#world trade centre 7

[stubz]

late shift

Shuttle for Mars is departing now. Please keep hands, feet, tails, and other appendages clear of the yellow line.

‘Nice, finally get off work on time for once! Man is it empty, way less busy than the 5:45 one…

Are they sleeping? Please tell me they’re sleeping…’

“Snnrk…”

‘Oh good they are, oooh lots of empty seats next to them! Nice.’

The young human sits across the large figure and looks around.

‘Wonder why everyone else is sitting so far away from this guy? He’s not that much scarier than a Alteauh…OH! He’s an Orc! An actual Orc, oh this is so cool! Wait. Calm down, control yourself. Orc’s are people too, not some exotic animal in a zoo….he’s sooo cool looking tho!’

The human smiles and takes out their headphones and listens to some music and take in the view they see through the shuttle’s windows. From time to time they peek at the orc, can’t helping themselves from people-watching him.

Like what most humans imagined, he was huge. Easily more than 7 feet tall, with large calloused hands bigger than their head. He had large tusks but unlike the stereotypes he was well trimmed with well relatively kept hair. It would have neater had there not been dust in it. The orc wore dirty cloths and work boots. Beside them what looked like a tool box and bag.

‘Must be a construction worker or works in a trade’ they mused

‘Poor guy, he’s gotta be exhausted to sleep here. At least he gets to go home now.’

The shuttle shakes and with it so does the sleeping giant. Rocking side to side.

'That's not good.' They nervously slide off their headphones.

The turbulence increases until the sleeping orc leans too far and starts fall face first off his seat.

“OH SHIT!” Diving to their knees they manage to catch his head and shoulders.

“Mm?”

“You okay?” Damn he's heavy!

“Mmm…sorry.” Rubbing the sleep from his eyes he slowly got back into his seat, the turbulence now gone.

“No worries, I just didn’t want you to hit your head.”

“Heh, wouldn't be the first time I’ve done it.”

after rubbing his eyes a bit more and a crack of the neck he looks at them, brain finally working to some degree.

“…wait. You caught me?”

“Uh-huh”

“But you’re so small! Are you hurt?”

“You're not the first sleeping giant I’ve caught. I’m alright.”

“I am so sorry for that. I just finished working a 12 hour shift fixing the 1st and 3rd engine rooms and couldn’t help myself from dozing off.”

They whistle. “12 hours? No wonder you’re tired! If I were you I’d be in a coma.”

“Ah but surely you have a difficult job yourself. How else would you be able to catch me?”

“No, nothing like yours! I just work at a youngling centre.”

“The one on the ship?”

“That’s the one.”

“...YOUR ONE OF THE BRAVE WARRIORS WHO RISKED THEIR LIVES TO PROTECT THE CHILDREN??!”

“…you’ve heard of us?”

“Every orc and warrior worth their blade knows of your valiant deeds!! Tell me, what is your name??”

“Kim, uh and you are?”

“Fenrir. It is truly an honor to meet someone of your bravery and intelligence."

"Likewise! I've heard that the orc species are a true warrior race."

For the rest of the trip the two talked. Kim sharing how her and Max built such a safe room in the centre, which lead to the two realizing how similar each other's planets are.

"You have wind whirlpools as well? I thought they only existed on Bantor!"

"Well we call them hurricanes and tornadoes but yeah. Do you guys have hail?"

"Not where I grew up but nearby farther up they get a week or two of light hail showers during the fall. What about animals? Do you have reptiles bigger than an adult with large teeth and live in rivers? We call them darthrang."

"Oh we call them crocodiles!"

"Amazing! To think that your species live in a world much like mine!"

When the shuttle finally reached it's destination the two went their separate ways. A few days later they meet again, this time on the later shuttle. They sit and talk and create a routine of sorts where they became each others travelling companion for the trip to Mars.

One day however, Fenrir stopped coming. The human was saddened as she enjoyed his company but was soon surprised when seeing him at the centre.

"Kim! I've been transferred to stay on the ship so I won't be taking the shuttle to Mars anymore."

"Oh...well, as you know I only go home at the end of the week so maybe we can hang out now. Like eat lunch together or have a drink after work...or something like that!"

"Actually we'll be seeing each other everyday now. But if you don't get sick of me then yes, lets each lunch together."

"Great! But why will I be seeing you everyday?"

"Because after telling my family about you and the centre they've enrolled my nieces and nephews and younger siblings here...and I offered to drop them off and pick them up."

It was then that Kim noticed the dozen of orc children hiding behind Fenrir. The tallest and what looked the eldest of them stepped forward.

"Hello, I am Athea, uncle Fenrir said your one of the ones who saved the centre."

"Yes, my name is Kim. It's great to meet you AtheaaAA!" The orc girl pulled the human into a tight hug, lifting the adult woman off of her feet.

"Thank you for saving Nova." she mumbled into her chest.

'Ah, the Captain's daughter' Kim thought. "I was just doing what any teacher would do."

After a moment the human was put down and lead the children into the centre. The day went well. Fenrir's young family members were quickly won over by the humans, first with the saving of the centre, then with how they understood how wonderful their planet was rather than terrifying or deadly.

They were also greatly intrigued by how such a small species could survive in a planet that was thought to only be habitable to orcs.

"How can you carry us?" asked Thor, one of Fenrir's youngest brothers. "We're much bigger than a human child."

"Yeah but your not bigger than my cousins who are teenagers. Also just last month I had like 10 kids climbing on me. Two were tighalaxes."

"Your joking!"

...

"It that tumpon?!"

"Hm? We call it maafe, but it's also known as peanut stew, do you want some? It doesn't have any meat in it though."

"Guys Max has tumpon!! Can you tell Fenrir where we can buy the ingredients?"

"Of course. Finally I'll finish what gran gave me without having to gain 10 pounds."

And thus the first day ended on a high note! Now if only Kim could figure out why the children looked at her and nodded while talking to Fenrir...

So this based off of a post by @llamagoddessofficial about humans meeting actual space orcs. Sadly I can't find the actual post. but yeah, here u go, space orc and human meet cute

[wilsondick-winterexchange]

The last day of posting for the WilsonDick Winter Exchange of 2024 is here! 💙🧡

We present to you the last 7 WORKS of amazing WilsonDick content! Make sure to double check the warnings and tags before proceeding. And leave kudos and comments to show your appreciation if you can!

WORKS

here's to the "no"s [FIC] for @byrdsofthenyte [Mature, Rape/Non-Con] [JoeyDick]

Summary:

Joey is back and Dick spends the night in his arms, offering words of encouragement and trading lazy kisses just like they would be doing anyway, if things hadn't gone so wrong. Joey is out and Dick spends hours hammering at the wall in the closet trying to break through to the hallway on the other side, only to be unable to cross the line when he finally has it wide enough anyway. Using the powers granted to him by Luthor's diode, Joey ensures Dick can't stop him.

Dick Grayson Has Two Hands [FIC] for @itsnyxkvistad [Teen, No Warnings] [JoeyDickGrant, Dick & Wilsons]

Summary:

How to get two Wilson brothers in one room: family reunion. How to get two Wilson brothers to admit they love the same guy: call them idiots. OR: The Wilson family finally decides to try again. Dick Grayson has been elected their mediator.

mutually assured [FIC] for secret_sanctuary [Teen, No Warnings] [SlaDick]

Summary:

Every night at sundown, Slade and Dick swap bodies. It’s a goddamn pain in the ass. The second they figure out how to fix it, Slade’s going to kill the sorry bastard responsible for the whole thing. That is, if he and Grayson don't kill each other first.

