Quito
From Gothpoodle
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Latest revision as of 02:52, 19 June 2010
Quito is a city of contrasts, an island of Fifth Wave civilization in the midst of the developing world. It has a proud cultural history stretching back over 500 years. Ironically, the city is on the forefront of today’s colonial expansion, serving as the busiest spaceport on Earth. Millions have passed through Quito on their way into deep space. Meanwhile, for most colonists returning to Earth for a visit, Quito is the first (and often the only) city they see.
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Overview
Quito’s current prosperity is built on the same commodity as that of many other major cities: strategic location. This was not obvious for much of the city’s history. At one time, its position high in the Andes and almost on the equator meant that it was one of the most isolated places on Earth.
History
Quito was established as early as the 11th century by the indigenous Quitu people. They established a kingdom which came into conflict with the expansionistic Incas during the reign of Inca Tupac Yapanqui. Quito was conquered by the Incas, and became the northern capital of their Empire in 1487. Tupac’s son Huayna Capac conquered the rest of the tribes of the Quito region, making Ecuador the northernmost province of the empire. Unfortunately Huayna’s two sons divided the kingdom. Atahualpa, whose mother had been a Quitu princess, established his power base in Quito. Meanwhile, his half-brother Huascar held the Incan heartland.
It was during the subsequent struggle that the Spanish conquistadors arrived, led by Francisco Pizarro. In 1532, Atahualpa was captured by the Spanish and executed, even after raising a king’s ransom in treasure. Atahualpa’s brother Rumiñahui led a gallant defense against the conquistadors, but after being defeated he withdrew to the south. Before leaving Quito he had its remaining treasures removed, and put the city to the torch.
The modern city of Quito was founded on the site of Incan Quito’s ruins, in 1534. For a time it was the capital of a conquistador state, but by 1548 it had been brought under the direct authority of the Viceroy of Peru. Spanish rule lasted until 1822, when lieutenants of Simón Bolívar liberated Ecuador. For a few years Quito was part of the Republic of Gran Colombia. In 1830 Ecuador declared its independence and Quito became the capital of the new nation.
For the next two centuries, Quito served as a rallying point for the country’s conservatives. Most members of this faction were wealthy landowners, from old families that had lived in the Andes highlands since colonial times. Quito was often at odds with the more progressive, liberal coastal populations centered around the city of Guayaquil. Ecuador was ruled by a series of conservative caudillos (dictators) through most of the 19th century. Although democratic reforms slowly took hold, episodes of dictatorship or military rule continued well into the 21st century.
In 2016, the American corporation Columbia Aerospace opened negotiations with the government of Ecuador. The immediate plan was to build a premier orbital-launch facility outside Quito – the first major spaceport to be operated by a wholly private organization. The location was ideal, high up and on the equator. Meanwhile, Ecuador agreed to provide tax incentives and a very favorable regulatory regime. In return, Columbia Aerospace would effectively create an Ecuadoran space program from the ground up, while making substantial investments in the nation’s infrastructure and industries. The new Atahualpa International Spaceport went operational for the first time in 2021, and soon became one of the busiest launch sites in the world.
At first the relationship between Columbia Aerospace and Ecuador had little effect on international affairs. The corporation was openly making an “end run” around U.S. taxes and regulations by basing its operations in Ecuador, so relations with the United States were sometimes stormy. Still, by the 2040s many of the disputes between Columbia Aerospace and the U.S. government had been resolved, and American customers were funding rapid expansion of Atahualpa Spaceport.
Quito and the rest of Ecuador thrived on the economic stimulus of the spaceport. By the 2070s Quito had become a very cosmopolitan city, one of the major commercial, industrial, and cultural centers of South America
Quito Today
The population of Quito and its surrounding suburbs is about 6 million. The Quito metropolitan area has become the largest in Ecuador, surpassing rival Guayaquil sometime in the 2070s. Quito has grown to several times its 2000 area, absorbing nearby cities such as Sangolqui and throwing out small suburbs north almost to Cayambe.
