Mexico
Mexico City
Welcome to Mexico! Mexico City was built on top of a lake, right where a powerful Aztec city once stood. Today it is one of the largest cities in the world, filled with grand old palaces, a giant stone plaza, colorful floating gardens, and a castle sitting high on a hill in the middle of a forest.
Why is it famous?
Mexico City's huge main square, called the Zócalo, is one of the largest public squares in the world and has been the heart of the city for hundreds of years.
The floating gardens of Xochimilco let visitors ride colorful wooden boats through canals first dug by the Aztecs to grow flowers and vegetables on the water.
A city built on a lake
Long before the Spanish arrived, the Aztec people built their capital city, Tenochtitlan, on an island in the middle of Lake Texcoco, connecting it to the shore with causeways and canals.
Over hundreds of years, the lake was slowly drained and filled in, and a new city rose on top of the old one — which is why parts of Mexico City still sink slowly into the soft ground below.
Amazing facts
Mexico City sits about 2,240 meters (7,350 feet) above sea level, making it one of the highest big cities in the world.
The Metropolitan Cathedral was built using stones from an ancient Aztec temple that once stood on the very same spot.
Quick facts
- Mexico City sits about 2,240 meters (7,350 feet) above sea level, making it one of the highest big cities in the world.
- The Metropolitan Cathedral was built using stones from an ancient Aztec temple that once stood on the very same spot.
- Mexico City has one of the largest subway systems in North America, carrying millions of riders underground every single day.
- The city is home to one of the world's largest urban forests, Chapultepec Park, which is nearly twice the size of New York's Central Park.