In the Mind to Suffer [FIC] for @wildsofmarch [Teen, No Warnings] [Slade & Dick]

Summary:

Slade didn't know it, but his kids had a long-running joke that he acted like a bloodhound dog when it came to magical fuckery. He could smell it in the air from miles away and while it proved helpful more often than not, that didn't make it any less hilarious of a picture. It'd be even funnier except for the part where it completely blinded them all to the possibility that there could be other substances in the world that even Slade Wilson's enhanced body wouldn't be able to detect. -- Slade has temporary amnesia. Slade doesn't know he's experiencing temporary amnesia. Slade Wilson just took a contract to kill Nightwing.

a training session [ART] for @chejuu [Mature, No Warnings] [SlaDick]

Summary:

Dick and Slade train.

centre of attention [ART] for @itsnyxkvistad [Teen, No Warnings][JoeyDickGrant]

Summary:

some quick fanart of the three of them.

Gold [ART/FIC] for @itsnyxkvistad [Teen, No Warnings] [GrantDick]

Summary:

Ravager VS. Talon.

[scotianostra]

October 12th 1929 saw the birth of Magnus Magnusson, writer, broadcaster and quiznmaster in TV programme “Mastermind”.

Magnus was born in Reykjavík but grew up in Edinburgh, where his father, Sigursteinn Magnússon, was the Icelandic consul. Magnus’ Icelandic name at birth was Magnús Sigursteinsson, but in Scotland his family adopted British naming conventions and from childhood he used his father’s patronymic as a surname. Living in Joppa, he was educated at the Edinburgh Academy and was in the school’s marching brass band. So to those saying he’s not Scottish, he did live almost his entire life here.

After graduating from Jesus College, Oxford, Magnusson became a reporter with the Scottish Daily Express and The Scotsman. He went freelance in 1967, then joined the British Broadcasting Corporation, presenting programmes on history and archaeology as well as appearing in news programmes.

He retained his academic connections, however, and was Lord Rector of Edinburgh University from 1975 to 1978 from 2002 served as chancellor of Glasgow Caledonian University. The Magnus Magnusson Fellowship, an intellectual group based at the Glasgow Caledonian University, was named in his honour. Magnusson’s books included I’ve Started so I’ll Finish, a memoir of his years on Mastermind, and Scotland: The Story of a Nation.

Magnus of course is most famous for the quiz show, Mastermind, it was originally broadcast late on a Sunday night and was not expected to receive a huge audience. In 1973 it was moved to a prime-time slot as an emergency replacement for a Leslie Phillips sitcom, Casanova ‘73, which had been moved to a later time following complaints about its risqué content. The quiz subsequently became one of the most-watched shows on television. Magnusson was famous for his catchphrase “I’ve started so I’ll finish,” which was also the title of his history of the show. The original series was also noted for the variety of venues where filming took place—often including academic and ecclesiastical buildings. The last programme of the original series was filmed at St Magnus Cathedral in Orkney.

To further add to Magnus’s credentials for being a Scot he married Glasgow lass Mamie Ian Baird and they had 5 children together, including Reporting Scotland presenter Sally.

On 12th October 2006, his 77th birthday, Magnusson was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Magnusson mordantly noted that “This has to be one of my worst birthdays ever”. His condition forced him to cancel a string of public appearances. He died on 7 January 2007.The Aigas Field Centre a nature centre near Beauly has a building named in his honour.

In 2014 an auction sold off a lot of his belongings for the Scottish based Balmore Trust, a fair trade charity which sells fairly-traded goods in its shop The Coach House and supports projects in Africa, India and the west of Scotland.

Magnus Magnusson, Icelandic by birth Scottish through choice. Anyone still not convinced of his Scottish & Proud credentials, check out this quote from the man “I have got the best of both worlds; growing up in Edinburgh and now living outside Glasgow.”

Scotland is a welcoming country and have a rich culture which comes from all round the world, with his writing and knowledge Magnus brought so much to our country

Magnus Magnusson is buried in Baldernock Churchyard, East Dunbartonshire.

My favourite of the pics is the younger Magnus on Calton Hill, Edinburgh, the colour of The Hotel in the background, is how I remember it having been the window cleaner there before it had a full restoration in the late 80′s. The black and white pic is when he was installed as Rector of Edinburgh University, the pic with the ferry is on Orkney.

[fatehbaz]

In the summer of 2020, [...] Black Lives Matter protesters tore a statue of 17th-century slave trader Edward Colston from its plinth in the centre of Bristol and rolled it into the harbour. [...] [C]ritics [...] argued that this type of direct action was “erasing history”. Britain’s prime minister at the time, Boris Johnson, claimed that to remove statues of figures like Colston from the public square was “to lie about our history”. Sir Trevor Phillips complained that Britain’s public history was being “erased entirely” [...]. Yet rather than lead us into an era of collective forgetting, the tearing down of Colston’s statue transported his name – and deeds – into the public consciousness.

This week, the renewed attention towards Colston bore fruit when the Guardian revealed that a historian, Brooke Newman, had unearthed a document showing that in 1689, Colston transferred £1,000 of shares in the Royal African Company (RAC) to none other than King William III. The exposure of the extent to which the monarch was financially intertwined with the slave trading company of which Colston was a director does not teach us less about history, it teaches us more.

---

The activities of colonial companies like the RAC, which enjoyed a monopoly over the English trade in slaves from the west African coast, are often presented as distinct from the internal history of the British Isles.

Yes, there may have been the odd massacre performed in the service of British imperialism, but these were the actions of rogue merchants in distant tropical lands, operating far from the watchful eye of Westminster and the living embodiment of British sovereignty, the monarch. This makes it easy to delete the actions of the RAC from the national record: the 84,500 men, women and children who, during Colston’s time with the company, were taken by its ships from their homes in west Africa to suffer a life of slavery in the New World.

A quarter of them would not even survive the journey, so horrific were the conditions aboard Colston’s ships.

---

Yet this separation between internal royal histories and external colonial histories has always been a [hidden] spot in our understanding of the past. Companies like the RAC needed to be granted a royal charter just to exist: they couldn’t be just registered and incorporated like companies today.

And furthermore, as the Guardian’s research has illustrated, there was often a cosy personal connection between the ruling kings and queens of this island and its slave-trading and colonial companies. This extended from James II acting as a governor of the Royal African Company to George II being a shareholder of the South Sea Company, which held the contract to supply enslaved Africans to the Spanish colonies in South America. [...]

---

The new revelations arrive at a difficult time for the monarchy, with the coronation of a new king seeking to shore up the disruption caused by the passing of the long-reigning Elizabeth II. [...] Leading politicians in Australia and Jamaica, countries where the British monarchy traditionally enjoyed a great deal of public support, are now campaigning to follow in the footsteps of Barbados, [...] a step towards the Caribbean island “leaving our colonial past behind”. The rising unpopularity of the British monarchy in the once-reliable British West Indies was made evident by the protests that greeted [...] William and Kate, during their tour of the region last year. [...] The relationship between the British royal family and the former colonies isn’t just a question of symbolism or constitutional law. It is an entry point into a deep and bloody history [...]. It is a history that the lid has only just started to be lifted on.

---

Text by: Kojo Koram. “Those who tore down Colston’s statue helped lead us to the truth about slavery and the monarchy.” The Guardian. 7 April 2023. [Bold emphasis and some paragraph breaks/contractions added by me.]

[our-future-is-up-to-us-2]

Float

It's Amado time boiiiii (Fic number 7) @narcosfandomdiscord

Enjoy <3

Prompt #2, Book Of Fuck-Ups: Righteous indignation glo-up aka fanwork that corrects a plot misstep or writing blunder that bugs the shit outta you

Word Count: 740

Relationships: Amado Carrillo Fuentes/Marisol, Amado Carrillo Fuentes & Miguel Angel Felix Gallardo

Warnings: Canonical (yet minor) character death

~ Read the fic under the cut ~

Amado Carrillo Fuentes is a high-up henchman. 

