InsaneJournal

The oldest of the five universities of Meminisse, Marrowston was founded on the restored grounds of what had once, in some forgotten time and place, been an abandoned insane asylum. The main building is sprawling in appearance and castle-like in structure, situated in the southern portion of the grounds, with two dormitories and a staff building behind. It is modest in size, keeping just under 200 undergraduate students at any given time, with about 100 commuting graduate students.

[School Information]

Founded about five years after Marrowston, the University of Whitecliff was originally built within a large apartment complex found teetering on the edge of the topmost cliff in the city of Whitecliff Harbor. The school has since acquired a few blocks worth of surrounding real estate and expanded to become the largest of the five universities, with an undergraduate enrollment of approximately 1000 students. Whitecliff University, however, is also rumored to be, figuratively at least, the darkest of the schools, with a history of corruption amongst its staff and a strong, sometimes less than friendly, rivalry with Marrowston.

Brightpond is the second largest of the universities. Taking over the grounds of an old college, the school boasts an enrollment of almost 600 undergraduates each year. The campus is located in the northeastern farmlands of Meminisse and is named for the lumious pond found at its center, which keeps the university grounds well-lit at all times of day and night. As a result, Brightpond is arguably the safest of the five schools.

Located on the western shore, Lightport is the smallest of the universities. The main building is a large plantation-style house, though the most recognizable structure is the lighthouse where the president, deans and their families reside. As a whole, the campus is quaint and comfortable, a good choice for students looking for a very one-on-one atmosphere or an attractive, countryside home. The student body has never been known to exceed 200 in total and is much more typically to be found between 100 and 150 bodies.

Once an island resort, Fallcastle is found on a decently sized landmass just off of the northern shore. With a student body comparable to that of Marrowston, it is known for being a bit of a party school, though that has not adversely affected its academic record. It is the only university to boast its own college town, many of its inhabitants being former students. Fallcastle Island is also a vacation hotspot for southerners who don't mind a bit of travel, as it is the only settled area that never sees snow.

Found in one of the more spread-out residential areas of Thornwell, the deCarte House is a boarding house of sorts run by Miss Vera deCarte. The house is home to about a dozen otherwise homeless children at any given time, approximately half of whom are students at Marrowston. Miss deCarte lives there as well, caring for her boarders and teaching them how to take care of themselves, and part of an old greenhouse in the backyard has been remodeled into a home for her former tenant and current handyman, Alphie. The back half of the greenhouse is still set up for plants but is rented for use by one of the current tenants (Caleb).

Run by: Miss deCarte, Alphie, a little, grey cat named Chloe
Home to: Alexei Orlov, Caleb, Freddy

If you're looking for wrecked machinery, restored machinery, scrap or just about anything you might need to build or fix just about anything, Pascal's would be an excellent place to start. Run by none other than Pascal himself, the yard contains the trash left on Earth that, in Meminisse, could be any man's treasure. While everything found there is technically free to whoever needs it, Thornwell's resident treasure hunter is always grateful for just about whatever you might have to trade.

Run by: Pascal, a harlequin Great Dane named Moose, a Norfolk Terrier mix named Squirrel
Home to: Sonny Dunne

A classic 70's diner, painted and polished in black, white, red and chrome, complete with hand-painted pinstriping on the signs and booths, Johnny Red's is just about the only place in Thornwell that stays open 24/7. It's exactly the sort of place one would expect from looking at it, too, all greasy, comfort food and loud, juke box hits blaring at all hours. If you get caught out after dark on the eastern edge of town, just head for the Diner's neon lights and Johnny will keep you safe until morning.

Run by: Johnny Red

Owned by Pascal and tended by whoever feels the need to pay off a debt or needs a little extra credit, the thrift shop on Main Street is where you'll find any of Pascal's treasures that are too nice to toss into the junkyard. If you're looking for antiques, vintage pieces, anything that someone else in town no longer needs, the thrift shop is where you want to go.

Run by: Pascal

The gallery is a simple storefront that was, at some point, used to host an art show back on Earth. Crossed into Meminisse, it maintained its hangers, easels, stands and even a few forgotten paintings. Since then, it's found a new life in that same vein. Artists around Thornwell, in surrounding towns and attending Marrowston are invited to put up pieces for regular viewing in the front of the gallery or request a date for a full show of their work in the back.

