10-04-2010, 07:49 PM
Map of Hogsmeade+
![]() Click for Larger Version The village is laid out in a hilter-skilter fashion due to the quickly increasing population of the town. The main street, High Street, is filled with busy shops offering all sorts of trinkets and goodies to whomever may have need of them. Most of the merchants and their families live in these establishments- whether they be in an apartment above the shop or a room in the back. Made of stone, the buildings here are generally nice and neat looking, though a few have had hasty additions built. The additions can be rather frightening, as the only way that they are able to stay together is because they are held there by magic. The surrounding streets to the north-east are filled with towering houses belonging to the wealthy, complete with delicate lattice-work and large ornate gardens. This area is often referred to as Wellingtonshire. Surrounding Wellingtonshire to the north and south west of High Street is a division of houses that are decent in appearance, though smaller. There are many of these, as the yards are not as spacious. The farther the street is from High Street, the more cramped the spaces between houses become. Right along the edge of this district are a few apartments, though they are much shabbier and haphazard looking. This area is the largest housing block in Hogsmeade, as it contains the middle-class and lower middle-class families. It is commonly referred to as Bartonburg. North Bartonburg is considered to be a nicer, more upscale area than South Bartonburg. Along the outskirts of Hogsmeade to the far west is the lake that stretches for a long while- it feathers out along the outskirts of the grounds of Hogwarts. A Mer Village is contained in the watery depths as well as other unknown amphibious creatures. There are a few poorly built houses set along the banks of the large body of water at the outskirts of Hogsmeade, owned by wizarding families that are not able to afford to live somewhere where their homes are not constantly being flooded and harassed by the creatures of the lake. On the far east side of Hogsmeade, the Forbidden Forest wraps itself around the village's edge. A large number of apartments and huts have been built here by the poor, who must always leave a fire lit to keep the dangers of the forest out. These areas, often considered as the ghetto, can be considered dangerous not only for the inhabitants of the surrounding natures, but also because of the sort of people who call the place home. The houses that are large often have many families crammed into them despite the lack of safety of the establishments- as the magic has been so poorly done that it has begun to wear off. Any attempts at fixing these up have been futile. Tiny one or two-room huts are also widely used by the poor, though these are in no better condition than the larger houses. It is referred to as the Slums, as no one ever bothered to give it a proper name. Dirty children run around barefoot at all hours of the night, death and disease are common, as are prostitutes, hagglers, and thieves. Also located in the city is Hogsmeade Station, which is fairly quite throughout the year, only to be filled to the brim when Hogsmeade's term is either beginning or ending. |