Because, under the rule of Miguel Angel Felix Gallardo, he’s managing the transport, but has to comply with Felix's every move. 

Besides, he isn’t made for the drug cartels… So he thinks. In his early days, he had to spend time working out where he belonged, how to start a movement, where the best places exist to stash cocaine, and how to smoothly make transactions. 

Now, he knows almost every trick of the trade, but he still can’t get away with making important phone calls. 

At least, not without Felix rattling on, “Amado, hey? Who’s calling? Tijuana, or Sinaloa? We’re preparing the shipment with Cali, have they responded in kind?” 

Amado can only let go of the phone, letting out a sigh and mumbling some bullshit that Felix doesn’t bother to decode. 

***

Finally, they all break away. Not just him. 

It’s a formal declaration, it’s an official management decision… The Arellano family holds control over Tijuana, Chapo and Azul over Sinaloa, and Amado over Juarez. They’ll keep their contacts with each other, but with such a split, there’s independence. 

They clink their glasses and drink to their newfound freedom, all the while, no one spares their previous leader a glance. 

Amado can make as many phone calls as he likes. He can branch out, finally, extending further than their cartel kingpin circle… 

Because whether Felix knew that his people had lives or not, it doesn’t matter. But, the truth is, they’re all as human as they come. 

***

He dials a number faster than any other. 

When the line connects, he sighs, letting out the tension wound up in his body, and he speaks. 

“Hey… Hey, I’m so sorry. I’m deep in the business now. Not just deep, but high. I’ve got an entire plaza to manage, at my disposal… Yes, yes, of course, I miss you, my love– That’s why I’m calling now–” 

The voice on the other end is fierce and unrelenting, withholding its softness… But it still manages to break through. 

Amado listens, learns, chips in where he can, often receiving scolding in response: Deep in the business?! Right, that’s why you haven’t been here. For years, you’ve abandoned us! Little Anna…  

He chokes up at hearing that. Little Anna. 

He sends them money, as much as he can manage, keeping them afloat. 

Well, being afloat can only go so far in this world. People can only last so long before they sink. 

They talk for a little while longer before they hang up. He runs a hand through his black hair and stares at the ceiling for a while. 

He’ll have to make it up to them. Now, he’s able to. He’s not tied up in the madness of others, instead, he’s at the centre of madness. Juarez belongs to him, after all. 

He can make his own decisions… And if that means calling Marisol every day, then so be it. No one can tell him otherwise. 

***

Two weeks on, he gets another call, and smiles as he hears her voice. 

Yes, they struggle, they’re doing things in unconventional ways, with marriage and contact and all the rest, but he’s tethered to it. He has all the opportunity in the world to stay tethered to his family. 

Well, so he hopes, so he thinks, so he dreams. 

When kingpin Amado, ruler of Juarez, hears what he hears next, he crumbles. 

He takes the first flight back home, and if anyone asks him why, he’ll say it’s confidential. Undisclosed. Maybe it’s better to write it off as ‘unimportant business’, even though Marisol means the world to him. 

Even though Little Anna meant the world to him. 

He’s missed the burial and he’s grovelling at Marisol’s knees, desperate to see his daughter, to try and make things right. 

“She’s grown a lot since the last time you saw her.” She tells him, brows furrowed and arms crossed. 

Well, no shit! Amado wants to scream, She’s grown so much, she’s lived a life without me there… And now she’s dead?  

He’ll just have to transport more coke, get on more flights, manage his business the way he wants to run it. If he’s greeted by his family with non-stop phone calls and a death, well… He’ll bury himself in his work. 

He could take some cocaine, while he’s at it. It might just numb out the pain, and put him back on track.  

[chaletnz]

Cajas National Park Tour

Around 6am the driver was yelling out Cuenca and I wondered if we were here already or if he was shouting out to get people at this station to get onboard for the ride to Cuenca. I wasn’t expecting to arrive until 7 or 8am and my phone didn’t load a map at all which is usually when it’s a random place I’ve never loaded on it before. The driver came down and told me that this was Cuenca, the final stop so I asked for directions to a taxi and headed off. I jumped in one waiting cab and gave him the names of the two streets that my hotel was on the corner of and he found it no problem. The ride on the meter came out to be $1.49 so I gave him $2 and then checked in. I’d booked for the night before so my room was ready waiting and Andrés the receptionist led me upstairs. He was kind and only charged me for one night since I hadn’t been there last night due to the flood that was no fault of my own, and I had contacted him in advance. I would’ve paid the 2 nights if he’d asked but I kept my mouth shut and paid him in cash as he requested. I messaged Edison my tour guide and let him know that I had arrived in Cuenca and was ready for the tour as soon as he was ready. He replied back quickly and said he would pick me up at 8:45am so I took a shower and then went for a quick coffee at Cafe Ñucallacta. Edison picked me up on time and we drove out to Cajas National Park through various different neighbourhoods to get a feel for Cuenca city on our way out. He told me the history of Cuenca, founded in 1557 and it’s the 3rd largest city in Ecuador after Quito and Guayaquil. The historic city centre is a unesco protected world heritage site. This city trades in agricultural products, cattle, hides, and marble. He gave me a few tips on places to visit with my afternoon, evening, and morning before I fly out tomorrow afternoon. It took about 45 minutes to reach the trailhead of the trek in the park we would be doing today. It was about 3400m above sea level and I felt the air was thinner and I was a bit light-headed up here. We began our walk on some rocks and boardwalk, and then for most of the rest of the trek it was a spongy kind of moss that was comfortable to walk on. We walked slowly due to the altitude, and stopped often to look at some trees, birds, plants, and flowers that were unique to the area. Edison kept saying how lucky I was to have this beautiful sunny day to explore Cajas as it’s mostly foggy and cloudy and had snowed there yesterday. I figured by this point I was due some luck! He helped me cross a stream that was terrifying for me with the slippery rocks combined with my bad ankle but I made it and then we stopped for a lunch break at the best viewpoint on the trail. I enjoyed my banana chocolate chip muffin that I’d carried with me from Baños. The loop back to the start was on an incline so it was a bit tougher, and there were some shady spots that were muddy and slippery. We passed a lot of tussock grass, the King Kong rock formation, some spiky pineapple plants, and a tree with layers of papery bark. There were some people beginning their walk in the opposite direction sloshing past us in the muddy spots so I was glad to be wrapping up after having almost the entire walk to myself. He offered to drive me up to the highest elevation point in the park, a lookout at Tres Cruces at an elevation of 4167m above sea level. It was a nice view but very windy up there, and a bunch of children screaming too. Edison drove us back to Cuenca at breakneck speed and dropped me off back at the hotel asking me only for a 5 star review to help the company get more tour business after the difficulties of covid and the negative press on Ecuador and its drug cartels and public safety recently.

[tisiphonewolfe]

Where do you live in The Tectomancy Saga?

Pick what sounds nicest from the options below to find out which major settlement you live in from the world of The Tectomancy Saga!

Locations and descriptions unveiled below the cut!

1. Leirsham

You live in the ringed city of Leirsham, the human capital. It's built into a hilly island, raised out of Lake Simul a millenia ago by King Artol Tectus. The city falls in tiers, rings around the island divided by walls; The docks and storehouses; the merchants' district; the residential area; the academics district; the upper city, and the palace. As a hub of human trade and travel across the gigantic lake, it's always bustling!

2. The Genom University

The Genomic people take 'university city' very seriously. The entire city is a university filled with lecture halls and libraries and laboratories, where Genemos study hoping to attain their people's divine magic through rigorous scientific research. Its central feature is the archive, a library where all of Genomic history is stored - through the power of conjuration, this is quite literal. It is said that entire historic buildings can be summoned from the archive.

