Olympia
Olympia is one of two major city-states on Mars. It is situated on the Tharsis Bulge at the base of Olympus Mons. Olympia is a “tent town” meaning all of the city's infrastructure is enclosed or underground due to the high altitudes. At (4,000m) above datum, the air is too thin for even Native Martians.
Olympia was originally founded as a scientific outpost to study the geology of the Tharsis region and its massive shield volcanoes. The site had previously been used as a remote monitoring station by the original Martian colonists to observe the atmospheric effects of terraforming at high altitudes. Though abandoned for over a century, there was enough salvageable material left over to help jumpstart Olympia's development.
Olympia began as a very spartan habitat with few creature comforts, but as the scientists stationed there settled in, they sought to improve their living conditions by expanding the colony's services and luxuries and opening up trade with other settlements. Native Martians venturing out from Valles Marineris often volunteered to work in service industry positions for a modest salary and free boarding, allowing the Scientists to grow their town without having to hire and transport workers from Earth on expensive contracts.
Olympia grew steadily over time, faltering only when interplanetary war and political disputes curtailed outside funding. The biggest period of growth came in the early 23rd Century when private travel to Mars became feasible and unrestricted. It was then that Olympia's secondary role came into being. Adventure tourists, many of whom were exceptionally wealthy, sought out Olympus Mons and the other volcanoes of Tharsis as destinations for hiking, rock climbing, base jumping, and other extreme activities. The tallest mountain in the solar system was an attractive tourist destination for those who could afford the trip.
The first wave of these tourists trickled in to Olympia, the only settlement anywhere near their destination, and rented spare worker or scientist rooms. The Olympia administration quickly moved to capitalize on these opportunities by setting up facilities geared toward tourism such as dedicated hotels, museums, souvenir shops, hiking equipment shops, and restaurants.
Today, Olympia is still an independent city state with a governing council oriented towards scientific progress. Olympia has no military, only a constabulary security force mainly used for dealing with unruly tourists. Olympia also leads conservation efforts for the Amazonis Preserve and dispatches its own security to deal with squatters, poachers, and other trespassers. Olympia has avoided conflict with any of its neighbors except for large scale demonstrations against illegal PAC expansion of their Martian colonies into the Amazonis Preserve. Lately, amid growing concern over New Dawn attacks, Olympia Security has received counterterrorism training from TASA Special Operations units. This move has drawn criticism as a step towards militarizing Olympia's security.
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