Aricos
Population
Size & Sprawl
Aricos has a population of 1.4 million, making it the largest city in Aurea and the second largest city on the planet, behind Lancos at 6 million. With the population that it has, the city is more than 5 times as large as any other in the Silver Desert. It isn't a dense city either - skyscrapers are limited to just Northern Aricos, with only about 40 of the buildings. Outside of Northern Aricos, it is almost impossible to find houses more than 4 stories high. The city is rapidly expanding, transforming the desert into a concrete paradise.Inhabitants
The only intelligent species to inhabit Aricos are cilvarthians, as they are the only sapient species on the planet. Because of the harsh climate, the city is mostly home to native Aricosians. About 10% of the population are foreigners, usually from warm climate towns.Districts & Divisions
There are four recognised districts of Aricos: Old Aricos, Central Aricos, Southern Aricos, and Northern Aricos.Central Aricos
Central Aricos is the most recognised district of Aricos, and is most famous. This is partially because of the Aricos Spice Market, the largest spice market in the world. Central Aricos is the oldest part of the city, as over the years Aricos expanded around it, and the entirety of Central Aricos is part of Old Aricos, as it existed before 1850.
Central Aricos is defined by its architecture. The architecture comes from the Ethen Era, an era ruled by the Franceian Family. The Ethen Era saw the beginning of Aricos, 2,000 years ago, and the era was most famous specifically for its architecture. With an abundance of curvy patterns and bright colours, the Ethen Architecture was unmistakeable and most prominent in Central Aricos, where the designs remain unchanged.
Northern Aricos
Northern Aricos has seen the most modernisation in the entire city. With a population of 600,000, this district is home to almost half of the city's population. This is because the only skyscrapers in the city are found here, most of which are stacks of small, cheap apartments.
Modernisation has brought many outside companies to the city, many having moved their entire headquarters here. One of the most famous Cilvarthian companies, Cilvarth Tech, has its headquarters in Aricos, after moving three years ago in 2128.
Southern Aricos
Southern Aricos is defined by the Lichen River that stretches through the city, and splits it into two; the north section making up Central and Northern Aricos, and the south section making up Southern Aricos. Southern Aricos has been modernised, with modern public transport systems and improved sanitation, yet still keeps a lot of the Ethen Architecture from thousands of years ago.
Old Aricos
In recent years Aricos has seen a boom in the population, which has led to a rapid increase in buildings being built. Any building that existed before 1850 is considered a part of Old Aricos. As this overlaps with the other districts, Old Aricos has no clearly defined location.
Because of the modernisation of the city, many residents of Old Aricos believe this district to be the "true" Aricos. Many people are not happy with the newer buildings and parts of the city, as they lack the interesting architecture that is evident in the older buildings and landmarks of Old Aricos.
Landmarks & Monuments
Aricos Spice Market
As previously mentioned, Aricos Spice Market is the largest spice market on the planet. Selling a number of spices, tea leaves and plants, and various unique items, the market has grown exponentially in the last 700 years. The spice market was constructed in the 1420s, during the end of the Ethen Era.National Aurean Teapot Gallery
As anybody must know, cilvarthians love their tea. Tea plants are the most abundant plant species on the planet, and as a result they have become the centre of every single culture on Cilvarth. Tea Pottery is such a popular craft that teapot galleries are not an uncommon sight. The National Aurean Teapot Gallery is one such place, home to some of the oldest and most famous teapots in all of cilvarthian history.Economy
Markets & Businesses
Aricos's main exports are spices and technologies. Technologies is a very loose term, because the city exports a large variety of technologies and gadgets.Spices
As a planet of endless spices, flavours, and foods, it is no surprise this city exports a great deal of spices. The Silver Desert is surprisingly rich in spices, with many plant species that are grown in large greenhouses. There are over 400 recorded spices sold in bulk in the city, by both small businesses and large corporations, even a few Trans-Planetary Corporations.Tea
Unsurprisingly tea is a major export of Aricos. Over 500 tea plant species are grown in the city and sold to other places, as the unique climate has many tea species that cannot be found elsewhere on the planet.Technology
As a fairly modern city, Aricos exports a lot of technologies. Several vehicle companies have locations in Northern Aricos, such as Iphric and Ezcsabar, two major car companies, the latter actually being a Karkhalan owned company. Many of the world's unique and niche technologies derive from Aricos, and are imported worldwide and sometimes to other planets.Layout & Geography
Aricos is a very flat city, located towards the south of the Silver Desert. The desert was originally covered in large dunes, but these were flattened out during the initial construction of the city. The temperature is consistently high, reaching a maximum average of 80℃ during summers. It is also quite dry, recieving very little rainfall during summers and minimal during winters. Luckily, many lakes and rivers exist in the desert and the city's main source of water comes from this.Fortification & Defenses
Aricos's best defence is the 30 metre, 10 metre thick wall that surrounds the entire city. With corridors inside the wall, soldiers patrol the outside, keeping an eye on any one, or thing, approaching Aricos. With its troubled history, Aricos has a generally paranoid population that rarely feels safe.
