Mini Worlds Review: Roo Island by ziesolles |  |
ROO ISLAND - Neopia is an amazing place, with shops to make purchases in, games
in which to earn Neopoints, and great guilds to join. Outside the land of Neopia
Central though, there is a whole world in which to explore, more than that as
a matter of fact. There happens to be nine worlds, ten including Neopia Central,
and eleven if you include the forgotten world of Maraqua, in which to explore,
and play the games and visit the places that are on offer.
Recently though, there has been an attachment to these attractions, two new
attractions actually, other than the mountain peaks of Terror Mountain or the
scorching sun of the Lost Desert. I am talking about the two mini-worlds, that
of Roo Island, and the newly plotted-on-the-map-place of Kiko Lake.
Both have been known for a while yet, and both have arrived in different ways.
Kiko Lake was probably known for longer, but only until recently was it ever
made accessible to Neopians like us. Roo Island though, wasn't known for as
long, but it was the first of the two mini-worlds to be put on the map.
Well, you may have guessed it already, that this article is somewhat to do
with the Mini-Worlds, and yes, it is. I will now present to you a review on
the two mini-worlds that we have so far, which are Roo Island, and Kiko Lake.
This will be a two-part review, starting this week with Roo Island, and in the
coming weeks, Kiko Lake will be the center of attention.
Let us start now, with the whereabouts of our first subject, the land populated
by about 261,250 odd Blumaroos. Roo Island is located of the coast of Neopia
Central, about 30 miles actually, and transport is rather easy, with two ferries
daily, going from the port of Neopia Central to Roo Island, with the fee of
travel at 30 NP.
The area of the island itself is about 5,000 sq. miles, the diameter being
50 miles and about 100 miles from the northern part of the island to the south.
Roo Island's weather is rather nice, being warm all year round with light
showers almost daily, giving the island a very fresh look. There are small woods
scattered around the island, particularly at the southern tip and the northern
peninsula. A few hills and a number of meadows make up the land formation.
The island also happens to have one of the largest economies in Neopia, with
an annual haul of 1.8 billion Neopoints. There are many views as to how this
large amount can be received yearly. One of the clear standouts though are the
income through the very popular dice game, Dice-A-Roo.
In Roo Island itself there are about five different towns, three towns actually,
with the rest being villages. The largest of these towns is Roo City, which
is home of the royal Roo palace. The other two towns are west and Southeast
of Roo City, and a well-kept road, which, at times, can be swarming with trade
caravans, connects all of them.
The one that sits and overlooks Roo Island from the palace is King Roo, and
that leads us to the government style of Roo Island, which is a monarchy and
it is one of the most successful of it's kind.
The population of Roo Island, which was mentioned briefly before, is mainly
that of Blumaroos. 95% of the 275,000 citizens that live on Roo Island are Blumaroos,
with the remaining 5% being other creatures. The young Blumaroos can always
be seen playing with their friends in the meadows and fields, while the older
Blumaroo mainly concentrates on creating fine arts and crafts. These are the
sold to the mainland of Neopia, and can be found in certain shops today.
There are a number of places that can be visited by tourists throughout the
year, one of which is Grandma Roo's Café. It is situated in the northern village
of Blumaria and Grandma Roo has been running this cozy little café for over
30 years now, and it is still going very well.
The café serves scrumptious scones and warm tea to those that pass by, and
she will also make any pancake to order, you just need to tell her what type
of toppings you'd like!
The Tournament Hall though is probably the biggest attraction of all in Roo
Island, as this houses Neopia's biggest Dice-A-Roo tournament. Neopians from
all over flock here by the thousands each and every year to play, and win one
of the many fantastic prizes on offer, all of which are supplied by King Roo.
A while ago it used to be used for boring town meetings, but as the game evolved
a new home was needed, and King Roo, wise as he was, supplied it.
The Tournament Hall is a large marble building, and it is situated near to
the royal palace in Roo City. Once you are in Roo City though it can be easily
found, as firstly, there are signs everywhere leading you to it, and secondly,
it is quite likely that you will meet someone who is also heading over there.
Another place of great interest would be the Spring Shop, and it was opened
because, even though Blumaroos posses a natural spring in their tail, it sometimes
just isn't enough.
It is situated again, in the northern Roo Island village of Blumaria, and
business is booming. They sell almost everything that can aid you in making
you bounce even higher, from plain extra springs, to pogo sticks, trampolines
and much more.
Sometimes, if you are lucky, a job may be up for grabs, as this shop regularly
needs new staff as it expands almost every year. So why not pop in and say hello
to the friendly Blumaroo staff and see if they need a hand? You never know…
There are also a few other small activities that you can do to spend your
time on Roo Island. One of them is to take the whole family with you and have
a picnic, either on the shoreline or in one the lovely fresh green forests of
Roo Island.
The water is apparently very good too, so perhaps a swim would satisfy you?
You could even try your hand at wave riding, as I have a few Blumaroo friends
myself who say that is it every fun indeed. Boards can be purchased from certain
shops around Neopia, but you can also build your own.
And then, that's about it! I hope you do one day take the ferry and enjoy
a day at Roo Island, as it is truly a wonderful place to visit, and relax. I
myself visit a lot, so perhaps one day we'll meet? You never know.
In the next Issue of The Neopian Times though, or in two Issues perhaps,
the second part of the Mini Worlds Review will be up for reading, and we will
look at the newly found land of Kiko Lake. So until then, have a great time,
and happy Neopetting!
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