ThomasSimpson

Absolutely amazed, and honoured, to have won a Trixie. I did not expect Cattala to get a Trixie, ever, and simply to be nominated over the past couple of years has been a privilege. I'm so pleased with how Cattala has been received over the past three and a half years. It's developed a very long way and that's thanks to the help and support of the generous members of the Simcity community. After 116 updates, my time to produce updates and work on my cities and my (seemingly more popular!) rural regions is much diminished. I won't be doing another update until at least June or July due to my final A2 exams coming up this summer. But I hope that Cattala will be back soon. Thank you again to everyone that voted and nominated Cattala.

Another strong week for Cattala. Fair point about the amount of time it takes to make updates. It is a shame that the Simtropolis CJ function doesn't work very well though. Your advice was most useful!

Congrats to Kruness! Out of interest, Ben, have you ever considered providing hyperlinks to the Top Ten journals?

TekindusT: Thank you! MilitantRadical: Yep, I've spent three years building, demolishing, rebuilding, fixing, altering and improving Celeste. It's taken a long time to, I think, almost complete that tile. Mr Saturn64: Thank you! Lord Branham: Thanks! I'm glad you liked it. Huston: Thank you, that means so much. I never intended for these cities to have that green style, it just sort of happened. I wish you the best of luck with ME:TMW, and it's good you enjoy making it so much! Prophet42: Thanks! The diagonal lots that have been produced by JENX and Xannepan, I believe, are excellent. This week, we're heading north to Calora, Cattala's second-largest city. We'll be visiting three parts of the city - the historic quarter, the commuter town of Iralli and the suburb of Cydonia. I hope you like it. First up, the Royal Estate in Old Calora. Historically home to House Aroe of Fieranti, who reigned as Princes until 1532 and Lords of Calora until the 19th century, it became the home of the Governor under British rule and later the President of Cattala under Italian rule. It was restored to Crown rule in 1950 and is now the home of the Duke of Fieranti, currently the husband of Queen Alexandra, Duke Luciano. Cydonia is a prominent suburb of Calora, and forms part of the city's industrial belt with a number of high-tech companies operating out of the town. It benefits from direct rail access to Calora's CBD, the Harbour, Celeste and also has strong road connections with the city's main airport and the capital by the M2 motorway. Now for a night shot of Cydonia, showing the prominence of the railway divide between the two distinct sections of the suburb. A rare sight in my actual journal - a view of Iralli, under construction. Whilst I was doing some work on the city at the weekend I decided to show you a work-in-progress shot detailing what happens when you have R$$ demand in a city where your lots are almost all R$. This night shot, taken during autumn, shows some of the expansion work I have done to the east of the city (south in this image). Note the classical styled building in the bottom, near what looks like a military checkpoint... And a mosaic of the Cattala Observatory, home to the country's most prominent astrologists and space researchers, it forms part of a park in the east of the city that is known as Classical Park, based on its neo-classical architecture. The memorial to the south of the observatory is the town's war memorial, whilst the park further down is home to a chapel and a cafe. Here is a larger view of the suburb, which lies to the east further along the M2 motorway from Cydonia. And to end today, a mysterious building, buried deep in the forests of Iralli... The ISC Building, home to the Intelligence Service of Cattala, a seemingly small facility at first glance... Reportedly, also home to one of the top-secret Military Communications Service (MCS) operational outposts as well. I hope they don't find this picture... Comment, rate and let me know what you think! Thomas

WOW! Having seen this journal pop up on Ben's Top One Hundred, I was truly amazed to read through it. It's a true masterpiece, you should be really proud of yourself.    I've never seen a British styled CJ created so magnificently. It's incredible. I can't wait to see what you've got in store in 2014.