3. Ipurrol

Ipurrol lies in Versewelt, near the edge of the world. It was cut off from the rest of human civilisation 400 years ago, when a plague swept the land, turning its victims into various forms of bloodthirsty ghoul. Those who remain have learned to live with their condition and keep living on, rebuilding their community together. The Vismoores are the local nobles, who live alone in the castle that looms over the village - even among oddities, those two are odd.

4. Athyran

You live in the Alvian city of Athyran. On its surface, surrounded by desert, its grand architecture dazzles tourists, and baffles them by appearing to be abandoned; most of the city resides below the surface in cool caves, hidden by an illusion. The buildings extend below the earth, making it a forest of towers among glowing formations of crystals. Their cuisine is quite mushroom-heavy. This city represents the centre of the 'pattern' which Alvians bury their dead in across their lands.

5. North's Edge

North of human lands, in arctic tundra, wintery wastes, and snow-covered rocky mountains, the Droichs live in peaceful alliance with Dragons. The Dragons fled from humanity, their former allies, 900 years ago, and formed a partnership with Droichs. The Droichs mine to maintain the dragon's scales and hides with metal and stone; the Dragons serve as defence and transportation for the Droichs. They make their home nestled into a cave-pocked ravine, where Dragons and their Droichish riders gather around the fire together.

6. Hell

The Demonic city of Hell is far below the suface, near the very axis of the world. Its sloping side is marred with holes like a honeycomb, through which the swirling blue mists of the edge of the world creep. Lit by glowing plants and lava flows, the city is built into the rock like a warren, with only gothic spires and roofs peeking out above the ground. Due to the Demonic magic of enchantment, you have to be very careful who you talk to and what you say. Demons though, have this down to a fine art, and natter endlessly to each other.

7. The Hollow

Formally 'Colossus' Hollow', because it looks like a giant kicked a huge hole in a hill and people built a city there. Sat on the border between human lands and Alvian ones, and with a clear view to the Arboric Ocean, just about anyone and everyone could turn up there. With nobody quite able to lay a claim to its leadership, it is more-or-less ruled by an organised crime gang known as 'The Robes'. Their own operations take place in other cities, but their rules for everyone else just say "If you fuck this place up for everyone else, we're coming for your head."

8. Gorzlun Kudh

One of the largest Orken communities; its name means 'Risen City'. Made almost entirely of drenchwood, a form of moisture-resistant wood, it rises out of a great swamp on thick stilts. It is home to the Oracles, wizened Orken elders who have practised the art of future-sight for centuries. It is also home to the battle-mothers, and their endless raiding gangs of battle-sisters. Most older Orkus remember a time when it was not like this. They farmed, they relaxed, they made things with their hands, and they helped their neighbours. Maybe one day it'll be like that again.

[amuseoffyre]

4, 7, and 8! ❤️

4. say something nice about a ship you don't ship (it can be another ship in your fandom, a mutual's OTP, etc)

I love seeing some of the art from Steddyhands artists. I don't read much fic and when I do, it's primarily gentlebeard, but I do appreciate a well done art :D

7. your favorite tropes to read/write/draw

*bangs table with both fists* CLASS ISSUES CLASS ISSUES CLASS ISSUES. You know you're reading something of mine if there are class issues in there :D Not necessarily front and centre, but I love the undercurrent that it can bring to a story. OFMD gave so many layers of it and the layers in between as well, with the different strata and different kinds of working class and the intersection of race with class and the experiences reflected by said characters and how they operate differently within a world dictated by a specific upper-crust white elite.

Like Frenchie's knowledge of interacting within an upper crust environment is 100% different from Olu's, but they are both dealing with the automatic racist prejudice of their very rich and very white guests in the party ship and Frenchie knows how to use it, while Olu very quickly realises that he's gonna have fun on this ride.

Or Izzy and Stede's dynamic because Izzy is the epitome of northern English working class, all grit and tenacity, while Stede - as landed gentry, aka someone who is living off the profits of the labour of others while sitting on his arse and doing nothing - and buying his way into the rank of captain is everything Izzy hates. The gentry came from trade and made their money using people like Izzy, and he Does Not Care For It. (Izzy and Christopher Eccleston would get on like a house on fire)

There's just so much happening. Like the Badmintons - they're upper crust but they're younger sons (firstborns inherited, the spares tended to military service or the church). They get nothing for their inheritance and then there's Stede, heir to a fortune that his trader daddy made. Not even aristocracy but worth more than them. They would hate it.

So. Much. Tasty. Class. Stuff.

Also gender stuff. Om nom nom nom.

8. you hope more people will come to appreciate ___ (a ship, a trope, an episode, etc)

The music. Good grief the music this season has been staggeringly well used. The recurring motifs and themes, the flip of the Gnossienne to the Sad Love theme. The different songs they used in different moments. The choices of instruments on certain themes. The subtle echo of "Be a Lighthouse" in "Return to the Revenge" when the crew work together to escape. IT IS ALL AAAAAAA

[readyforevolution]

West Africa top Facts 🇧🇯 🇳🇬 🇳🇪 🇬🇲 🇲🇱 🇱🇷 🇨🇻 🇸🇱🇬🇭

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9. In Gambia 🇬🇲 During elections, Gambians vote using marbles.

10. Gambia 🇬🇲 Is the smallest country in mainland Africa.

11. Gambia 🇬🇲 is known for the beaches along its small Atlantic coastline and for being home to Jufureh (Juffure), the reputed ancestral village of Kunta Kinte.

12. Burkina Faso 🇧🇫is a leader in African art and culture and hosts the largest craft market in Africa.

13. Burkina Faso 🇧🇫is Africa’s largest producer of cotton.

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15. Sierra Leone 🇸🇱is rich in mineral deposits, especially diamonds, and has long relied on the mining industry

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[noloveforned]

no love for ned is all set for tonight's show on wlur from 8pm until midnight. tune in live or catch up with last week's show on mixcloud when you can!

no love for ned on wlur – january 26th, 2024 from 8-10pm

artist // track // album // label spiritualized // ladies and gentlemen we are floating in space (original version) // ladies and gentlemen we are floating in space // arista gruff rhys // they sold my home to build a skyscraper // sadness sets me free // rough trade pip blom // i can be your man // bobbie // heavenly mary jane dunphe // fix me // fix me 7" // sub pop ekkstacy featuring the kid laroi // alright // ekkstacy // dine alone outer world // have // who does the music love? // happy happy birthday to me collate // the product // generative systems // domestic departure heavy metal // gebrannte amore // v: live at the gas station fighting the devil // total punk finnogun's wake // lovers all // stay young ep // what's your rupture? the rabbits // mori no uta // the rabbits // mesh-key kat haus // low calorie // manic cassette // rip bobby would // targets // styx // digital regress waylon jennings featuring lee hazlewood // rock, salt and nails // singer of sad songs // rca victor katy kirby // wait listen // blue raspberry // anti- the smile // friend of a friend // wall of eyes // xl nighttime // veil // keeper is the heart // ba da bing! ty segall // denée // three bells // drag city samuel goff, camila nebbia and patrick shiroishi // where borders shift // diminished borders cassette // cacophonous revival joe mcphee, mette rasmussen and dennis tyfus // death or dinner? // oblique strategies // black truffle phil ranelin // of times gone by // the found tapes: live in los angeles // org music che noir // low altitude // noir or never // de rap winkel lionmilk // strut, no walk // sauna saudade cassette // brother milk sounds resavoir // plight // transmissions from total refreshment centre compilation // blue note r.a.p. ferreira and fumitake tamura // jes' grew in osaka // the first fist to make contact when we dap // ruby yacht previous industries // showbiz // showbiz 7" // merge pretty in pink // turtles // pillows // little lunch / subjangle / hidden bay the umbrellas // three cheers! // fairweather friend // slumberland pale lights // streamlined // waverly place // jigsaw shiny times // safe to say // (bandcamp mp3) // (unreleased) comet gain // california // say yes! to international socialism 7" ep // wiija the smashing pumpkins // luna // siamese dream // virgin

[titanicc0]

RMS Titanic was a British ocean liner that sank on 15 April 1912 after striking an iceberg on the ship's maiden voyage from Southampton, England to New York City, United States. Titanic, operated by the White Star Line, was carrying passengers and mail. Of the estimated 2,224 passengers and crew aboard, approximately 1,500 died, making the incident the deadliest sinking of a single ship at the time.[a] Titanic carried some of the wealthiest people in the world, as well as hundreds of emigrants from the British Isles, Scandinavia, and elsewhere in Europe who were seeking a new life in the United States and Canada. The disaster drew public attention, spurred major changes in maritime safety regulations, and inspired a lasting legacy in popular culture.

