Excerpts from "Travels in Eutopia: Tilapia" by Rick Steves, famous American tourist/author.
El Reino Della Tilapia - Government and Culture
El Reino della Tilapia, or Tilapia for short, is a constitutional monarchy. Its head of state is Queen Francesca Saxe-Coburg-Gotha-Blade!, or simply Queen Francesca or Queen Francesca I. Underneath the Queen is a five member Consulate, with leaders from across the political spectrum. The provincial governors of Isabella (currently Pablo Villa) and Nueva Rioja (currently Bernardo Tuzzi) each hold positions on the Consulate, while three other 'floating members' make up the rest of the body, drawn from various segments of society and appointed as the Queen sees fit. The three other current Consulari are Felix Anzaldua, mayor of Buen Puerto, General Scott Summers, and Carlos Marcos. The five Consulari elect a single Pro Consul from within their ranks to act as Chairman of the Consulate and head of the government. This position is currently occupied by Carlos Marcos.
Though a monarchy, the majority of the day-to-day power rests in the Consulate. Though this body is distinct from the monarchy, it does serve at the Queen's pleasure, and the boundaries or balances between the two are uncertain at best.
The culture of Tilapia is Spanish-Latin in origin, and shows a stronger leaning towards their Spanish roots than towards the English roots of their neighbors and former countrymen, the Eutopians. For example, drivers in Tilapia drive on the right side of the road, as opposed to the left in Eutopia. The official languages in Tilapia are Spanish, French, and English, however the vast majority of Tilapia's citizens speak Spanish as their first language. While virtually everyone in Tilapia also speaks English, it is not their 'mother tongue', and you are far more likely to hear 'Buenos Dias' in Tilapia than 'Hello'. A good tact is usually to respond with a 'Buenos Dias' of your own, even if you don't speak Spanish; the people will recognize your accent and switch into English effortlessly, and be the more grateful for your gesture.
The Tilapians place a great deal of emphasis on what may seem superficial to our culture; slight nuances of discussion and what may seem like trivial details can sway the entire course of an interaction. I discovered quickly when asking for information or a favor in Tilapia that a gift made the person I was asking far more receptive to listening to my request. Before you get nervous, understand that it's the thought of the gift they look at, not the pricetag. A cigarette will do quite well if you know the person is a smoker, or another tact is to watch what they drink and order them another. The important part is that the gift be fitting to the person; the better the fit, the more impressed they will be by the encounter. A thoughtful gift indicates concern for the other person's wants and needs, and not just concern for oneself. Such minor things as where a conversation takes place, and whether face to face or over the phone, are also noted by the Tilapians. Of course, if a Tilapian offers you a gift and you refuse, this is a personal insult of grave depth.
Most Tilapians are naturally distrustful of 'Anglos', or people of English-American ancestry. This stems from their recent secession from Eutopia, a country most Tilapians can cite an entire list of complaints about. Their most common grievance is neglect at the hands of the 'Anglo' majority, claims that the government in Eutopia City consistently turned a blind eye to the needs or concerns of the 'Ibero' or 'Latin' minorities. As evidence, they often point to the complete lack of government action surrounding the murders of two Buen Puerto youths by arms dealers, the Gonzaga incident, and Former President Glasser's unfortunate identification gaffe which resulted in an island-wide work stoppage.