Benedict: Thanks! I hope you all had a joyous New Year. For our first update of 2014, it's time to finish the tour of the refreshed Celeste, starting with Vittoria Palace, the home of the Royal Family of Cattala since the 17th century. On a quiet Saturday morning, Celeste is a beautiful city, even in winter. The Palace overlooks a lake in the middle of the Fiume Celestica, which is as much a river as that famous channel in Panama. The dome of the Palace was supposed to be the highest point in the city, although that has long since changed. The lake separates three distinct areas within the capital: Alder Hill, the political heartland of the city; Amadeus, the historic home of the monarchy; and Franogei, the contemporary home of the sovereign and the nation's embassies, high commissions and some government offices. Franogei is also home to one of the country's most controversial buildings. The King's Reach Tower is the tallest outside of Aziens, standing at 129 metres tall. Built in the 1990s to replace the old Telegraph House, home of the Daily Telegraph newspaper, it was strongly opposed by conservationists, urban designers and, ironically, the newspaper group that sold the building to developers. Celeste Metropolitan Council and the Government of Amosseri supported the controversial tower, which was completed in 1995. Leaked military documents after the building was topped out suggested the royal protection force, the Arms Supreme, also opposed the development as it posed a "sniper risk" to Vittoria Palace, which is one block away. Moving to a less controversial district, Alder Court is the tennis capital of the nation, and home to the NM Group, Cattala's second-largest media corporation behind RMI. They relocated to Blue Square, the blue tower, upon its completion in 1996. News broadcasts from the top floor show a live panoramic view of the city. Imperial Court is west of Alder Court and home to Celeste's main university, Imperial University. It is the centre for the capital's medical and high-tech industries. Now, for a view of central and south-western Celeste by night. And a mosaic of three parts of the city - Franogei, Alder Hill and Aziens. To end today's update, I've annotated that view of the city from the last update. The white areas show the districts of the city, and the orange show the key places elsewhere in the country and province. Please note that the city is laid out incorrectly to a normal compass - the east is west, and west is east. Don't ask why. Clockwise from the top, Vittoria is a suburb of Celeste that we have visited several times, Calora is the country's second largest city and the capital of Fieranti province. Avias is the location of King Marco Bonnecelli Airport, Celeste's main airport. Brunel is the nearest suburb of Celeste that forms the start of the "Albert Belt" of suburbs along the south west of the city. Celeste Harbour is the port serving the capital, and Sutton is the main railway junction town south-east of the city. Jennai is Cattala's largest city. Comment, rate and let me know what you think! Thomas

Update 113 IRE505: Thank you! Here's more now. elavery: Hi, I believe the buildings your referring to are from Simcity China. They were recommended to me by a friend but I don't have a download link. They're from a collection called the ROMA series, if that helps. Prophet42: Thanks! ilikehotdogsalot: Thank you! ioh969: Thanks. I'm glad you like it. Hazani Pratama: Thanks! CGMozart118: Thank you - it's good to hear the cathedral fits better than the last one. Paulobergonci: Thanks, I'm glad you enjoyed it. feeroz123: Thanks! I hope you enjoy this entry. Benedict: Thank you. I don't think it's particularly Mediterranean for it to be so green but that was a bit of an accident. A good one though, I reckon. darkaliendude: Thanks! Huston: I'm so glad you like it, thanks! I hope to see you back at the AIN again soon. Update 114 Benedict: Thanks! The heart shape is a commemoration from the AINVision Song Contest, which was hosted in that arena and had a heart in its logo. MuricanMike: Welcome to Cattala! If you mean the ones in the header, they are a fantastic set by Jeronij: https://www.sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=112 Huston: I'm glad, thank you! Happy new year to you too. SimRico: Thanks so much! City_Master: Thanks, I'm glad you enjoyed them. Schulmanator: Thanks! Happy New Year to you too! NMUSpidey: Thank you for being such a loyal follower. I'm glad you liked it. MilitantRadical: Three year's worth of work. I've never done a full tile view before because I've never built a city to the depth and detail of Celeste. This is the 29th update from Celeste, which I think says it all about the changes and alterations I've continuously made. Phew, a lot of comments! Thank you all. I hope you all had a joyous New Year. For our first update of 2014, it's time to finish the tour of the refreshed Celeste, starting with Vittoria Palace, the home of the Royal Family of Cattala since the 17th century. On a quiet Saturday morning, Celeste is a beautiful city, even in winter. The Palace overlooks a lake in the middle of the Fiume Celestica, which is as much a river as that famous channel in Panama. The dome of the Palace was supposed to be the highest point in the city, although that has long since changed. The lake separates three distinct areas within the capital: Alder Hill, the political heartland of the city; Amadeus, the historic home of the monarchy; and Franogei, the contemporary home of the sovereign and the nation's embassies, high commissions and some government offices. Franogei is also home to one of the country's most controversial buildings. The King's Reach Tower is the tallest outside of Aziens, standing at 129 metres tall. Built in the 1990s to replace the old Telegraph House, home of the Daily Telegraph newspaper, it was strongly opposed by conservationists, urban designers and, ironically, the newspaper group that sold the building to developers. Celeste Metropolitan Council and the Government of Amosseri supported the controversial tower, which was completed in 1995. Leaked military documents after the building was topped out suggested the royal protection force, the Arms Supreme, also opposed the development as it posed a "sniper risk" to Vittoria Palace, which is one block away. Moving to a less controversial district, Alder Court is the tennis capital of the nation, and home to the NM Group, Cattala's second-largest media corporation behind RMI. They relocated to Blue Square, the blue tower, upon its completion in 1996. News broadcasts from the top floor show a live panoramic view of the city. Imperial Court is west of Alder Court and home to Celeste's main university, Imperial University. It is the centre for the capital's medical and high-tech industries. Now, for a view of central and south-western Celeste by night. And a mosaic of three parts of the city - Franogei, Alder Hill and Aziens. To end today's update, I've annotated that view of the city from the last update. The white areas show the districts of the city, and the orange show the key places elsewhere in the country and province. Please note that the city is laid out incorrectly to a normal compass - the east is west, and west is east. Don't ask why. Clockwise from the top, Vittoria is a suburb of Celeste that we have visited several times, Calora is the country's second largest city and the capital of Fieranti province. Avias is the location of King Marco Bonnecelli Airport, Celeste's main airport. Brunel is the nearest suburb of Celeste that forms the start of the "Albert Belt" of suburbs along the south west of the city. Celeste Harbour is the port serving the capital, and Sutton is the main railway junction town south-east of the city. Jennai is Cattala's largest city. Comment, rate and let me know what you think! Thomas

