norwoodman

Originally posted by: manman99Like Adelaide, Perth( I know a Perth Amboy), Copenhagen, these cities barely make the cut for me because I have never even heard of them, maybe because I really dont studty european cities, but, a little bit more recognizable cities would be lovely. quote> Both Perth and Adelaide are Australian cities. I live in Adelaide.

Welcome to Encounter Bay, one of the largest cities around on Simtropolis! NO CHEATS OR MODS (except NAM) have been used in the production of Encounter Bay. THE HISTORY OF ENCOUNTER BAY AREA Encounter Bay began as a small fishing village 3km south of today's Central Area in an area known as Boaks Bay. The first settlers landed on this island on the 21st of March some 280 years ago after the first fleet of ships sailed up the Encounter River into the Encounter Basin, the place where the three main rivers of the city met before making it's way out into the ocean some several kilometres north of the city. Newly settled fishing villages quickly becoming an industrial center. This town stayed very undeveloped for over 100 years: By the end of the next century, Encounter Bay was home to over 1 million residents after large industrial growth and boom times. A couple of decades into the new century, Encounter Bay had more than doubled it's previous population at the beginning of the century after further industrial and commercial growth. Today's Central Area began to take shape. Newly developing Central which was at the northern tip of the city at the time: About a decade later, Encounter Bay was becoming more crowded with newly arriving immigrants coming in huge hoards everyday. Now home to 4 million residents, some areas of the city were now becoming more crowded than Calcutta. Almost a decade after it first began developing, Central was almost fully developed, and some area were so poorly maintained that some areas of the city began falling into disrepair. Around the same time, Encounter Bay's first metro tracks were laid, immediately having some benefit to the city. One of the slightly worse area of Central: By the middle of the century, people began flocking out of the Central Area in their thousands as more and more people could afford to buy cars and their own houses. Below is one of the better suburbs of Detlif in the eastern suburbs. The eastern, southern and northern suburbs sprawled at a reasonably slow rate, and many of these areas became home to the wealthier, while the Central Area's growth came to a trickle. However, the western suburbs were developing at an extremely rapid rate. The town with an absolutely stupid name was sucked up by the sprawl and is now the outermost suburb from the Central Area. Many of these western suburbs quickly began major suburban CBDs, Birkenhead quickly becoming the largest. It was not long however until this rapid growth and sprawl became an urban nightmare. Many of the new residents moved into newer and better areas when traffic parts of the west became so bad, that it could take at least 2 hours to travel from the westernmost suburbs into the Central Area (30km west of the Central Area). About 30 years later, about 20 years before the end of the century, Encounter Bay was home to over 9 million people. Larger version: http://img520.imageshack.us/my.php?image=encounterbay7nc.jpg Larger version: http://img521.imageshack.us/my.php?image=encounterbaytransport0sn.jpg All of the Central Area was developed, and after all the massive sprawl, the Central Area began to grow again: Today Encounter Bay is home to 10.2 million residents, with the western suburbs and Central Area very developed while the northern and southern suburbs begin to grow faster now. Larger version: http://img521.imageshack.us/my.php?image=encounterbay23la.jpg http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid155/p1bef090fcf5fccae7e0393eeb6fbd658/f557a394.jpg align=baseline> Larger version: http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid155/p1bef090fcf5fccae7e0393eeb6fbd658/f557a394.jpg.orig.jpg Next update: Pacifica, the Miracle City that lead the race to become the western suburbs most expensive and exclusive address.

Well that was my last update for the time being. This CJ is not finished yet, but it will be put on hold until larger commitments coming up for the next 10 months pass. Encounter Bay will be returning with a new design sometime in the next few months. Thanks to all who have supported this CJ during the past few weeks. Until then, cya later!

That castle on the hill by itself is a great view! Zanzibar? That name sounds familiar from somewhere.

Well, thanks to all who posted! I had quite a good time in Hong Kong, and it is quite a different place from what anyone would expect it to be like. Some of the waterfront work in recent times has been inspired by the real civil works of Hong Kong. By other CJ standards it would be classed as unrealistic! Anyway, to a quick update. This is the region, now with a population totalling 12.2 million people. NEW TOWN - ALICEBERG Recent works took place in the past few years to relieve the growth pressure being created by the well overdeveloped inner city. Encounter Bay has one of the highest densities in the world (second to TDK by 1ajs). To overcome this problem, several new towns or satellite cities are under construction on the outskirts of Encounter Bay. One of the biggest is the compact Aliceberg. Aliceberg is located about 8km directly east from Central. Founded only in 1998, the city grew quickly from a small parcel of land jutting out into the water. The city was planned for a population of 40000, and the population is almost exactly that today. Not only did the project include building the town itself. It included three tunnels linking the town to the main urban agglomeration by rail and highway and three bridges, all over 750m long. Originally, the town was planned to be a sprawled low density suburb covering the entire hills east of Encounter Bay. Protests by local environmentalists who argued that local species could be endangered and that the beautiful hills would be destroyed by development stopped this. The plans changed and the area taken up by the town was now 1/10 of the original size. Aliceberg now faces a dilemma for further growth. It cannot expand into the hills because the land is now zoned as a national park. It also cannot expand out by reclaiming land because of environmental concerns. Many buildings are already well over 40 levels high, and with no height limits, up may be the only place to go.