Titanic departing Southampton on 10 April 1912

MapWikimedia | © OpenStreetMap

Titanic shipwreck is here now.

History

United Kingdom

Name

RMS Titanic

Owner

White Star Line

Operator

White Star Line

Port of registry

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland Liverpool, England

Route

Southampton to New York City

Ordered

17 September 1908

Builder

Harland and Wolff, Belfast

Cost

£1.5 million (£150 million in 2019)

Yard number

401

Way number

400

Laid down

31 March 1909

Launched

31 May 1911

Completed

2 April 1912

Maiden voyage

10 April 1912

In service

1912

Out of service

15 April 1912

Identification

UK official number 131428[1]

Code letters HVMP[2]

Wireless call sign MGY

Fate

Struck an iceberg at 11:40 pm (ship's time) 14 April 1912 on her maiden voyage and sank 2 h 40 min later on 15 April 1912; 112 years ago

Status

Wreck

General characteristics

Class and type

Olympic-class ocean liner

Tonnage

46,329 GRT, 21,831 NRT

Displacement

52,310 tons

Length

882 ft 9 in (269.1 m) overall

Beam

92 ft 6 in (28.2 m)

Height

175 ft (53.3 m) (keel to top of funnels)

Draught

34 ft 7 in (10.5 m)

Depth

64 ft 6 in (19.7 m)

Decks

9 (A–G)

Installed power

24 double-ended and five single-ended boilers feeding two reciprocating steam engines for the wing propellers, and a low-pressure turbine for the centre propeller;[3] output: 46,000 HP

Propulsion

Two three-blade wing propellers and one centre propeller

Speed

Service: 21 kn (39 km/h; 24 mph). Max: 23 kn (43 km/h; 26 mph)

Capacity

Passengers: 2,453, crew: 874. Total: 3,327 (or 3,547 according to other sources)

Notes

Lifeboats: 20 (sufficient for 1,178 people)

RMS Titanic was the largest ship afloat upon entering service and the second of three Olympic-class ocean liners built for the White Star Line. The ship was built by the Harland and Wolff shipbuilding company in Belfast. Thomas Andrews Jr., the chief naval architect of the shipyard, died in the disaster. Titanic was under the command of Captain Edward John Smith, who went down with the ship.

The first-class accommodation was designed to be the pinnacle of comfort and luxury. It included a gymnasium, swimming pool, smoking rooms, fine restaurants and cafes, a Victorian-style Turkish bath, and hundreds of opulent cabins. A high-powered radiotelegraph transmitter was available to send passenger "marconigrams" and for the ship's operational use. Titanic had advanced safety features, such as watertight compartments and remotely activated watertight doors, which contributed to the ship's reputation as "unsinkable".

Titanic was equipped with 16 lifeboat davits, each capable of lowering three lifeboats, for a total of 48 boats. Despite this capacity of 48, the ship was only equipped with a total of 20 lifeboats. Fourteen were regular lifeboats, two were cutter lifeboats, and four were collapsible and proved difficult to launch while the ship was sinking. Together, the 20 lifeboats could hold 1,178 people—about half the number of passengers on board, and one-third of the number of passengers the ship could have carried at full capacity (a number consistent with the maritime safety regulations of the era). The British Board of Trade's regulations required 14 lifeboats for a ship 10,000 tonnes. Titanic carried six more than required, allowing 338 extra people room in lifeboats. When the ship sank, the lifeboats that had been lowered were only filled up to an average of 60%.

[woltourney]

ROUND 1 / SIDE B / POLL 7

K'pehli Tia / Sae'pheli'ehva (@hallowed-nebulae) v. U'zula (@mischiefmilly)

K'pehli Tia / Sae'pheli'ehva:

q. What is your WoL name and pronouns? a. K'pheli Tia or Sae'pheli'ehva (he has two names for worldbuilding reasons); he/they, but usually uses he/him.

q. What is your WoL's species? a. Miqo'te!

q. What is your WoL's class? Or classes? a. Started as Dragoon and Scholar, did Bard, is now primarily Dark Knight or Atrologian. If in doubt, Astrologian.

q. What data centre/server are you on, if you want people to find you? a. Aether data center, on Faerie!

q. Tell us a bit about your WoL! a. To sum up what would otherwise be a huge ramble: he is the vessel/reincarnation of an eons old god. He's chronically ill, has chronic pain, and gets attached to A'aba Tia, Aulie, and the other scions who all die in the waking sands incident. (He and Arenvalds are bros). He and his cousin Mehka trade on who's doing WoL things based on who's got the ability. K'pheli embarks on the crystal tower expedition with NOAH and falls head over heels for G'raha along the way. He has no strong feelings on being a hero, but does what he does because "I refuse to let Fate create more tragedies". In his free time he enjoys writing and trying to figure out how to lead Mor Dhona (the people all decided that the god should be the one in charge). He's a very self-indulgent self-inseet where I toss in a lot of worldbuilding that no one but me cares about. Also very important he has chronic aether sickness and chronic pain and simply refuses to die or go mad from said aether sickness. Rip to everyone else but they're different.

q. Why should YOU win? (Answer IC!) a. "It would make Raha happy to see me win. Also I was encouraged by my friends to do this, I didn't beat away my anxiety with a stick just to lose this competition."

q. Anything else you wanna add? a. As said before he's a very self-indulgent self-insert. He's bisexual, afab genderfluid, and has chronic pain and is chronically ill. Because I made him to play with divinity tropes, there's a religion that worships him! (G'raha started it because dramatic bisexual history nerd fell in love and decided if he's gonna love a god then everyone else should know that his god is a god. Because fun tropes and metaphors and such. Also worldbuilding potential.) He's called the Crystal God and he can expell excess aether as aether-filled crystals. Also he made a pact with a voidsent (a friend's oc) who eats his aether as well, so even though he's still got way too much aether for his body k'pheli has avoided death this far. He's just here to be bisexual and love G'raha a lot. As one does.

U'zula:

q. What is your WoL name and pronouns? a. U'zula, he/him

q. What is your WoL's species? a. Miqote

q. What is your WoL's class? Or classes? a. DRG through Stormblood, GNB afterwards

q. What data centre/server are you on, if you want people to find you? a. N/A

q. Tell us a bit about your WoL! a. U'zula is a miqote from the U tribe - he leaves his tribe behind a short while before ARR begins to see more of the world. He became a hero through the story, and he enjoys it - in particular, he loves meeting little kids who recognize him and will always take the time to speak with them. He loves to cook and dance in his free time, and the Scions enjoy varying latin music, phrases (read: curse words), and dishes thanks to his influence.

q. Why should YOU win? (Answer IC!) a. Well, I should win because I'll host the best after-party you could hope for - good music, good food, and good people!! You wouldn't want to miss that, now would you?

q. Anything else you wanna add? a. He's more aggressive and brash in the early expansions, but has mellowed out by ShB and EW!!