The average annual income for residents of Quito is about $45,000, somewhat above the world average. The typical resident has Average wealth and is Status 0. Incomes are distributed rather unequally in the region. The political and technical elites are usually Wealthy or better, while citizens not directly involved in the spaceport or advanced industries are often Struggling. Quito supports a significant fringer population, many of whom are Quechua (nearly pure-blooded descendants of the Incas) or poor mestizos (persons of mixed race).
The local standard of living is modest by global standards, but fairly comfortable. All but the poorest citizens have full access to adequate food and housing, excellent medical care, common genetic therapies, and the global web. Land and housing costs are relatively low, slightly below the base cost. Only in the densest parts of the city are residents likely to be crammed into apartment complexes, and there are no arcologies in the region.
The overall Control Rating in Quito is 2, indicating an open society and unobtrusive government. Local law has been somewhat influenced by American constitutional practice in recent decades. Police enforcement is usually scrupulous and effective, but is marred from time to time by police abuse. Weapons laws vary from place to place: CR 3 within the city limits, CR 2 in the surrounding country, and CR 6 on the grounds of Ahatualpa Spaceport.
Most of Quito’s population are mestizos, descended from both the indigenous population and the Spanish colonialists. Perhaps 20% of the people are culturally indigenous, descended primarily from the Inca or other local tribes, maintaining some of the old ways. Other groups include Afro-Ecuadorans (about 10%) and expatriates from the United States and elsewhere (about 5%). Despite decades of social progress, there remains a noticeable class distinction in Ecuadoran society. Wealthy mestizos and expatriates dominate the community, while Afro-Ecuadorans and indigenous citizens are regarded as lower-class. Gender equality also remains imperfect, with women and transgendered citizens facing subtle discrimination.
Spanish is the official language, but most residents are also fluent in English. Quechua and other Native American languages are spoken privately by some of the indigenous population.
There remain a significant number of baseline humans in and around Quito, mostly poorer residents whose ancestors never invested in genefixing. The national government is currently mounting a program to make genefixing universal by 2115, but this effort is meeting some resistance. Genetic upgrades are becoming increasingly common among the social elite; naturally, they are already quite common in the expatriate community. Bioroids, bioshells and cybershells can all be found in Quito, most of them attached to the spaceport or other institutions with heavy foreign involvement. Ecuadoran law tends to follow that of the United States in determining what rights are due to non-humans.
Places
Quito is a blend of the old and new, a major focus of systemwide commerce but also one of South America’s foremost cultural centers. Although the city has grown considerably in the past century, many of its older districts retain their original atmosphere.
Mariscal District
North of the Old City are the more recent districts, stretching north and west toward the New City. The center of this area is the Mariscal de Sucre district, an important commercial and tourist area. The district has many business offices serving multinational firms, importexport shops, and hotels accomodating foreign visitors. Quito’s main airport is also close by.
Even before the close alliance between Ecuador and the United States, the Mariscal district was sometimes called “Gringoville” for the number of American visitors (and expatriates) found there. Today many neighborhoods are dominated by expatriates, who maintain a little corner of American culture in the heart of Quito. The American community in the Mariscal district sometimes has tense relations with the rest of the city, primarily because the expatriates who live here are likely to keep Ecuadoran society at arm’s length. Expatriates living elsewhere in Quito are usually more willing to interact with local society, and have less trouble as a result.
New City
Built almost entirely since the 2050s, New Quito is a thoroughly modern and very beautiful place. Local architecture is heavy on steel, glass, and biocements, all in a pseudocolonial style. Many city blocks in the district are divided by pedestrian greenways rather than paved streets. Residential and commercial neighborhoods are carefully balanced. The entire New City is the brainchild of Pablo de Estrada, one of Ecuador’s greatest and most eccentric architects. De Estrada planned the layout of the New City to take advantage of “new objective conditions,” his catchphrase for the social and economic changes caused by the spread of the global web. He died in 2063 before most of the New City was complete, but the city government used careful planning and regulation to ensure that his vision would be carried out.
The focus of the New City is the Columbia Aerospace complex, including corporate headquarters and the campus of Quito Polytechnic Institute. These form the hightech center of Quito, where most of the city’s Fifth Wave jobs are available, and where most of the city’s high-level AI are located.