Superb stats Benedict!

Congratulations to all of the Top Ten, a fantastic achievement. All very worthy journals. :)

I'm really amazed that Cattala was even on the list, let alone that high up. Thank you for your dedication and commitment to this project Ben, it's brilliant and I wish you the best of luck in 2014.

Welcome back to Cattala, where the celebrations of the New Year are already underway! This year, we're visiting Celeste, the capital, and Jennai Harbour for the countdown and fireworks. Replies to your comments from the previous update will be on our next edition. Our first stop is the capital, Celeste. This year, the fireworks are focused on Aziens, the vibrant economic heart of the city. Princess Maria and Lord Celestine are representing the Queen and the Government in the capital this New Year. Moving on swiftly to Jennai. This is the first year that Jennai has featured in this journal's New Years celebrations. It has been a marvellous year for Jennai, which I hadn't even begun to build this time in 2012. Now, it's hosted the AINVision Song Contest from the Jennai Arena that you see below. Jennai has also developed its waterfront in the past year, and has been the main focus point of this City Journal in 2013. I know that this year I haven't provided the normal quantity of updates that you have had in the past. Hopefully, the improving quality of updates has gone some way to making up for this. 2014 is likely to be even less active than this year, due to school pressures, so I want to leave you this year with a thank you gift. Here is the most complete view of central Celeste since I began this journal, three years ago. I hope you like it. Comment, rate and let me know what you think! Thomas

Welcome back to Cattala, where the celebrations of the New Year are already underway! This year, we're visiting Celeste, the capital, and Jennai Harbour for the countdown and fireworks. Replies to your comments from the previous update will be on our next edition. Our first stop is the capital, Celeste. This year, the fireworks are focused on Aziens, the vibrant economic heart of the city. Princess Maria and Lord Celestine are representing the Queen and the Government in the capital this New Year. Moving on swiftly to Jennai. This is the first year that Jennai has featured in this journal's New Years celebrations. It has been a marvellous year for Jennai, which I hadn't even begun to build this time in 2012. Now, it's hosted the AINVision Song Contest from the Jennai Arena that you see below. Jennai has also developed its waterfront in the past year, and has been the main focus point of this City Journal in 2013. I know that this year I haven't provided the normal quantity of updates that you have had in the past. Hopefully, the improving quality of updates has gone some way to making up for this. 2014 is likely to be even less active than this year, due to school pressures, so I want to leave you this year with a thank you gift. Here is the most complete view of central Celeste since I began this journal, three years ago. I hope you like it. Comment, rate and let me know what you think! Thomas