I was watching a documentary featuring how planes land at Heathrow Airport. Apparently they form into 4 groups of spirals around and above the airport before they land, and one plane lands approximately every 45 seconds on the landing runway, one every 3 minutes from each spiral to keep the planes apart/

A preview of the work being done on the waterfront works that I've been working on at Central from my CJ Encounter Bay:

Wow, there's a lot of attention to detail here. I love the ideas of the cemetery and the Waterfront Greenway. You seemed to have changed the thread title too I see?

COMPARE AND CONTRAST: HONG KONG AND ENCOUNTER BAY - DIFFERENCES While Hong Kong and Encounter Bay share many similarities, they also have many differences determined by their political, economic, social factors as well as geography. More about each of the two cities: Hong Kong With a current population of 7 million, Hong Kong is one of the largest cities in China and has one of the largest economies. After World War II, many people relocated to Hong Kong from mainland China and many manufacturing industries set up. This was the start of Hong Kong's real economic success. In recent years, Hong Kong has successfully become a major commercial centre. Many industries have now moved back to mainland China. Leading up to the New Territories land lease expiry date (June 30 1997), there was much debate over Hong Kong's future, particularly the 1980s. Although legally the British were only required to hand back New Territories to China, the majority of Hong Kong was made up by the New Territories. It was believed that a failure to hand back to the entire colony to China would create political tension between the two countries. An agreement was reached in 1984, and China introduced a policy called One Country, Two Systems in which Hong Kong was exempt from the socialist economic system practiced in mainland China, and that Hong Kong would retain it's capitalist system until at least 2047. Encounter Bay Encounter Bay has a higher population than Hong Kong, with a population of over 12 million. Like Hong Kong, the city's economic success began when it served as a manufacturing hub, before becoming the current modern day commercial centre. The population growth has always been steady, although in recent years it has slowed. Unlike Hong Kong - whose migrants have mostly come from China - Encounter Bay's migrants have come from all over the world from countries such as Portugal, Britain, France, Brazil, Argentina, Vietnam and even China. This blend can be seen in the many neighbourhoods across the city, where many migrants from the same country often live in the same area. While Hong Kong's future may have seemed potentially grim leading up to the 1997 handover of Hong Kong, Encounter Bay's future actually seemed grim if it did not merge with it's neighbour Agriania in the early 1900s. There have been no debates over the ownership of Encounter Bay since it was founded in 1722. The links with the mainland of Agriania have remained strong since Encounter Bay's links have allowed many industries to relocate from Encounter Bay, resulting in rapid economic growth in Agriania, a country once very poor. A contrast of the two cities side by side: The government of the city-state of Encounter Bay would like to know what the public has thought about this series. Please leave a comment.

praiodan - It has come! Well, half of it anyway... jacqulina - I appreciate that you like the waterfronts. They seem to be the most time consuming part of the game at the moment. 1ajs - Glad you liked it. Fischbob - It's slow, but it's managing to hold up fine! Aleking - Glad to see a CJ master posting in here! Welcome to EB. CDI_spy and Nexis - Thanks guys and welcome to EB. Codythefunkymonkey - Hey! Glad ya liked it. The next update is coming up in a day or two. The next update will be: COMPARE AND CONTRAST: HONG KONG AND ENCOUNTER BAY - DIFFERENCES Followed by: NEW TOWNS - A MIX OF URBAN AND RURAL

These photos are part of a 4 part series of photos. More photos will follow. Day 1 - Tuesday 17th Jan These first three were taken in the very early hours of Tuesday morning while travelling over the Tsing Ma Bridge: The weather on the first few days wasn't so good, as you can see from this photo. I stayed in a hotel in Tsim Sha Tsui on the Kowloon side. As every tourist would need to, we used the MTR many times over. This is Kowloon Tong Station on the Kwun Tong line: After travelling to Mongkok I walked around Langham Place. Even at night the fog was still around: Langham Hotel (not to be confused with Langham Place): Peninsula Hotel and Langham Hotel: Harbour City, Canton Road: Day 2 - Walking around Hong Kong Island Before travelling to the Hong Kong side, I walked around Tsim Sha Tsui for a bit. Loads of signs hanging everywhere, this is Ashley Road: Then I took the Star Ferry across to Central. Here is part of the work being done for the new Star Ferry Pier: IFC 2 in the fog: Central and the current Star Ferry Pier: HSBC: Bank of China Tower, Cheung Kong Center and Bank of China Building: Looking west along Chater Road from the subway entrance: Outside The Landmark: Then travelled by MTR from Central to Causeway Bay. This is Admiralty Station. Causeway Bay's Great George Street with Hennessey Road: Back on the Kowloon side, Langham Hotel: Canton Road is well and truly prepared for Chinese New Year: Coming up in parts 2, 3 and 4: -The fog clears up, views of Central, Wan Chai and Tsim Sha Tsui -Night time in Central and Causeway Bay -Views from apartments of the locals -Night Show photos -Walking around Central and the Mid Levels, plus old Hong Kong -How typical Hong Kong estates are: Tai Koo and Quarry Bay -Going uphill from Happy Valley -Travelling along Lan Tau Island to the airport

