Banastra

General Information

Capital City: Grappenhall

Bettia's eastern region covering the hills bordering Cockbill Street, Banastra is the home to most of Bettia's world-famous rainforests. Banastra is an environmentally stunning region and attracts large numbers of tourists, backpackers and coach trippers every year.

Because of it's hilly forested nature, transport links aren't quite as well developed as in other provinces. Major road and rail links run from Gabalfa to the provincal capital Grappenhall, and a daily zeppelin service runs from the newly-constructed Zeppodrome to Cockbill Street.

Because of the limited transport facilities, the province is mainly dotted with small to medium sized towns, with only Grappenhall, Treebrook and Kirkwood being regarded as major urban centres.

Industries

As previously mentioned, the major industry in Banastra is tourism. People flock to Banastra either for it's remarkably clean air, it's beautiful scenery, or just to get away from it all.

A substantial timber industry is also in operation, but this is heavily regulated by the provincial council to ensure all stocks are sustainable.

A large amount of income is brought into the region by Bettian and international students studying at Grappenhall's many universities and centres of learning.

Places of Interest

Grappenhall

Provincial capital. Grappenhall is home to Bettia's finest universities: -

• Grappenhall University, specialising in all general subjects such as mathematics, sciences and languages, as well as the ever-popular sports studies which are taught in it's brand-new state-of-the-art multi-million Groat facilities.
• The Bettian School of Medicine, which is becoming a centre of excellence in the field of all medical studies.
• Grappenhall School of Art, Music and Drama.

Sweeney Falls

Providing a dramatic division between the towns of Upper and Lower Sweeney, Sweeney Falls are a true wonder of nature. At a height of almost 100 metres, the falls are the largest in Bettia, and as such are one of the leading tourist attractions.

Kirkwood

What started as a quaint little town has now become a quaint large town. Kirkwood stands out from other Bettian towns due to the local planning regulations which state that all low- and medium-rise buildings must be of a timber construction, or at least timber-clad. This has resulted in Kirkwood attaining an almost fairy-tale appearance, and has been consistantly voted the nicest town to live in all of Bettia.

Environment

Topographically, Banastra is mainly situated at an altitude of around 500 metres. This coupled with the fact that it is largely covered in rainforest means that the climate is cooler and wetter than other parts of the country. It also means that the local air quality is second to none.

The thick forests are a haven for wildlife (especially the rare Mottled Arora) along with various tropical bird species.