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The Board of Tourism
Understanding Natal
The United Republic of Natal, situated in the north-western Westernernesse, along the Implarian Coast, is a flora and fauna rich nation that brings the best of the Western Hemisphere. It is a relatively sparsely populated county, with around 55 million inhabitants while its geographic elements range from arctic and tundra regions on the peaks of the Granites to hot summer temperate, Meridian climate and even temperate rain forests. The Natalians usually proud themselves as the 2nd most powerful nation in the west after the Federation, which they see as their brothers. They are a proud people, very appreciative of their pioneering past, something omnipresent in the Natalian pop culture.
Modern Natal has been created in the aftermath of the disbandment of the Republic of Sylvania, winning its independence in the Sylvanian civil war as its states didn't accept the more centralist ideals of the future Federation of Westernesse, but its roots are much deeper, going as far as the nomadic natives such as the Haida, the Niitsitapi and others, which have interacted with the pioneers of the Hennigan Bay Company, which sponsored the Granite Mountain Expedition, bringing forth the real founding fathers of the nation, explorers such as Jack Colter, Merywether Pryor, Joseph Field and Hugh Hall.
What to see
Natal is the best place to visit for both environmental tourists but also for people wishing to see different cultures. From the mountainous peaks of the Granites, to the Prairies around Moorehead and the windy coasts of the Implarian, ne can witness nature at its best, with bisons roaming gigantic grass fields, majestic year long snow covered peaks, impressive caustic lakes and geysers from the local volcanoes, Grizzly bears, and Mountain Lions.
It is a country of extremes. At one point you have the Grans (short from the The Granite Mountains) which provide a shield for the western coastal regions giving them their temperate climate and shielding them from the cold air currents in the north and east and on the other side, close to Moorehead, one sees the great grass plains where the bisons roamed.
Tourists who want to taste the culture of Natal are as lucky as the ones visiting for its environment. Natal is situated in a territory which was inhabited by humans since at least 10,000 BC, with local natives living a hunter gatherer lifestyle in the mountains and the prairies, while on the coast, some of them living in small sedentary communities from which they fished and even whaled. The pioneering culture and the wild west history is what attracts a lot of tourists, as it is traditional for many to hike on the path of the old Granite Mountain Expedition and visit old forts, and even ghost towns from a much more pioneering past.
Climate
Like it has been stated before, Natal is an extremely diverse land. Climate and weather wise, one can expect everything from temperate climate with extreme differences in temperatures, to areas with year round tundra, and even areas with mild weather like in the Meridian Area. The clime around the coast is the most humid, as the westerlies are pushing the air from the Implarian ocean, whose breeze offers mild summers, pleasant springs, but rainy and foggy autumns and winters. In the middle of the country, cutting it in two lies the high Granite Mountains, which act as a barrier between two totally different ecoregions. The western slopes are usually warmer but more humid, while the eastern ones are drier but much colder. To the east lies the prairies, which are drier than the coast, but their temperatures are not moderated by the sea, and thus their temperatures vary from hot summers to freezing winters.
As it is situated in the north-western Westernesse, there are four typical seasons, with Spring starting in mid-March, although in the mountains it is not uncommon to see snow storms even in May. Summer starts in mid-june and lasts until mid-September, and then it is followed by Autumn which starts from September and lasts well into mid-December, even if sporadic snows begin by mid-November. In the prairies,temperature changes can be extremes and may state that there are only two seasons, winter and summer.
Summers are hot and dry, while the winters are usually cold and snowy. Springs and Autumns are generally warm and rain becomes the norm especially in late Autumn.
Arrival and getting around
Most people arrive by plane in the country either through the Joseph Field International Airport, situated in Cedar City, or through the Jack Colter International Airport, situated in eponymous Colter. Both are hubs for the flag carrier of Natalia, the North-West Airlines, with the Cedar City Airport being also a hub for Cedar Air, the low-cost subsidiary of NWA. While Cedar Air mostly provides low-cost flights to the Federation, the North-Western Airlines are providing premium services to Gallo-Germano-Thaumantican and Toyou nations. There are also direct flights to the Federation, Islagen, Jydsken-Ostveg and the capitals of Tianlong, the Anti-State, Karzask and Pelasgia. The flight from Cedar City to Propontis which has been set up early last year is officially the longest non-stop long-range flight in the world.
There are also ferries linking Moorhead across the lakes to its Federation counterparts and of course linking Sunset Beach to the mainland.
For internal trips, Cedar Air offers cheap fares to flights from Cedar City and Colter to Moorehead, Glenoma, Blackmere, Ashford or Sunset Beach. While the plane is the fastest way of transport (a flight from Cedar City to Colter lasting for around two hours), it isn't a particularly cheap option. For that there are rails and buses.
The NRC (National Railroad Corporation) is the state owned company which supervises the quality of the rail infrastructure and which has in the last five years managed to create a higher speed mainline along the coast from Ashford to Cedar City and from there to Blackmere. There are more than 20 privately owned railway companies operating in the country. Even so, most of the bigger cities are connected by some sort of rail line with active services. Train tickets are better to be bought in advance as there are chances to find lower fares than last minute buys. The most famous Natalian train in the Westernman, a transcontinental train service operated by NRC with its Federation partners and it provides a service between Cedar City and Baldwin-Whitehall.
Coachlines is the biggest bus transportation company, created in 1990 after the amalgamation of 13 bus transportation companies. They provide a cheap alternative having routes connecting all the big cities and from there secondary routes to smaller towns and even villages. Though on it rural routes, it wouldn't be unexpected to see the quality of services lowered than on big inter-city routes.
In the next issues the Board of Tourism will present each of the state of the Union.
