Altale has a reputation of being the Country of Prosperity, not only because it doesn’t encounter wars and conflicts very often, but also because it does its best to provide everyone a decent quality of life.
How money is used in Altale
The currency used in Altale is called Altris. If compared with real life, 1 Altri equals 0.50$ CAD. The typical salary of the average person in Altale is around 12000 Altris per year. Since Altale functions with an economic system that combines the best of capitalism and socialism, necessities are very cheap while luxuries are extremely expensive. Those who can afford luxuries are a minority who has to pay more taxes than the average person.
One of the most important things to keep in mind in Altale is that each household receives a package that includes enough food for a week for the low price of 100 Altris. If the family wants something that isn’t included in the package, they can buy it on the market themselves, although things tend to be more expensive that way. Most necessities, such as food, clothes and some technologies (laptops, which costs around 200 Altris) are extremely cheap so that everyone in Altale can live decently well.
Other types of technologies that aren’t considered essential tend to be more expensive, such as certain types of bracelets & drawing tablets (1000+ Altris) in most cities not named Myosotis.
In terms of housing, apartments (around 5000 Altris per year) tend to be very easy to find, very common and cheap due to how people prefer to be independent as soon as possible. Condos are a bit more expensive (around 7500 Altris per year), as they’re considered luxuries in some people’s eyes. Houses & mansions are the most expensive type of housing, some of them going toward the hundred thousands of Altris. This is because most families in Altale are able to live in an apartment adequately.
Personal ways of transportations, such as cars and helicopters, are considered to be a luxury due to there being a lot of different ways of transportation that are being privileged, such as walking, common transports & teleportation.
Transportations
Altalians are known to be very healthy. The most common transportations are teleportation, floating trains, and walking. Most people prefer to walk to their destination unless it's too far from where they live. When it's the case, they either teleport to the location or use the train. Many people practice sports in Altale, especially in Marigold. If they can't do sports, they will at least walk to work or use a bike. They don't use teleportation unless it's urgent.
People's stances on the existence of gods
Gods used to be praised and revered back in the days of magic, but now not many people believe in their mere existence due to gods rarely showing themselves in Altale. They do admire their stories, but not to the point of thinking about them daily. Gods are also easily forgotten due to them not being involved in Altale’s political matters anymore, meaning mortals are completely independent from the gods.
Some people, though, would do anything to prove the existence of gods and tend to be extreme about it. Pannanians are the most notable examples, as they would try to convert anyone who comes close to their village. Even if Panna is isolated from the rest of Altale, everyone else is able to know about it because of drones that monitor Altale. Despite hating technology with a passion, Pannanians take advantage of this to tell people about their lord and savior Virgo.
Citizenship
Altale always accepts immigrants to its territory. It usually doesn't take much to be accepted in Altale. An immigrant usually has their virtual profile transferred from the country they were from if said country is on Gaiatine to Altale. Said immigrant also has to do a simple test to see if they won't be a danger to anyone.
When criminals want to get in Altale, they have to do the same procedures as the others, but they are transferred to Digitalis to readapt before being allowed in the metropolises.
If the person has been accepted as an Altalian, they receive a bracelet as a gift for officially being in the country.
Education
The Country of Prosperity has an education system that may seem particular to some, but it is considered very efficient for those who know what they want to do at a young age. Both public and private schools function with this.
A normal course starts at the age of 4 at the kindergarten. Then, from age 6 to 12, most kids are in primary school. Then, students from age 12 to 18 go to secondary school. After the age of 18, people are able to go to work directly, but some decide to continue their studies. If that’s the case, they have the option to go to university.
Altale’s education puts a lot of emphasis on an orientation system. Most kids are able to pick their orientation at a very young age due to them knowing what they want to do in their life. If one doesn’t know what they want to do, they can study a bit of everything to see what they like.
A majority of students keep their orientation until the end due to them having to either redo part of their education or catch up to other people of their age with the help of a tutor if they choose to change midway.
This system is considered to be a major societal problem due to a lot of students ending up changing orientations due to them learning they prefer to do something different or they simply do not enjoy what they picked anymore. These people have to spend more time at school, causing them to be late compared to other people of their age. It also screws over those who can’t find an orientation they like no matter how many times
Not only that, the system forces some students to move to another city that offers specializations for the domain they want to work in. For example, someone wanting to specialize in engineering in Myosotis will have to move to Magnolia in order to get the education they’re looking for.
Because of all these problems, there are many protests regarding the orientation system and those participating in those wish for it to be more forgiving to those who can’t instantly decide what to do.