to see an update on the poor part of town, even if it still looks amazing and a million dollars

Great rural shot, can't wait to see the featured update for it.

[vivapanda 422]

Interesting story, combined with great pictures!

[+Guest Member 193110]

Great night pictures. The town looks nice too.

[SAVAGExPHOENIX 955]

I always enjoy Cattala's updates.

[TekindusT 3,809]

All your updates are so colorful, so full of life!