The United Republic of Natal, situated in the north-western Westernernesse, along the Implarian Coast, is a flora and fauna rich nation that brings the best of the Western Hemisphere. It is a relatively sparsely populated county, with around 55 million inhabitants while its geographic elements range from arctic and tundra regions on the peaks of the Granites to hot summer temperate, Meridian climate and even temperate rain forests. The Natalians usually proud themselves as the 2nd most powerful nation in the west after the Federation, which they see as their brothers. They are a proud people, very appreciative of their pioneering past, something omnipresent in the Natalian pop culture.
Modern Natal has been created in the aftermath of the disbandment of the Republic of Sylvania, winning its independence in the Sylvanian civil war as its states didn't accept the more centralist ideals of the future Federation of Westernesse, but its roots are much deeper, going as far as the nomadic natives such as the Haida, the Niitsitapi and others, which have interacted with the pioneers of the Hennigan Bay Company, which sponsored the Granite Mountain Expedition, bringing forth the real founding fathers of the nation, explorers such as Jack Colter, Merywether Pryor, Joseph Field and Hugh Hall.
What to see
Natal is the best place to visit for both environmental tourists but also for people wishing to see different cultures. From the mountainous peaks of the Granites, to the Prairies around Moorehead and the windy coasts of the Implarian, ne can witness nature at its best, with bisons roaming gigantic grass fields, majestic year long snow covered peaks, impressive caustic lakes and geysers from the local volcanoes, Grizzly bears, and Mountain Lions.
It is a country of extremes. At one point you have the Grans (short from the The Granite Mountains) which provide a shield for the western coastal regions giving them their temperate climate and shielding them from the cold air currents in the north and east and on the other side, close to Moorehead, one sees the great grass plains where the bisons roamed.
Tourists who want to taste the culture of Natal are as lucky as the ones visiting for its environment. Natal is situated in a territory which was inhabited by humans since at least 10,000 BC, with local natives living a hunter gatherer lifestyle in the mountains and the prairies, while on the coast, some of them living in small sedentary communities from which they fished and even whaled. The pioneering culture and the wild west history is what attracts a lot of tourists, as it is traditional for many to hike on the path of the old Granite Mountain Expedition and visit old forts, and even ghost towns from a much more pioneering past.
Climate
Like it has been stated before, Natal is an extremely diverse land. Climate and weather wise, one can expect everything from temperate climate with extreme differences in temperatures, to areas with year round tundra, and even areas with mild weather like in the Meridian Area. The clime around the coast is the most humid, as the westerlies are pushing the air from the Implarian ocean, whose breeze offers mild summers, pleasant springs, but rainy and foggy autumns and winters. In the middle of the country, cutting it in two lies the high Granite Mountains, which act as a barrier between two totally different ecoregions. The western slopes are usually warmer but more humid, while the eastern ones are drier but much colder. To the east lies the prairies, which are drier than the coast, but their temperatures are not moderated by the sea, and thus their temperatures vary from hot summers to freezing winters.
As it is situated in the north-western Westernesse, there are four typical seasons, with Spring starting in mid-March, although in the mountains it is not uncommon to see snow storms even in May. Summer starts in mid-june and lasts until mid-September, and then it is followed by Autumn which starts from September and lasts well into mid-December, even if sporadic snows begin by mid-November. In the prairies,temperature changes can be extremes and may state that there are only two seasons, winter and summer.
Summers are hot and dry, while the winters are usually cold and snowy. Springs and Autumns are generally warm and rain becomes the norm especially in late Autumn.
Arrival and getting around
Most people arrive by plane in the country either through the Joseph Field International Airport, situated in Cedar City, or through the Jack Colter International Airport, situated in eponymous Colter. Both are hubs for the flag carrier of Natalia, the North-West Airlines, with the Cedar City Airport being also a hub for Cedar Air, the low-cost subsidiary of NWA. While Cedar Air mostly provides low-cost flights to the Federation, the North-Western Airlines are providing premium services to Gallo-Germano-Thaumantican and Toyou nations. There are also direct flights to the Federation, Islagen, Jydsken-Ostveg and the capitals of Tianlong, the Anti-State, Karzask and Pelasgia. The flight from Cedar City to Propontis which has been set up early last year is officially the longest non-stop long-range flight in the world.
There are also ferries linking Moorhead across the lakes to its Federation counterparts and of course linking Sunset Beach to the mainland.
For internal trips, Cedar Air offers cheap fares to flights from Cedar City and Colter to Moorehead, Glenoma, Blackmere, Ashford or Sunset Beach. While the plane is the fastest way of transport (a flight from Cedar City to Colter lasting for around two hours), it isn't a particularly cheap option. For that there are rails and buses.
The NRC (National Railroad Corporation) is the state owned company which supervises the quality of the rail infrastructure and which has in the last five years managed to create a higher speed mainline along the coast from Ashford to Cedar City and from there to Blackmere. There are more than 20 privately owned railway companies operating in the country. Even so, most of the bigger cities are connected by some sort of rail line with active services. Train tickets are better to be bought in advance as there are chances to find lower fares than last minute buys. The most famous Natalian train in the Westernman, a transcontinental train service operated by NRC with its Federation partners and it provides a service between Cedar City and Baldwin-Whitehall.
Coachlines is the biggest bus transportation company, created in 1990 after the amalgamation of 13 bus transportation companies. They provide a cheap alternative having routes connecting all the big cities and from there secondary routes to smaller towns and even villages. Though on it rural routes, it wouldn't be unexpected to see the quality of services lowered than on big inter-city routes.
In the next issues the Board of Tourism will present each of the state of the Union.