[detectivehole]

Port Royal

Port Royal is a town located at the end of the Palisadoes, at the mouth of Kingston Harbour, in southeastern Jamaica. Founded in 1494 by the Spanish, it was once the largest city in the Caribbean, functioning as the centre of shipping and commerce in the Caribbean Sea by the latter half of the 17th century.[1] It was destroyed by an earthquake on 7 June 1692, which had an accompanying tsunami, leading to the establishment of Kingston, which is now the largest city in Jamaica. Severe hurricanes have regularly damaged the area. Another severe earthquake occurred in 1907.

Port Royal was once home to privateers who were encouraged to attack Spanish vessels, at a time when smaller European nations were reluctant to attack Spain directly. As a port city, it was notorious for its gaudy displays of wealth and loose morals. It was a popular homeport for the English and Dutch-sponsored privateers to spend their treasure during the 17th century. When those governments abandoned the practice of issuing letters of marque to privateers against the Spanish treasure fleets and possessions in the later 16th century, many of the crews turned pirate. They continued to use the city as their main base during the 17th century. Pirates from around the world congregated at Port Royal, coming from waters as far away as Madagascar.

After the 1692 disaster, Port Royal's commercial role was steadily taken over by the nearby town (and later, city) of Kingston. Plans were developed in 1999 to redevelop the small fishing town as a heritage tourism destination to serve cruise ships. The plan was to capitalize on Port Royal's unique heritage, with archaeological findings from pre-colonial and privateering years as the basis of possible attractions.[1]

CLIMATE

Port Royal has a tropical savanna climate (Köppen climate classification Aw) with a short dry season from January to April and a lengthy wet season from May to October. Temperatures remain steady throughout the year with the dry season being slightly cooler and range from 25.5 °C (77.9 °F) in January to 27.7 °C (81.9 °F) in May. The average annual precipitation is 1,345 millimetres (53 in).[2]

HISTORY

The Taino historic indigenous people of the Caribbean occupied this area for centuries before European settlement. They used the area, which they called Caguay or Caguaya,[3] during their fishing expeditions. Although it is not known whether they ever settled at the spot, they did inhabit other parts of Jamaica.[4]

Colonisation

The Spanish first landed in Jamaica in 1494 under the leadership of Christopher Columbus, leading to the destruction of the Taino population. Permanent settlement occurred when Juan de Esquivel brought a group of settlers in 1509. They came in search of new lands and valuable resources, like gold and silver. Instead they began to cultivate and process the sugar cane. Much like the Taino before them, the Spanish did not appear to have much use for the Port Royal area. They did, however, retain its Taino name.[3] Spain kept control of Jamaica mostly so that it could prevent other countries from gaining access to the island, which was strategically situated within the trade routes of the Caribbean. Spain maintained control over the island for 146 years, until the English took control following their invasion of 1655.

The town was captured by England in 1655 during the invasion of Jamaica.[4][5] By 1659 two hundred houses, shops and warehouses had been built around the fort; by 1692 five forts defended the port.[6] The English initially called the place Cagway but soon renamed it as Port Royal.[3] For much of the period between the English conquest and the 1692 earthquake, Port Royal served as the unofficial capital of Jamaica, while Spanish Town remained the official capital. In 1872 the government designated Kingston, the largest city, as the capital.[6]

Piracy

Port Royal provided a safe harbour initially for privateers and subsequently for pirates plying the shipping lanes to and from Spain and Panama. Buccaneers found Port Royal appealing for several reasons. Its proximity to trade routes allowed them easy access to prey, but the most important advantage was the port's proximity to several of the only safe passages or straits giving access to the Spanish Main from the Atlantic.[6] The harbour was large enough to accommodate their ships and provided a place to careen and repair these vessels. It was also ideally situated for launching raids on Spanish settlements. From Port Royal, Christopher Myngs sacked Campeche and Henry Morgan attacked Panama, Portobello, and Maracaibo. Additionally, buccaneers Roche Brasiliano, John Davis and Edward Mansvelt used Port Royal as a base of operations. In 1657, as a solution to his defence concerns, Governor Edward D'Oley invited the Brethren of the Coast to come to Port Royal and make it their home port. The Brethren was made up of a group of pirates who were descendants of cattle-hunting boucaniers (later anglicized to buccaneers), who had turned to piracy after being robbed by the Spanish (and subsequently thrown out of Hispaniola).[5] These pirates concentrated their attacks on Spanish shipping, whose interests were considered the major threat to the town.

These pirates later became legal English privateers who were given letters of marque by Jamaica's governor. Around the same time that pirates were invited to Port Royal, England launched a series of attacks against Spanish shipping vessels and coastal towns. By sending the newly appointed privateers after Spanish ships and settlements, England had successfully set up a system of defence for Port Royal. Spain was forced to continually defend their property, and did not have the means with which to retake its land.[5]

Spain could not retake the island and, due to pirates, could no longer regularly provide their colonies in the New World with manufactured goods. The progressive irregularity of annual Spanish fleets, combined with an increasing demand by colonies for manufactured goods, stimulated the growth of Port Royal. Merchants and privateers worked together in what is now referred to as "forced trade." Merchants would sponsor trading endeavors with the Spanish, while also sponsoring privateers to attack Spanish ships and rob Spanish coastal towns.[5] While the merchants most certainly had the upper hand, the privateers were an integral part of the operation.

Nuala Zahedieh, a lecturer at the University of Edinburgh, wrote,

"Both opponents and advocates of so-called 'forced trade' declared the town's fortune had the dubious distinction of being founded entirely on the servicing of the privateers' needs and highly lucrative trade in prize commodities."[7] . . . "A report that the 300 men who accompanied Henry Morgan to Portobello in 1668 returned to the town with a prize to spend of at least £60 each (two or three times the usual annual plantation wage) leaves little doubt that they were right".[7]

The forced trade became almost a way of life in Port Royal. Michael Pawson and David Busseret wrote "...one way or the other nearly all the propertied inhabitants of Port Royal seem to have an interest in privateering."[8] Forced trade was rapidly making Port Royal one of the wealthiest communities in the English territories of North America, far surpassing any profit made from the production of sugar cane. Zahedieh wrote, "The Portobello raid [in 1668] alone produced plunder worth £75,000, more than seven times the annual value of the island’s sugar exports, which at Port Royal prices did not exceed £10,000 at this time."[7]

Since the English lacked sufficient troops to prevent either the Spanish or French from seizing it, the Jamaican governors eventually turned to the pirates to defend the city.[9] By the 1660s the city had, for some, become a pirate utopia and had gained a reputation as the "Sodom of the New World", where most residents were pirates, cutthroats, or prostitutes. When Charles Leslie wrote his history of Jamaica, he included a description of the pirates of Port Royal:

Wine and women drained their wealth to such a degree that [...] some of them became reduced to beggary. They have been known to spend 2 or 3,000 pieces of eight in one night; and one gave a strumpet 500 to see her naked. They used to buy a pipe of wine, place it in the street, and oblige everyone that passed to drink.

The taverns of Port Royal were known for their excessive consumption of alcohol such that records even exist of the wild animals of the area partaking in the debauchery. During a passing visit, famous Dutch explorer Jan van Riebeeck is said to have described the scenes:

The parrots of Port Royal gather to drink from the large stocks of ale with just as much alacrity as the drunks that frequent the taverns that serve it.

