Market Ward

The Market Ward is where most of Port Nyanzaru’s regular shops are located and where most of its tradesfolk, merchants, and other middle-class residents live and work. Red Bazaar No one knows how the Red Bazaar got its name. One story is that the label comes from the huge slabs of dinosaur meat sold here and the resulting buckets of blood that stain the rain-washed gutters, and that’s probably as good an explanation as any. The residents of Port Nyanzaru shop for their daily needs at the Red Bazaar. Unlike the Grand Souk, which deals heavily in durable goods and luxury items, the Red Bazaar deals in everyday needs: locally produced meat, vegetables, tropical fruit, tej, light tropical clothing, insect repellent, rain catchers, and other household goods. The buyers and sellers in the Red Bazaar are predominantly locals. Inns. Two noteworthy inns are located near the Red Bazaar. The Thundering Lizard caters to a raucous clientele. Kaya’s House of Repose is much quieter, but more expensive. Wilderness guides are known to frequent both establishments, looking for work. Fish Market Seafood is a staple in Port Nyanzaru, both because catching fish is easier and safer than hunting dinosaurs, and tender fish tastes better than tough reptile. The fish market is a great place to buy the day’s meals. Prices are higher in the morning, when quality and selection are also better. Grand Coliseum This stone arena is the site of gladiatorial games (usually nonlethal, but accidents happen), bloody animal combats, and spectacular circuses. The best gladiators become celebrities and earn fortunes. Statues of the arena’s greatest champions line the tops of the Grand Coliseum’s walls, including one of the city’s current merchant princes. (Ekene-Afa gained fame and fortune as a gladiator before retiring from the arena to become a trader and politician.) Events are held on most afternoons; only special shows are held after sundown, as the coliseum depends on natural light. During the week, the bill features qualifying matches, consolation bouts, and other small events. Major events, championships, and special extravaganzas are staged on holidays. Hall of Gold This magnificent structure is a temple to Waukeen, but residents call it the Hall of Gold for its shining, golden roof and for Waukeen’s focus on trade and wealth. Mount Sibasa is the highest point in the city, and when the sun is shining, light glinting off the temple roof can be seen for miles out at sea. Some city residents swear that the roof is sheathed in pure burnished gold, but it’s only paint. A wide stone bridge connects Mount Sibasa to the Grand Coliseum on Yklwazi Hill. The chief priest of Waukeen in Port Nyanzaru is Sibonseni, Mother of Prosperity. She is one of the city’s most influential residents after the merchant princes, and she enjoys tremendous support from every layer of society for the temple’s charitable work and for its support of civic improvements. In fact, the temple is also one of the city’s richest banks. When Mother Sibonseni travels through the streets, she rides in an elegant sedan chair accompanied by drummers, singers, dancers, and temple aides who distribute fistfuls of copper coins to the poor. Needless to say, this causes traffic jams, but the people of the city love her. Public Bathhouse Port Nyanzaru is a very clean city thanks to the cleansing rain, and its residents are also scrupulous about hygiene. Most would be repulsed by the thought of a day without a bath. Dozens of small bathhouses across the city operate like private clubs, but the public bathhouse is open to everyone and is run by the priesthood of Sune. It’s both egalitarian and elegant: wealthy merchants and dock laborers rub elbows in the tiled baths and marble-floored changing rooms. There is no charge, but bathers are requested to leave a donation to the temple of Sune befitting their station in life. Because Chultans are justifiably proud of this facility, even the poorest try to leave at least a copper piece in the giant clamshell by the entrance. Many independent masseurs and masseuses are on hand to massage weary muscles. Dye Works Along with cleanliness, Chultans love colorful clothing. Textile weaving is not one of Chult’s native industries, because the jungle isn’t suited for growing cotton or raising sheep. However, the jungle and the sea provide everything necessary to concoct vibrant dyes in a rainbow of colors. Merchants import light, plain fabrics, which are dyed in vibrant colors and patterns at the dye works before being sold locally or exported back to the regions where the cloth originated. Local tailors craft the fabric into the long shirts, knee-length pants, sarongs, and kilts favored in Port Nyanzaru. The cliff below the dye works and the sea around it are perpetually stained bright orange, blue, red, green, and yellow, depending on what colors are being dumped from the vats that day. People employed at the dye works are easily recognized on the street because their hands and feet are likewise brightly stained.

Type

Ward

Characters in Location