How come noone has replied to this CJ? It at least deserves a comment on what people like about it and what could be improved. Anyway, those hills are extremely well made, they are so gentle that I almost didn't notice! Those farms are spectacular, and I love the use of the red brick streets.

Day 4 Taken from homes (no location disclosed for privacy reasons): This one needs no introduction. Wanchai: Tsim Sha Tsui from Wanchai: Wanchai from Star Ferry Pier: Wanchai's Convention Centre: Wan Chai from Victoria Harbour: Central: I must be getting dizzy from all these neon signs everywhere! Tsim Sha Tsui. And some very shakey photos of Saturday's night show: The boats were all getting in the way! Here's a bit of squiggly art for you! lol Day 5 First a trip by Star Ferry, then walking through the upper regions of Central. Wan Chai (I like saying it Wahn Zai): The reclamation works going on at Central. I saw a lot of controversy over the project while I was there: Central (Chater House?): AIG: The rest of the bunch on the eastern end of Central: Any local can easily determine that this was taken on a Sunday. Chater Road: Two of Hong Kong's three banks: The other one: This tram seems to be new, and it was the only one of it's type I saw while I was there. Continuing the ascend towards the Mid Levels, taken from Ice House Street: Further along, old meets the future: This is what typical Hong Kong is really about! Yep, this is Central: Heading up the Midlevels escalator: True density... Coming up: More of real Hong Kong. Tai Koo and Quarry Bay.

COMPARE AND CONTRAST: HONG KONG AND ENCOUNTER BAY - SIMILARITIES Both Hong Kong and Encounter Bay are well respected cities and are among the top economic centres in their region of the world. Their histories parallel each other, and the reasons of why they are what they are today are also very similar. To have a better understanding as to why the two cities are similar, here is a history behind both cities. Hong Kong Settled and colonised by the British in 1842 under the Treaty of Nanjing, Hong Kong quickly became a Crown Colony and a very important base for trade in the East. In the 1860s Americans also joined in the trade. In the same decade the Kowloon peninsula was leased to the British under the 1860 Convention of Beijing. Finally in 1898, China leased the New Territories for 99 years. This lease expired on June 30, 1997. By 1915 the population had grown to over 500000, and in 1941 the population had grown to 1.6 million. But after being taken over by the Japanese during WWII, the population dropped to 600000 in 1945. Hong Kong's real economic success began after 1950. The takeover of communist China in 1949 saw hundreds of thousands of people migrate from mainland China to Hong Kong, some skilled labour, some cheap labour. At the same time many companies were moving their offices from Shanghai to Hong Kong. In this time Hong Kong quickly developed into a major manufacturing centre. As mainland China began to open up it's markets, many industries moved north and Hong Kong transformed into a commercial and tourism centre, which it still is today. Hong Kong's economic success can be seen in it's high life expectancy rate, literacy rate and per capita income. Encounter Bay Encounter Bay unusually was settled by both the British and Portugese on exactly the same day on March 21, 1722. Both set up separate settlements located on opposite sides of the same island. Like Hong Kong, Encounter Bay quickly served as a port for this area of the world. Much of Encounter Bay's very early growth came from exporting gold and minerals such as copper and iron ore from around Encounter Bay itself. Ample land, and easy access to the world by sea saw the beginnings of thousands of industries by the early 1800s. By the late 1800s the population had topped 1 million. As Encounter Bay was it's own self governed city state located at the mouth of three rivers, and with no military and poor defence and as world tensions grew it saw the need to merge with the neighbouring country of Agriania which had a large military and defence force. In the early 1900s, Encounter Bay's strong links to Agriania saw many industries move out of Encounter Bay, and many companies set up their head offices in Encounter Bay. Strong tourism began in the 1950s and 1960s as air travel took off, and Encounter Bay became a major air hub. The standard of living in Encounter Bay is now one of the highest in the world. A comparison of the two clips side by side: Coming up... Why Hong Kong and Encounter Bay are very different.