Ultimate727: Thanks, that means a lot! vinlabsc3k: Thank you, and hopefully this will live up to your expectations. Huston: Thank you, that means a lot coming from you. No farms in this city but hopefully you'll like it nonetheless. So I failed completely in the plan to restart regular updates in the summer. This was because of a number of problems I've had with Simcity which ultimately made it unworkable for a long time. I've had another go over the past few days and I've been making a lot of headway with my cities which I'm very happy with. I hope you enjoy this, the 28th update of the capital. Welcome to the new and improved Celeste. Celeste Cathedral was rather more Germanic than I had liked, so now I have changed it to a more fitting structure. The statue is of Lucius, King of Cattala during the Golden Revolution in the 16th century. It was he who established Celestinian supremacy over the other royal houses of Cattala and sowed the first seeds of democracy within the nation. That's after causing a seven-year civil war through absolutist policies, and then ending that war through the violent conquering of Jennai. But that's not really in the tourist guides. Alder Hill is the political centre of Cattala. The political bubble may appear to be isolated from the rest of society is in many other countries, but in Cattala it literally is - Alder Hill is effectively an island in between the canals of Celeste, that were built in the 18th century, along with much of the rest of the city. Alesso is a rather more recent addition to Celeste. Spreading out northwards from Alder Hill, it carved what was known historically as the White Forest into two. To the west, the White Peak was pushed back by the construction of the Solium in the early 19th century and in east, the White Widow became an industrial port in what is now known as Aziens. Alesso was created in the Dutch style, favoured by the Harolden Kings of the 17th and early 18th centuries. It relied upon river trade and the industry in the White Widow area for employment. Once this diminished in the 1900s, Alesso fell into decay and much of it was abandoned. As part of the Aziens development programme in the post-war era, Alesso has been heavily invested in and is now a cultural centre in the city. Dionysus Court is the centrepiece of the Alesso redevelopment. The Dionysus Arena is the main concert venue in Celeste, and hosts international pop superstars, talent contests and even the National Philharmonic Orchestra. It is owned by the Dion Group, which built and owns the Trisys Towers, three of the tallest buildings in Celeste that are home to major multinational corporations including Cattala Post. Moving west, I mentioned the Solium earlier. Built by King Marco V, it was created as a regal manor house worthy of a King. Yet it was to be the home of the Lord Chancellor, a political leader who was head of the government and the Council of State in the days before democracy in Cattala. By the time the palace was completed in 1816, Marco had died and the country had been colonised by Britain, through the barrel of a Royal Navy gunship. This is a panorama - open in a new tab to see it in full size. The Solium sits on the edge of the Citadel di Celestica, the old quarter of the city. Renamed in 1920 as "Amadeus" after the Crown Prince who fought to resist an Italian invasion in 1860 and kept the Celestine's in a position of some power, the buildings in this part of the capital date back to the 11th century. Some additions during the Lucian era in the Renaissance remain outside of the castle walls alongside later additions from the Harolden era. The architectural mix of buildings covering 900 years of history are major tourist attractions in Celeste. On the southern edge of Amadeus, here seen as the north, lies the great Chapel of Kings. Commissioned by Philip IV in 1617, it was built to celebrate the previous monarchs of Cattala and was opened to the public on the 630th anniversary of the coronation of Roger Celestine, the first King of Cattala, in 1625. It forms part of the Ecclesiastical Triangle in Celeste, from the Cathedral in Alder Hill, to the Chapel of Kings and the Shrine of St Paul, both in Amadeus. The Shrine of St Paul is one of the oldest churches in Cattala and is where the Seven Princes of Cattala surrendered their titles to King Lucius the Absolute in 1532. Subterranean vaults between the Shrine and the Chapel house the tombs of every King between Lucius and the last Celestine, King William III. Next time... We head south, to Franogei. But here's a sneak peek of the new Vittoria Palace. Comment, rate and let me know what you think! Thomas