South of the New City center is the “new capital” of Ecuador, where many of the city and national governments’ offices are located. This part of the city is subtly designed for high security, with plenty of secure vantage points commanding a view of the entire district. A unit of the Presidential Guard is always barracked nearby, ready to act at a moment’s notice against any attack.
Old City
Quito has an extensive Old City, which dates back to colonial times and still retains a great deal of ancient architecture. The center of the Old City is the Plaza de Independencia. Although the commercial center of Quito has long since moved away, the Plaza is still the cultural and political heart of Ecuador.
Adjoining the Plaza is Quito Cathedral, the oldest cathedral in South America and one of the most beautiful. Several other churches are in the immediate area, notably the massive Iglesia de San Francisco, said to be the first church ever built in the Americas. All of Quito’s old churches are still active religious institutions, in a country where Catholicism remains vitally important. They are also major cultural centers, housing a tremendous array of art from as far back as Inca times.
The Plaza is also bordered by Government Palace, official residence of the President of Ecuador. The Palace’s facade remains unaltered, but its interior has been extensively renovated with modern technical services. Security is very tight. More of the elite President’s Guard are constantly on duty here, and the building has sophisticated modern defenses. At a moment’s notice, the President could stand off any attack short of the destruction of the building. There has been no coup in Ecuador for decades, but the country’s sometimes-violent history teaches its leaders to be cautious...
Opposite the Government Palace is the Municipal Palace, center of Quito’s city government. The Municipal Palace is a fairly recent building, completed in the 1970s. City administration has long since outgrown this building; several departments have moved their offices to a complex in the New City.
Plaza de Toros
Close to the Old City is one of Quito’s more controversial attractions, the Plaza de Toros. Bullfighting is still popular in Ecuador, and corridas de toros are held in the Plaza on a regular basis. In fact, since the sport has been banned in Spain and much of the rest of Latin America, the Quito ring is almost its last refuge. Even here it is under attack from animal-rights advocates (and many expatriates).
Bullfights in the Quito ring are still brilliant spectacles, and indeed the current crop of Ecuadoran matadors are considered among the most talented in history. They need to be; the bulls who fight in the ring today have been bred and engineered for grace and aggressiveness. There have been some experimental shows using cybershell bulls. Although the technology is apparently up to the task, purists have so far rejected the artificial bulls as inappropriate.
Current Events
Recent rumors have it that Columbia Aerospace is preparing a shift in corporate strategy, which may involve selling off or abandoning several local subsidiaries. The targeted companies have been struggling to produce profits for years, but they employ many Ecuadorans, and any change in their situation would likely threaten thousands of local jobs. Many of Quito’s labor and political leaders are trying to pressure the company into revealing its plans (and possibly changing them).
Relations with Peru and Colombia, always strained, have recently taken a turn for the worse. In particular, Peru is believed to be placing missile batteries east of Quito, close to the flight path for ground-to-orbit craft launching out of Atahualpa Spaceport. No one in Quito really believes the Peruvians would try to shoot down a shuttle – but the mere possibility is causing grave concern. It would take very little to create a real “war scare” in the city.
The Church has announced that Pope Zachary II will soon be making a pastoral visit to South America. He will spend three days in Quito, meeting with political and social leaders, Columbia Aerospace officials, and the local priesthood. No major pronouncements are expected, but the faithful are already preparing for a great celebration. Meanwhile, both papal and Ecuadoran security forces are already planning for the event.
Quito’s municipal police force has recently (and quietly) invested in a stock of state-of-the-art surveillance drones. The new cybershells are intended for everyday patrolling, as well as for close surveillance of suspected criminals or dangerous parts of the city. Most citizens are un-aware of the move, but a local civil-rights group has caught wind of it and is preparing to rouse public opposition.
People in some of the city’s poorer neighborhoods have been reporting sightings of a “demon” late at night. The apparition appears only vaguely humanoid, skulking around and avoiding the light. No one has been attacked, but there have been several burglary reports involving homes and small shops. Municipal police suspect that an escaped bioroid is hiding in the city, surviving by theft.