Voar Tok - The tunnels took quite a bit of work to do. I struggled to find a spot for them and eventually I managed to successfully fit the approaches in by reclaiming a bit of land. Codythefunkymonkey - Thanks a lot! GreekMan - Thanks for dropping by. Welcome to Encounter Bay. A199999999 - Lions Gate is a real bridge in Budapest in Europe. The next update will be in about a day. The next update will be: COMPARE AND CONTRAST: HONG KONG AND ENCOUNTER BAY Featuring images of both HONG KONG and of ENCOUNTER BAY that have not been seen yet and part of the history that makes these two comparable.

Wow, you've done a great job building along the river and on the hills. The roads flow well with the hills rather than buildings against them. Keep 'em coming!

Responses: Glenni - It might collapse later on... Cjah - Charming city? I never quite thought of it like that. newy2 - I'm back and I enjoyed it. You'll see some of the photos used in here later on. A199999999 - Thanks a lot! Siemens - Ditto! Now for the first update in over a week: CIVIL WORKS: MAJOR PROJECTS CURRENTLY UNDER CONSTRUCTION OR RECENTLY COMPLETED As you would expect in any mega city, there is always change occurring. To keep the city's economy growing, many projects have been undertaken to continue to give the city an edge over it's economic rivals. Below is a handful of them. Longcaster Railway Line Tunnel As pressure mounts on the rail system, some areas of the network will need to be quadruplicated, or even sextuplicated. One of these areas recently quadruplicated was around Longcaster, but there was not enough space to do such a thing above ground. It was decided that twin tunnels would be built (each with two tracks) under the city centre and that the old corridor would be reused as a mall. Two stations have also been sunken and rebuilt. The project increases the capacity of the rail network of the Western North Shore line and allows for the rejuvenation of the area above it. Project Status: Entirely Completed M2 East - A new link to the west While the freeway network around Encounter Bay is well built up, there are still many gaps that need filling. One of those gaps was between the eastern terminus of the M2 in Reigner Hills and the Western Connector on the opposite side of the river. During peak hour, the existing road bridges linking the two sections together were congested and it was decided to build a new link between the two. The entire project consisted of: - A new 6 lane freeway bridge, roughly 1km long - Two tunnels, each approximately 200-300m long - Demolition of existing property - Demolition of the Lions Gate Bridge (built 1920s) - Landscaping the land on the Reigner Hills side Project Status: Completed Central Waterfront Redevelopment Even with so many tourists walking the streets of downtown Central, few manage to enjoy walking along the waterfront because of the lack of waterfront walks and development. The project involves new parks, reclaiming sections of land for development, waterfront walks and embankments for about 5km and relaying many roads and subway lines. Project Status: Parts completed, Under Construction There are many other projects under way such as: - Kingston Airport Expansion - Encounter River Waterfront Redevelopment - The Gap Bridge Don't forget to drop into Encounter Bay City website, where you can find out more about the city: http://www.freewebs.com/norwoodman/ NEXT UPDATE: COMPARE AND CONTRAST: HONG KONG AND ENCOUNTER BAY

hobostank - I enjoyed the trip very much. SamFlash - You're missing out on a ton! Now to part 2: Day 3 - 19th Jan 06 Hong Kong was still foggy, but it was beginning to clear. The following images were taken from Ocean Terminal. Wan Chai: Central: The former Kowloon KCR terminus clock tower at Tsim Sha Tsui: Gateway Towers in TST: Further west along Kowloon. You can see Union Square with tower 7: The Peninsula from Salisbury Road, TST: These plants were everywhere. They are a symbol for long life, five generations IIRC. This example is on Peking Road, Tsim Sha Tsui: At night, I walked around Causeway Bay (travelling MTR of course). This area is Times Square: Lee Gardens' Manulife Building, Causeway Bay: Causeway Bay is easily one of the most packed districts of Hong Kong at night time, particularly around Hennessy Road. This is where Yei Woo Street and Leighton Road divide: Later on in the evening, walked around Central. Midget IFC and giant IFC together: Bank of China Tower further east: IFC 2 again: And again... And again... Around Des Voeux Road: AIG Tower with Bank of China shining for attention: From the Star Ferry Pier: Wan Chai: Central? Or Wan Chai? Central of course...

Here's three pictures I took of the bridge about a week ago, apologises for the shakey quality:

Those farms are just spectacular! And great road layouts as well! This has to be one of the best rural areas in any CJ I've seen!

Attention passengers. This train is bound for River. Please do not board this train!

Another few I just made:

Was mucking around with NAM, and I came up with these in one of my cities:

I took some pics this evening and I hope some of the things I've done can help other users work out possible intersections and possibilities that can now be created because of NAM:

Hey I like this! Something different from the usual sort of medium and high density stuff we see. That Homer sticker on the side... haha!