There is even speculation in pirate folklore that the infamous Blackbeard (Edward Teach) met a howler monkey, while at leisure in a Port Royal alehouse, whom he named Jefferson and formed a strong bond with during the expedition to the island of New Providence.[citation needed] Recent genealogical research indicates that Blackbeard and his family moved to Jamaica where Edward Thatch, Jr. is listed as being a mariner in the Royal Navy aboard HMS Windsor in 1706.[10] Port Royal benefited from this lively, glamorous infamy and grew to be one of the two largest towns and the most economically important port in the English colonies. At the height of its popularity, the city had one drinking house for every 10 residents. In July 1661 alone, 40 new licenses were granted to taverns. During a 20-year period that ended in 1692, nearly 10,000 people lived in Port Royal. In addition to prostitutes and buccaneers, there were four goldsmiths, 44 tavern keepers, and a variety of artisans and merchants who lived in 2,000 buildings crammed into 51 acres (21 ha) of real estate. 213 ships visited the seaport in 1688. The city's wealth was so great that coins were preferred for payment over the more common system of bartering goods for services.

Following Henry Morgan's appointment as lieutenant governor, Port Royal began to change. Pirates were no longer needed to defend the city. The selling of slaves took on greater importance. Upstanding citizens disliked the reputation the city had acquired. In 1687, Jamaica passed anti-piracy laws. Consequently, instead of being a safe haven for pirates, Port Royal became noted as their place of execution. Gallows Point welcomed many to their death, including Charles Vane and Calico Jack, who were hanged in 1720. About five months later, the famous woman pirate Mary Read died in the Jamaican prison in Port Royal. Two years later, 41 pirates met their death in one month.[11]

The Royal Navy

Under British rule the Royal Navy made use of a careening wharf at Port Royal and rented a building on the foreshore to serve as a storehouse. From 1675, a resident Naval Officer was appointed to oversee these facilities;[12] however, development was cut short by the 1692 earthquake. After the earthquake, an attempt was made to establish a naval base at Port Antonio instead, but the climate there proved disagreeable. From 1735, Port Royal once more became the focus of the Admiralty's attention. New wharves and storehouses were built at this time, as well as housing for the officers of the Yard. Over the next thirty years, more facilities were added: cooperages, workshops, sawpits, and accommodation (including a canteen) for the crews of ships being careened there.[13] A Royal Naval Hospital was also established on land a little to the west of the Naval Yard; and by the end of the 18th century a small Victualling Yard had been added to the east (prior to this ships had had to go to Kingston and other settlements to take on supplies).[13]

At the start of the 19th century, a significant amount of rebuilding took place in what was by now a substantial Royal Navy Dockyard serving the fleet in the Caribbean. A sizeable storehouse with a clocktower formed the centrepiece, with a covered way leading from it to the careening wharves. The adjacent Port Admiral's (later Commodore's) House included a watch tower, to counter the threat of privateers. The Yard continued to expand to meet the new requirements of steam-powered vessels: the victualling wharf became a coaling depot in the 1840s, and twenty years later a small engineering complex was built.[13] The Yard continued to expand through to the beginning of the 20th century, but then (with the Admiralty focusing more and more on the situation in Europe) the Navy withdrew from its station in Jamaica and the Dockyard closed in 1905.

Many of the Dockyard buildings (most of which were of timber construction) were subsequently demolished or destroyed (some in the 1907 Kingston earthquake, others by Hurricane Charlie in 1951).[14] A few remain in place, however, including the Naval Hospital complex, some of the steam engineering buildings and a set of officers' houses.[15] There is also a slipway, completed as late as 1904, which (with its accompanying sheds) was designed for housing and launching torpedo boats, stationed there for the Yard's protection. In 2014, it was announced that some of the Historic Naval Hospital buildings would be restored to house a museum as part of a broader Port Royal Heritage Tourism Project.[16]

Earthquake of 1692

The town grew rapidly, reaching a population of around 6,500 people and approximately 2,000 dwellings, by 1692. As land on which to build diminished, it became common practice to either fill in areas of water and build new infrastructure on top of it, or simply build buildings taller. Buildings gradually became heavier as the residents adopted the brick style homes of their native England. Some[who?] urged the population to adopt the low, wooden building style of the previous Spanish inhabitants, but many refused. In the end, all of these separate factors contributed to the impending disaster.

On 7 June 1692, a devastating earthquake hit the city causing most of its northern section to be lost – and with it many of the town's houses and other buildings. Many of the forts were destroyed, as well; Fort Charles survived, but Forts James and Carlisle sank into the sea, Fort Rupert became a large region of water, and great damage was done to an area known as Morgan's Line.[4]

Although the earthquake hit the entire island of Jamaica, the citizens of Port Royal were at a greater risk of death due to the perilous sand, falling buildings, and the tsunami that followed. Though the local authorities tried to remove or sink all of the corpses from the water, they were unsuccessful; some simply got away from them, while others were trapped in places that were inaccessible. Improper housing, a lack of medicine or clean water, and the fact that most of the survivors were homeless led to many people dying of malignant fevers.[17] The earthquake and tsunami killed between 1,000 and 3,000 people combined, nearly half the city's population.[citation needed] Disease ran rampant in the next several months, claiming an estimated 2,000 additional lives.[18]

The historical Jamaica earthquake of 7 June 1692 can be dated closely not only by date, but by time of day as well. This is documented by recovery from the sea floor in the 1960s of a pocket watch stopped at 11:43 a.m., recording the time of the devastating earthquake.[19][20]

The earthquake caused the sand under Port Royal to liquefy and flow out into Kingston Harbour. The water table was generally only two feet down before the impact, and the town was built on a layer of some 65 feet (20 m) of water-saturated sand. This type of area did not provide a solid foundation on which to build an entire town. Unlike the Spanish before them, the English had decided to settle and develop the small area of land, even while acknowledging that the area was nothing but "hot loose sand".[21]

According to Mulcahy, "[Modern] scientists and underwater archaeologists now believe that the earthquake was a powerful one and that much of the damage at Port Royal resulted from a process known as liquefaction."[21] Liquefaction occurs when earthquakes strike ground that is loose, sandy, and water-saturated, increasing the water pressure and causing the particles to separate from one another and form a sludge resembling quicksand. Eyewitness accounts attested to buildings sliding into the water, but it is likely[clarification needed] some simply sank straight down into the now unstable layer.[21]

Underwater archeology, some of which can be seen in the National Geographic Channel show Wicked Pirate City, reveals the foundations of building underwater, showing there was subsidence, as do comparisons of post-earthquake maps and pre-earthquake maps.

Some attempts were made to rebuild the city, starting with the one third that was not submerged, but these met with mixed success and numerous disasters.[citation needed] An initial attempt at rebuilding was again destroyed in 1703 by fire. Subsequent rebuilding was hampered by several hurricanes in the first half of the 18th century, including flooding from the sea in 1722, a further fire in 1750, and a major hurricane in 1774, and soon Kingston eclipsed Port Royal in importance. In 1815, what repairs were being undertaken were destroyed in another major fire, while the whole island was severely affected by an epidemic of cholera in 1850.[clarification needed]

1907 earthquake and recent history

A devastating earthquake on 14 January 1907 liquefied the sand spit, destroying nearly all of the rebuilt city, submerging additional portions, and tilting The Giddy House, an artillery storage room built c. 1880 that is today a minor tourist attraction.[22]

Today, the area is a shadow of its former self with a population of less than 2,000 that has little to no commercial or political importance. The area is frequented by tourists, but is in a state of disrepair. The Jamaican government has recently resolved to further develop the area for its historic and tourist value. This is in part a result of abandonment of plans begun in the early 1960s to develop the town as a cruise ship port and destination.[23] The plans stimulated the archaeological explorations on the site which, in turn, led to the suspension of development solely as a port but now included archaeological and other attractions.[6]