MilitantRadical: Thank you, I'm glad you like it. Ace: Thank you! Forthwall: Thanks. I hope you like the mosaics and panorama in this entry too! Hazani Pratama: Thanks! Sylvio Jorge: Thank you very much. I always try and build my cities so they function, as well as looking nice. That often means that they aren't as beautiful or realistic as plopped and custom lotted or very photoshopped cities, but all of my cities work in-game as well as in updates. I had a water supply issue that crippled Celeste recently and I had to do a lot of redeveloping and growing to get the population and jobs back. spursrule14: Thanks again! So I failed completely in the plan to restart regular updates in the summer. This was because of a number of problems I've had with Simcity which ultimately made it unworkable for a long time. I've had another go over the past few days and I've been making a lot of headway with my cities which I'm very happy with. I hope you enjoy this, the 28th update of the capital. Welcome to the new and improved Celeste. Celeste Cathedral was rather more Germanic than I had liked, so now I have changed it to a more fitting structure. The statue is of Lucius, King of Cattala during the Golden Revolution in the 16th century. It was he who established Celestinian supremacy over the other royal houses of Cattala and sowed the first seeds of democracy within the nation. That's after causing a seven-year civil war through absolutist policies, and then ending that war through the violent conquering of Jennai. But that's not really in the tourist guides. Alder Hill is the political centre of Cattala. The political bubble may appear to be isolated from the rest of society is in many other countries, but in Cattala it literally is - Alder Hill is effectively an island in between the canals of Celeste, that were built in the 18th century, along with much of the rest of the city. Alesso is a rather more recent addition to Celeste. Spreading out northwards from Alder Hill, it carved what was known historically as the White Forest into two. To the west, the White Peak was pushed back by the construction of the Solium in the early 19th century and in east, the White Widow became an industrial port in what is now known as Aziens. Alesso was created in the Dutch style, favoured by the Harolden Kings of the 17th and early 18th centuries. It relied upon river trade and the industry in the White Widow area for employment. Once this diminished in the 1900s, Alesso fell into decay and much of it was abandoned. As part of the Aziens development programme in the post-war era, Alesso has been heavily invested in and is now a cultural centre in the city. Dionysus Court is the centrepiece of the Alesso redevelopment. The Dionysus Arena is the main concert venue in Celeste, and hosts international pop superstars, talent contests and even the National Philharmonic Orchestra. It is owned by the Dion Group, which built and owns the Trisys Towers, three of the tallest buildings in Celeste that are home to major multinational corporations including Cattala Post. Moving west, I mentioned the Solium earlier. Built by King Marco V, it was created as a regal manor house worthy of a King. Yet it was to be the home of the Lord Chancellor, a political leader who was head of the government and the Council of State in the days before democracy in Cattala. By the time the palace was completed in 1816, Marco had died and the country had been colonised by Britain, through the barrel of a Royal Navy gunship. This is a panorama - open in a new tab to see it in full size. The Solium sits on the edge of the Citadel di Celestica, the old quarter of the city. Renamed in 1920 as "Amadeus" after the Crown Prince who fought to resist an Italian invasion in 1860 and kept the Celestine's in a position of some power, the buildings in this part of the capital date back to the 11th century. Some additions during the Lucian era in the Renaissance remain outside of the castle walls alongside later additions from the Harolden era. The architectural mix of buildings covering 900 years of history are major tourist attractions in Celeste. On the southern edge of Amadeus, here seen as the north, lies the great Chapel of Kings. Commissioned by Philip IV in 1617, it was built to celebrate the previous monarchs of Cattala and was opened to the public on the 630th anniversary of the coronation of Roger Celestine, the first King of Cattala, in 1625. It forms part of the Ecclesiastical Triangle in Celeste, from the Cathedral in Alder Hill, to the Chapel of Kings and the Shrine of St Paul, both in Amadeus. The Shrine of St Paul is one of the oldest churches in Cattala and is where the Seven Princes of Cattala surrendered their titles to King Lucius the Absolute in 1532. Subterranean vaults between the Shrine and the Chapel house the tombs of every King between Lucius and the last Celestine, King William III. Next time... We head south, to Franogei. But here's a sneak peek of the new Vittoria Palace. Comment, rate and let me know what you think! Thomas

Fantastic! It looks really good, I like the way you built the city up around the cove.