Known simply as Marta's, due to its being run by - you guessed it - Marta, this old storefront has found itself a new use as a combination pool hall and arcade. After a bit of scrounging with the help of the treasure hunting Pascal, Marta collected three patched up pool tables, three mix-and-match sets of billiard balls, a few racks full of assorted pool cues, and a dozen classic arcade games dated no more recently than the late 80's. Then she built in a bar and mini-kitchen, offering sandwiches, chips and nachos and drinks, alcoholic and non.

Run by: Marta, a Doberman Pinscher named Alice

Found near the center of town, Heartland Cinema is mostly good for classic and bad-B films but every so often they get something new, either a spare copy of a blockbuster that was shown in half a dozen auditoriums when it first came to theater or, more likely, one of those recenty shown films that was out of theater almost as soon as it was in. The theater is primarily run by a woman named Kim Holycross but she'll gladly teach anyone who'd like to learn how to run reels for private showings.

Run by: Kim Holycross

Those with a love for the performing arts quickly develop a familiarity with Grimm's. Kept up by good, old Benny Eiler, the theatre isn't the most difficult of locations to book. Let the old man know that you'd like to put together a performance and he'll do everything for you. He'll lock the place down while you're preparing for a play, he'll clean extra space in the green rooms if you need it, he'll sell the tickets and take the tickets and even do all of your advertising around town. Benny is a serious lover of the arts and anyone who shows a serious interest in them is sure to make a quick friend.

Run by: Benny Eiler
Home to: Gabriel Bennet

Not in Thornwell but in the nearby town of Pinespring, the general store is the nearest place a student can find just about anything they might want or need that isn't a necessity provided by the university. Music, movies, non-academic reading, snack foods, hair dye, lighters, locally grown produce and homemade items from around the area - if you need it, the store has got it.

This is the main postal hub for the Sweetwild area. Marrowston and most of the surrounding towns have delivery systems that will carry mail to and from the Thornwell office on a regular, if not daily, basis. Where can you send your post? Well, anywhere in Meminisse is pretty much a given but, let's face it, not everyone wanted to be permanently separated from every last person in their former lives. Nini Stone, one of Thornwell's local Crossers, moves all mail from Meminisse to Earth each morning and brings back all return mail each evening, six days a week.

Don't believe the faded and peeling paint on the outside. A surplus store resides behind the door. Run by a survivalist by the name of Tom, the store not only offers a wide selection of utility clothing, survival supplies, camping equipment, first aid, and assorted weapons but also has a firing range, complete with do-it-yourself soundproofing, set up in a back room. Not only that, but there's always Tom, a professional adventurer and a bit of a nutcase, who can probably save a person from pretty much everything.

Run by: Tom

Acting as both library and bookstore, the Victorian is exactly what one might expect of a building that has always been, even before becoming a part of Meminisse, filled to the brim with books. To those comforted by the soft must and dust of worn covers and fading pages, it is a haven, providing three stories of shelves and stacks, forming the various nooks and crannies that are so naturally designed to cradle the humble bookworm. In fact, in the very back corner of the very top floor, just such a nest acts as a home to the local librarian.

Run by: Matthew Aft

Just off Sweet River, on the west end of Thornwell, there's a large pond full of the many species of fish that inhabit the river area, such as bass, trout and catfish. It's also a favorite swimming and fishing hole amongst the locals who don't want to fight the river's current or search for calm pools. That being said, it's still rarely terribly busy except on exceptionally hot days.

If you're looking for that daytime, harbor city experience, the Pier is the place to be. Ringing the bottom level is the market, with fresh fish, produce, baked goods and homemade odds and ends. Beyond that, the core holds a few little shops but mostly this is where the fun happens. Restaurant by day, three-level club by night, the Whitecliff Pier Ballroom isn't the only destination for a rare and relatively safe taste of the Meminisse nightlife but it certainly is the epitome of what makes Whitecliff the destination for those in search of urban comforts.