In 1981, the Nautical Archaeology Program at Texas A&M University began a 10-year underwater archaeological investigation of the portion of Port Royal that sank underwater during the 17th century. The program focused on an area that had sunk directly into the sea and suffered very little damage. Due to very low oxygen levels, a large amount of organic material could be recovered. The efforts made by the program have allowed everyday life in the English colonial port city to be reconstructed in great detail.[24]

In 1998, the Port Royal Development Company commissioned architectural firm The Jerde Partnership to create a master plan for the redevelopment of Port Royal, which was completed in 2000.[25] The focus of the plan is a 17th-century-themed attraction that reflects the city's heritage. It has two anchor areas: Old Port Royal and the King's Royal Naval Dockyard. Old Port Royal features a cruise ship pier extending from a reconstructed Chocolata Hole harbour and Fisher's Row, a group of cafes and shops on the waterfront. The King's Royal Naval Dockyard features a combination shipbuilding-museum and underwater aquarium with dioramas for views of the native tropical sealife.[25] The Royal Naval Dockyard also includes the headquarters for the Admiral of the Royal Navy. The redevelopment plan also includes a five-star hotel.[26]

Today, Port Royal is known to post-medieval archaeologists as the "City that Sank".[27] Robert Marx considers it the most important underwater archaeological site in the western hemisphere,[citation needed] yielding 16th–and-17th-century artifacts and many important treasures from indigenous peoples predating its 1518 founding, some from as far away as Guatemala. Several 17th and early 18th century pirate ships sank within Kingston Harbour and are being carefully harvested, under controlled conditions, by various teams of archaeologists. Other "digs" are staked out along various quarters and streets by different teams.[citation needed]

By 2019, a floating pier where a cruise ship could dock had been built; the first ship arrived on 20 January 2020. Tourists from a few ships (after the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have ended) might be beneficial to the town, but "there’s still much work to be done if the town will become the 'world-class heritage, environmental and cultural attraction'" according to a BBC Travel report published in September 2020.[28] Another report that month discussed the well-funded Living Heritage Programme which was seeking "to transform the town into a SMART, safe and secure community with a vibrant local economy, preserved cultural heritage and protected natural environment".[29]

IN POPULAR CULTURE

Film

1934: Port Royal is the one of the settings for the film Captain Blood, starring Errol Flynn.[30]

1942: Port Royal is the main setting for the film The Black Swan, starring Tyrone Power and George Sanders.

1953: Port Royal is the "City Beneath the Sea" in the film of that name.

2003: Port Royal has been featured as a location within Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean film series, though much of the location work for Port Royal was actually done on the island of Saint Vincent, not in Jamaica.[31]

Literature

1987: Tim Powers's historical fantasy novel On Stranger Tides describes the earthquake that nearly destroyed Port Royal in 1692 and several scenes are set in the city.

1989: James Michener's historical novel Caribbean details the history, atmosphere, and geography of Port Royal.

2009: Extensive scenes in Michael Crichton's posthumous novel Pirate Latitudes take place in Port Royal in the mid-1660s.

[labellerose-acheron]

track list – SwynWriMo 2023

Wednesday, November 1 -- Villanelle Poem: [In Crumbling Castle with Ivy Wall]

Thursday, November 2 -- Community Flyer: [Town Hall Community Centre Art Classes]

Friday, November 3 -- Everyone’s a Critic: [Evangeline's Letterboxd Account]

Saturday, November 4 -- Crack!ship AU: [Black is the Colour of My True Love's Hair]

Sunday, November 5 -- Family Ties One-Shot: [Twelve Havenhall]

Monday, November 6 — Daylist: [rage religious monday morning]

Tuesday, November 7 -- Community Togetherness Thread: [I'll Huff and I'll Puff]

Wednesday, November 8 -- 160 Characters or Less: [JustAHotGuy2094]

Thursday, November 9 -- SwynRPVision: [Sparks Fly]

Friday, November 10 --  Love Is Stored In The Garlic: [The Crows Eat First]

Saturday, November 11 -- Short and Sweet One-Shot: [Elinor Aisling DunBroch: Medical Records]

Sunday, November 12 -- Background NPC: [Foundations Forming]

Monday, November 13 -- #OOTD: [Belle's Fashion Intervention]

Tuesday, November 14 -- Neighborly Plotting: [Trading Favours]

Wednesday, November 15 -- NPC Playlist! [i told the stars about you -- lionfish]

Thursday, November 16 -- Character #Inspo: [Kleopatra Schreiber's Character Blueprints]

Friday, November 17 -- Choose Your Own Swyn AU: [Christmas in Swynlake]

Saturday, November 18 -- Which Character Are You?: [get ready for a FIRST date and i'll tell you which of my characters you're going out with]

Sunday, November 19 -- Five Times X, One Time Y: Five times your character did a thing and one time … they didn’t. [In Your Dream]

Monday, November 20 -- Personality Playlist: [are you human?]

Tuesday, November 21 -- Back to the Future Thread: [I Can Hear the Bells]

Wednesday, November 22 — Enter the Metaverse: [Isabela's Computer]

Thursday, November 23 — Instagram Stories: [Simba's Instastory Goodbye]

Friday, November 24 -- Relationship Aesthetic: [Male + Female Friendships]

Saturday, November 25 --  SWYNRP Memes: [textposts from my personal blog’s #about me tag – for swynlake residents]

Sunday, November 26 -- The Final Labor: [The 23rd Annual Swynlake Games!] 

Monday, November 27 --  Fairy Talent! [pinterest boards for characters]

Tuesday, November 28 -- Around the World in 30 Days: [Encanto, Isle de Silvia, Avalor]

Wednesday, November 29 -- Wordy Web-Weaving: [Tom and Missing the Sea]

Thursday, November 30 -- SWYNRP Character Wishlist: [The Muses of the Order of Hesiod]

[tomwambsmilk]

I was three years old when 9/11 happened and I wasn’t exactly following world events at the time so obviously when I was very little I had no awareness of what it was or what had happened. But I was homeschooled and EXTREMELY sheltered until grade 6 (like, I first learned what Google was in the sixth grade in 2008, I had no access to the internet, we didn’t watch the news, the only way I knew anything about the world was through random nonfiction kids library books my parents vetted). I started public school for the first time in Grade 6, and idk why but 9/11 didn’t come up that year. But the next year, on the anniversary of 9/11, one of the other teachers came in to talk to us about it and the scope of the tragedy etc etc I don’t remember too many details. Except. EXCEPT. He never once mentioned what 9/11 actually was. He just assumed everybody obviously knew. He did not mention planes explicitly, I think he only mentioned the world trade centre once, he mostly talked about Scale and Tragedy and everyone around me was nodding and I already got bullied for other things I was sheltered about so I didn’t want to raise my hand and go “Hey what is that. Like, what happened. What is 9/11.” I didn’t even realize 9/11 was a reference to the date, I thought it was a title of some sort?? Like 7/11. Like oh, there used to also be a 9/11 but then something happened to the world trade centre (which I still didn’t know what that was but I imagined it as a really big mall)

I don’t think I ACTUALLY learned what 9/11 was until Osama bin Laden died when I was in the 8th grade and I said I thought it was in poor taste everyone was celebrating this random guy’s death and my friends went “??????? Okay but he did 9/11?????” And I was like okay?? I don’t think closing a mall is a heinous enough crime to celebrate his death but whatever. And that’s when someone finally told me

[thelogicalmauritian]

Electric Cars! Vaccins! Metro! World Trade Centre! Petroleum Industry! Technopark! 🤡 Dilo 🤥 (posted last year, relevant till now) #TheLogicalMauritian #Politics #Water #PoliticalPromises #ElectoralManifesto #BasicHumanRights #Necessities #Dilo #Paani #24/7 #Mauritius