DGFA

Malafida

Country and location

Malafida is a country which is home to 50 million fictional inhabitants, 38 million of them have been registered; they could afford the registration fee. The country is located in the Malafidian Region in the west of the continent bearing the Malafidian name Cairia, on the planet PanGeo. Malafida's capital is La Piovra di Santina (the city of La Piovra in Santina state).

Northeast-Malafida (Cantonorte and Pleiade states) and Central Malafida (Raisa, Corrada and Santina states) on a small part of the map of the Cairia continent. The distance between the cities Rallentare and La Piovra is approx. 90 km (55 miles).

Malafida is a democratic federation, which means that each citizen has the same chance to be called for a public-political task, especially when in possession of a reasonable amount of money to contribute to the system. The country's informal economy is fragmented and influenced by many godfathers operating on an unknown number of levels. Even so, or thanks to this fact, the industrial developments and national prosperity is quite reasonable compared to neighbouring countries. For those who know their way there might even be limitless wealth, and influence even reaching beyond the borders. So far, there seems to be few differences with many countries on Earth.

Malafidians are a people of clans, and a number of clans have a seagoing tradition going back to ancient times. Malafidian waters and seas from the north to the south have beautiful names: Mare Sagoma (Silhouette Sea), Baia Nostra, Baia Triangolo, Mare a Prima Vista (First Sea, Sea of First Sight), Baia Alzare il Gomito (Sea of Looking Too Deep Into The Glass) and the Mare di Lucherini.
The westernmost coasts of Malafida (not on the map) are coasts of the great ocean around the whole Cairian continent. In the Malafidian language this ocean is called Oceana Panorama (the ocean all around us).
Countries sharing borders with Malafida are the Democratic Union of United Element States (D.U.V.E.L) in the north, Nag'Ma Hyi and Marianne across the mountains in the east and Ringoord in the south.

From many former independent clans, states, cities and other areas and powers in the Malafidian region, gradually grew 11 greater states, which in 1820 PanGeo Year formed the modern Malafidian nation under the great leadership of State of Santina's First Godfather, Paolo Vercotti. Almost a hundred years later, Malafida now has 10 states (two were merged).
Names are always nice to see because they give an impression of the country. All cities with over 50.000 inhabitants are included in the following table, as are some smaller cities playing an important role within their region.

The planet on which the continent Cairia is located, lacks iron ore and other metals that can be mined easily. For that reason, transport in Malafida uses wind power and wooden materials extensively. The available metal is used carefully. Of course, much traffic is using seagoing sailing ships. 

An aeronave a slitta (monorail-guided airship) is  on its way from the city of Gudelargara, not far from the great ocean port of Bella Figura, to the high Montagne Alpenine mountains and on to Marianne in the southeast, at the continent's inner sea

But airships are also popular. Even monorail-guided airships are developed, to increase speeds along busy land routes. On land there has always been a lot of sailing in this country: by road in sailing cars and on rails by sailing train. The railway system mainly consists of funicolare a vela (hanging-cable sailways) and new monario a slitta (monorail-guided airshipways) for hilly and mountainous terrain, and binario a vela (duorail-sailway) on flat terrain. Most duorail-sailways are in the vast Pleiade plain in the north, most hanging-cable and monorail-guided sailways are elsewhere in the country.
There are public trains and ships for which you buy a ticket to travel, as we on Earth do. But the railways in Malafida are also used by private vehicles. Both public and private vehicles have to pay a toll to the owner of the line (sometimes to the owner of the right-of-way too if that is someone else), according to the distance travelled. Some railway companies have their own trains, making them transport company as well. The trains of these companies are the most luxurious in Malafida. Toll and right-of-way fares are included in the travel tickets' prices on these trains, for customer convenience.

Assistance is needed to move vehicles from one hang-cable railway to another or from one monorail-guided railway to another at interchange points. Of course, this too is only done for a fee. At most scambii (interchange points) there are thriving cities or villages making a living of change, repair and maintenance services (and services to travelers who want some rest or recreation on their long jouneys).

In the centre of the country there is a busy city-to-city trunk line. Here you can find the latest Malafidian land transport technology, called Binario a Machina Stufa di Legna (duorail-timberstove-machineway), in short Binario a Machina, better known as the Ligna Alta Velocita (high-speed line). This line was needed to meet the increasing demand on the routes between Asip, La Piovra and Rallentare, each cities with over a million inhabitants. The mechanized trains can reach a top speed of almost 100 km per hour (approx. 60 mph) and they have a timetable which is reliable by Malafidian standards. Most trains are about three quarters of an hour late. Some entrepreneurs on this fast line only possess a locomotive, selling hauling services to any vehicle wanting to travel under their mechanized power. The resulting great variety of trains makes the Ligna Alta Velocita one of the most fascinating train spotters' paradises in the galaxy.

Great railway companies and ferries

Wouldn't you like to make a journey of weeks yourself, in your own sailing vehicle, floating through the beautiful landscape on a fair wind, pausing in colourful villages and cities along the hanging-cable routes?
"Favorevole!" (may the wind be with you) is in Malafida a greeting much used as a best wish to good friends and relatives.

Malafida's history is of course part of the history of the continent Cairia as a whole. On Cairia, however, there is no clear succession of Ancient Times - Middle Ages - Modern Era as we know in Europe on Earth. Great events on Cairia are tied to the rise and fall of a number of Great Empires, flourishing especially around the Mediterrane, the inner sea that is almost surrounded by the continent. In these regions, important territory to conquer and great cities to burn down were closer at hand than along the continent's long outer coast. Malafidian region is on the outer coast, so this region did not play a big role in the great events of the past. Instead, the Malafidians tried to make the best of all times, offering all kinds of services and get rich wherever they could. This caused at least some great Cairian developments to be influenced by the Malafidian way of life. Today, everyone in the financial business on Cairia can experience this. Over the centuries, the Malafidian Lari currency achieved the position of leading currency on the whole continent. The Lari is not  a standard currency itself, but the value of most other currencies is measured in Laris.

Fictional for the people on Cairia, but convenient for us here on Earth, is the Common Era With Earth which is used for all countries of the planet PanGeo described on these pages. For the people themselves it is just PanGeo Year (PY). The Year 0 PY equals Year 0 on Earth. On the planet PanGeo we are in the 1900 - 1910 period, with the same technology level as on Earth in those days.

© Dutch Geo Fiction Association, 1997 - 2002. Rail guided airship picture from 'Durdane', Jack Vance. Bank note picture from the Dutch Central Bank, except the sunglasses and a few zeroes.