Perched on the edge of the city's namesake and within easy walking distance of its university, the Cliffside Apartments are home to a great deal of the university's staff, most of its graduate student body, and a large number of newcomers to Meminisse who enter their new world through the city of Whitecliff Harbor. The large complex makes up its own community but also welcomes outsiders to join them in enjoying amenities, such as their clubhouse and pool, as well as community events, like their famous Cliffside Block Parties.

While there are clinics and medical facilities scattered all over, the largest and most up-to-date center for medical treatment on the southern end of the known Meminisse land mass is Whitecliff Hospital. Centered on a large, lush campus at the base of the main cliffs, this is where most physicians and psychiatric personnel send anyone in need of intensive, specialized or long-term medical care. The hospital is equipped to handle most procedures and, while it certainly doesn't compete with hospitals back on Earth, it really is the best bet for being treated without any serious complications.

Just a couple blocks away from the harbor, the mall is about the only place in Meminisse where you can go to stay up with modern times. The facility employees a team of Crossers who purchase overstock from popular stores on Earth and bring it back to sell in Whitecliff. For those who just can't give up certain creature comforts and have to have their designer fashions, name brands, or semi-popular bands, this is the place to go.

[A map will be made available at a later date.]

Not exactly the premiere nightclub of Whitecliff but definitely a favorite destination, Club Zombi is probably one of the best and safest places that college kids in search of a good time could go. Once an abandoned factory, the building has lost none of its industrial charm and Seth likes it that way. As the club's owner, he makes his living quarters in what was once the offices, with a great wall of windows in his living room that overlooks his domain. For the public, the ground level boasts a bar on either side, a restaurant in the front, a massive dance floor, a variety of dance platforms and a DJ booth against the back wall, while following the stairs up takes you to the final open bar and lets you look down over the dancing crowd. The basement, meanwhile, is only open to the club's Celebrities and special guests.

Run by: Seth

Not too far off the main strip, not quite yet into the part of town that provides for a much seedier sort of clientele, one might find one's self face-to-face with the front of Stars. As far as strip clubs go, this one isn't exactly tops but, to be fair, it is at least a little bit more than just "decent." The girls are treated rather well, compared to many other places, and it would do for any and all new patrons to remember that when they step inside, unless they have a serious desire to find themselves right back out on their asses.

Employees: Heather (a.k.a. Bunny), Dee (a.k.a. Natalia)

Taking over an abandoned bank, Vault Records is three stories, two for music and instruments and the top floor for storage. You're not going to find anything hot and new or probably even all that popular at the Vault but you can definitely find some interesting stuff. They've got every format from vinyl to CD, every album you ever forgot came out, and every band you never knew existed. Sample tracks in listening booths or ask the rather drugged-looking fellow in the corner what he'd recommend for you today. Hours are 8am-11pm, seven days a week, open on all holidays except 4/20.

When they say "rent" at Rent-A-Flick!, they really mean "take and keep until you get tired of it or remember to finally bring it back. After all, it's not like they're ever going to run out of movies that no one's ever heard of, especially in a world where even a film that came out twenty years ago is going to be new to somebody. Set-up just across the street from the Vault, Rent-A-Flick! is proud to say that they're Whitecliff's #1 destination for take-home film and rentable pornography. They've even got two private viewing booths in the restricted room and both of them are usually functional!

Meminisse's one and only amusement park, Hollycrest is the heart and soul of the town it's named after. A bit rickety and more than just a little creepy in some corners, it's actually not all that different from any theme park one might have been to on Earth. It has all of the generic rides and attractions, along with a waterpark and a handful of old rollercoasters that the good people of Hollycrest have fixed up and got running again. About the only thing the place is missing are a few people running around in musty, moth-eaten, old mascot suits to creep out all the little girls and boys.

Just across town from the park is the hotel, providing accomodations for both park patrons and those who'd like easy access to Whitecliff Harbor without having to stay in the middle of the city's hustle and bustle. One may want to consider weighing the convenience against the creepy if planning on staying alone but, in groups, it's usually just as good a place as anywhere else. Shuttles run to both the park and the nearest Whitecliff metro station every hour, on the hour.

Player submissions for locations within Meminisse are always welcome. Please contact the mod with any ideas.