the heartland [Lore] Cloudsdale

[Bellosh]

Cloudsdale - The Great Cloud City

 

 

To describe Cloudsdale as the center of the pegasi way of life would not be enough to relay its importance to Equestria. Perpetually hovering over the Great Nimbusgait Lakes, this city of clouds bears the burden of providing towns all throughout the heart of the land with rainwater and snowfall. For plainly obvious reasons, Cloudsdale is inhabited almost exclusively by pegasi, and thus the city also stands as a testament to the achievements and contributions of that winged species of pony.

 

Cloudsdale itself is ridiculously easy to find for anypony without a map; it’s the airborne place with numerous mile-high waterfalls running down from the heavens. The whole city is built on a foundation of clouds, which is sturdy enough to support a large number of airworthy buildings built in a manner imitating those made by pegasi back in the Pre-Classical Era. The secret behind these structures is that they’re made to possess as little mass as possible to prevent falling through the clouds--from marble columns substituting for solid outside walls whenever possible to vast indoor chambers stretching unobstructed all the way to the ceiling. Incidentally, the design necessities for Cloudsdale architecture make them very easy for pegasi, and other winged inhabitants like griffons, to fly through.

 

As long as there has been a Cloudsdale, there has been a Royal Weather Factory situated on the outskirts. Anypony can figure out where it is thanks to the constant claps of thunder coming from the hovering storm clouds above. Here at the Weather Factory, water harvested from the Great Nimbusgait Lakes below is utilized for mass-producing rain, snow, and rainbows for use by other weather teams. Most of Cloudsdale’s population finds employment in the factory, and the loyalty and devotion of its workers ensures that other pegasi charged with maintaining weather can do their jobs efficiently and without delay.

 

Befitting a cloud city, Cloudsdale’s local government funds a number of local educational institutions dedicated to teaching pegasi on how to use their abilities. Many parents from all over Equestria are encouraged, but not required, to ship their children off to the Cloudsdale Flight School to learn how to fly and know the basics of creating weather. Youngsters relishing the art of high-performance flying also have the option of enrolling in the seasonal Junior Speedsters Flight Camp. Aspiring flyers flock each summer to learn advanced aerial maneuvers and acrobatics, and successful graduates of this program frequently go on to successful careers in sports, the Royal Equestrian Army, or maybe even the Wonderbolts if they’re made of the right stuff. As for young mares and stallions, studying at the Aerologic College of Cloudsdale can grant them opportunities to earn more challenging and rewarding jobs in weather-related fields than the typical pegasus.

 

Pegasi may be stereotyped unfairly as a competitive lot, but the majestic Cloudsdale Coliseum frankly does little to disprove such notions. Right in the heart of the city, the Coliseum plays host to the pegasi’s most prestigious competitions and public events. From the comfort of cloud booths, winged spectators from Cloudsdale and elsewhere can look down upon the bottomless stage and watch airborne chariot races, concerts, Wonderbolt air shows, the Best Young Fliers Competition, and anything else that can take place in the crystal blue skies. The Best Young Fliers Competition is of particular importance to the pegasus species; young mares and stallions will find themselves turned into instant celebrities should their amazing flying talents bring them to victory.

 

Ever since its bid a few years back to host the Equestria Games ended in agonizing defeat, Cloudsdale has made significant strides in making their city more accessible to earth ponies and unicorns. Limited success has been achieved in this goal so far, although all current methods to help others access the city are either cumbersome or require highly-powerful unicorn magic. There is some hope that new types of cloud could comfortably support the weight of non-pegasi, but it’ll be at least a decade before that technology is perfected and safe for general use.....

~Hitchhiker's Guide to Equestria