You won't be killed for approaching the wall, but you will be carefully inspected and patted down that feels more like a violation. It is best to arrive in the city by flight, because the pat-downs are much friendlier, with technologies that detect prohibited items.
History
History Of Aricos Timeline
Aricos was constructed around two thousand years ago, during the Ethen Era. The Ethen Era was the longest ever era in the history of Cilvarth, lasting a whopping 1560 years. The Ethen Family ruled the majority of Aurea for this time, in which they made largescale changes to many settlements. Their family lived in Aricos, a settlement built entirely to house them and their people.
1458 - End of the Ethen Era & Beginning of the Micratian Era
The end of the Ethen Era took place in 1458. The Ethen Family were literally kicked out of their home and the Micratia Family moved into the Aricos Royal House & Gardens. The Micratia Family taking up residence in this building meant that the Ethen Era was ending, and a new era would begin.The Micratian Era started ten days after the Ethen Era ended, and while this was a significant time, barely anything in Aricos changed. The only reason the Ethen Family let the Micratia Family take over is because the only living members of the Ethen Family had been in power their entire lives, and were all over 80 years of age, so they appreciated some other family taking over. The Micratia Family were already fairly close with the Ethen Family, and the new family was familiar with the responsibilities of overlooking an entire empire.
Festival & Cultural Events
Spice Day
Spice Day is an event celebrated in the Aricos Spice Market. Market-keepers get a day without work, where they will discover the market's stalls and recieve free spices and flavours so that they can make a large meal for their families. Families are incredibly important in Aricos, and usually each family has a signature spice. Spice Day is a chance for the family to try out new spices that they find in the markets, and because of how much money the Spice Market collectively earns, any spices the market-keepers find at other stalls they are allowed to take for free, assuming they take a reasonable amount.Travel & Tourism
Tourists and aesthetes are incredibly popular in Aricos. Flying in from far-away cities and planets, they usually enter the city through the Aricos Airport, where stalls encourage you to buy incredibly overpriced gadgets and random memorabilia.
From the architecture and the food, to the people and the animals, there is so much to see in Aricos. The Aricos Animal Refuge houses over three hundred animals that were previously injured or unwanted, and are raised there in luxury conditions. The hot climate coupled with air-condition down every single street, in every single building, makes for a lovely experience for anybody from any background.
Architecture
In Old Aricos the architecture is all fairly similar. The Ethen architecture is easily distinguishable, with curvy patterns and bright colours. Each building is painted a different, exuberant colour, while each floor is a different shape and size, making for some interesting building shapes.
The Ethen architecture clashes with mdoern skyscrapers and buildings of Northern Aricos. All of these buildings have been built in the last 50 years, and therefore have a completely different architecture and style than others in the city. This blend of metal, concrete and glass has "less personality" than the other buildings in the city, as claimed by many older folk that live in Old Aricos.
Infrastructure
The seven main roads of Old Aricos form a large star shape; a circular road in the centre of Aricos that circles the Aricos Royal House & Gardens and the Aricos Spice Market, while five more main roads split off from this road. The seventh main road circles around the entire city, just inside of the wall. Three of these main roads lead off to other cities and settlements in the area, such as Corykos, a small town close to Kettle.Wealth/Poverty
There is a large mix of wealth statuses in the city. Southern Aricos is inhabited by the more wealthy of folk in the city, with younger people, generally students, living in Northern Aricos in the various apartments. 18% of people in Aricos live in poverty, compared to 23% in the entirety of Cilvarth.Transportation Systems
Public transport is one of the most developed aspects of Aricos. Personal privacy is popular in Aricos, and taxis are designed so that multiple people can take the same taxi while never having to converse. Walls within the long cars can be turned on and off, from transparent to opaque. This allows conversation if both desire, but can also allow for privacy.
There is a small underground train system in Northern Aricos. As the most modern and populated part of the city, the recently constructed underground train system helped slow down the traffic on the roads. It sort of worked, but instead of balancing out the traffic, everybody started using the underground and then the roads were completely barren.
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