CryoLilly
Witch in the Ice
To be quite frank, the city of Canter has never once been the kind to garner any sort of attention. At a population of only around two hundred thousand people, It is hardly large enough to be well known outside of its general area, and while the nightlife is... vibrant in its own way, the scene isn't one that would draw anybody interested. The city isn't beautiful by any means, not a marvel of engineering nor does it have any particularly reputable architects, or even a unified aesthetic. The angular roads run into one another and shatter any attempts at a neat grid by the well meaning but not entirely competent city planners. And yet there's nothing so egregious as to warn visitors away. It's the sort of place to never make it into a travel guide. The rocky and frigid coast of the northern Atlantic does little to draw visitors, and the pebbly approximate of beaches are an acquired taste. All the same, it is easy to say that the port city has its own sort of eclectic charm. The close press of woodland separates it on most sides from any other settlements, not that any of the nearby fishing towns need any more incentive to keep to themselves. The docks bring in a constantly rotating crowd of those shipworkers, importing goods, stories, and identity from all across the world, a much needed benefit to the city which otherwise would have little in the way of support to the hopitality industry.
The people of Canter are surprisingly diverse, built as a synthesis of old local families who lived there before the city truly built up, the influx of sailors and immigrants who landed there and decided to stay, and more recently a crowd coming to staff the growing industries being built, the corporate offices. Rapid development has accompanied this shift, the relatively small town exploding into a dense downtown cluster with some small mix of suburbs over the last hundred years or so. This development, however, was not the simplest of things. The city of Canter is divided neatly along the banks of the Graceford river, a natural river which flows from the northwest, through the city, and into the Atlantic. South of the tributary, along the coast lie the Docks where the majority of early growth in the city was centered, much of the older development brackets the docks and lines the south banks of the river, while to the north the more recent downtown core has been built up.
The district lining the south side of the rive, aptly named riverside, is often considered prime real estate, recently gentrified and drawing in the young and the 'bohemian' with the appeal of proximity to the river, the view of downtown, and the promise of overpriced brownstones, exposed brick, and townhouses. Further south from the river, butting against the Docks lies Oldtown, what was once the heart of the city but has since become somewhat run down. While it is hardly shabby, it certainly has felt the wear of a few decades since development, and it is where the streets hold that telltale chaos of those built after the fact of the settlement, as opposed to the downtown core where they conform to a neater grid, even if it holds some oddities still. Oldtown and it's western neighbour Shale Street are widely considered the less appealing parts of town. South of the Docks, a modest trainyard operates, shipping goods inland, and even a few passenger trains.
North of the Graceford river, along the coast lies Gastown, a similarly gentrified district to riverside, though with a better preserved historical style and a coastal boardwalk. West of Gastown is, of course Downtown which occupies the greatest portion of the northern side of the Graceford. The downtown area operates much as you would expect of a city Canter's size, although with surprisingly active scene after dark. Many places remain open and thriving well into the night, casting bright lights and neon into the streets along the main drive of Lotus Avenue runing parallel to the river. Tall corporate offices intermingle with apartments, with a healthy mix of expensive restaurants and crowded clubs sprinkled in between. Further northwest, the city thins into the pleasant suburbs of Vod Grove and Haven Creek, neighbourhoods of soccer moms and wealthy commuters, interspersed with parks and eventually fading into the denser, and wilder woods which wraps around the city.
The weather in Canter is particularly seasonal, though the most appropriate descriptor at any time would likely be 'drab.' The humidity is often high, with heavy cloudcover or dense fog rolling in from the sea more often than not, leaving the entire city covered in a drizzling sheen of rainwater for days at a time. In the winter, the residents are used to the occasional heavy snow, refusing to let it interrupt their business. During the summer, the air can often turn hot with middling humidity, the otherwise harsh coastal breeze providing a much needed respite of cool if salty air.
The people of Canter are surprisingly diverse, built as a synthesis of old local families who lived there before the city truly built up, the influx of sailors and immigrants who landed there and decided to stay, and more recently a crowd coming to staff the growing industries being built, the corporate offices. Rapid development has accompanied this shift, the relatively small town exploding into a dense downtown cluster with some small mix of suburbs over the last hundred years or so. This development, however, was not the simplest of things. The city of Canter is divided neatly along the banks of the Graceford river, a natural river which flows from the northwest, through the city, and into the Atlantic. South of the tributary, along the coast lie the Docks where the majority of early growth in the city was centered, much of the older development brackets the docks and lines the south banks of the river, while to the north the more recent downtown core has been built up.
The district lining the south side of the rive, aptly named riverside, is often considered prime real estate, recently gentrified and drawing in the young and the 'bohemian' with the appeal of proximity to the river, the view of downtown, and the promise of overpriced brownstones, exposed brick, and townhouses. Further south from the river, butting against the Docks lies Oldtown, what was once the heart of the city but has since become somewhat run down. While it is hardly shabby, it certainly has felt the wear of a few decades since development, and it is where the streets hold that telltale chaos of those built after the fact of the settlement, as opposed to the downtown core where they conform to a neater grid, even if it holds some oddities still. Oldtown and it's western neighbour Shale Street are widely considered the less appealing parts of town. South of the Docks, a modest trainyard operates, shipping goods inland, and even a few passenger trains.
North of the Graceford river, along the coast lies Gastown, a similarly gentrified district to riverside, though with a better preserved historical style and a coastal boardwalk. West of Gastown is, of course Downtown which occupies the greatest portion of the northern side of the Graceford. The downtown area operates much as you would expect of a city Canter's size, although with surprisingly active scene after dark. Many places remain open and thriving well into the night, casting bright lights and neon into the streets along the main drive of Lotus Avenue runing parallel to the river. Tall corporate offices intermingle with apartments, with a healthy mix of expensive restaurants and crowded clubs sprinkled in between. Further northwest, the city thins into the pleasant suburbs of Vod Grove and Haven Creek, neighbourhoods of soccer moms and wealthy commuters, interspersed with parks and eventually fading into the denser, and wilder woods which wraps around the city.
The weather in Canter is particularly seasonal, though the most appropriate descriptor at any time would likely be 'drab.' The humidity is often high, with heavy cloudcover or dense fog rolling in from the sea more often than not, leaving the entire city covered in a drizzling sheen of rainwater for days at a time. In the winter, the residents are used to the occasional heavy snow, refusing to let it interrupt their business. During the summer, the air can often turn hot with middling humidity, the otherwise harsh coastal breeze providing a much needed respite of cool if salty air.