"Chilango_Land" a Mexico City Travel Page by Mexgirl

México City is a hard place to describe in just few lines, eventhough I´ve lived here my whole life. It is a collage of places, buildings... but mostly, is a collage of feelings.

Being the "biggest city in the world" you can imagine what that brings: A lot of people (around 20 million), traffic, chaos... but also a wide mix of rich and poor zones.

But what is for real, is its magic through downtown with its colonial buildings, modern buildings, pyramids and some testimonies from the Aztec empire, and small indian-communities. Museums, buildings, monuments, Universites, restaurants are just a bit of all what is part of México... plus the characteristic mixture of people and festivity-character.

Centro Histórico (downtown) represents a big part of the roots of Mexico city.

In the principal area of the Centro, called Zócalo, you can see how the origins, Spanish conquest and present of Mexico merges.

In what it is now the Zócalo, Mexico city was first founded by the Aztecs in the 14th Century, called the Great Tenochtitlan. You can still see some of the remaining ruins (Templo Mayor) next to the Big Cathedral (built by the Spaniards after demolishing Tenochtitlan).

Tenochtitlan, now Mexico´s downtown, was first built on a small islote (mini Island) floating in a big lake. That is why you can see how big heavy buildings like Catedral are now sinking.

This Area is surrounded by museums, Government buildings, beautiful colonial Buildings, and all kind of business stores, which are somehow classified by the street they are. (Streets with just jewelry stores, electronics street, printing, wedding dresses street, etc.)

As well as the "old Mexico" in downtown, there is also the contrasting side of Mexico city, where the modern and great Buildings rise.

One of the "new" areas of Mexico city is in Santa Fe, where important Buildings and some Universities have stablished. Located in the continuing part of Reforma Av. direction to Toluca.

Another group of modern buildings are found along the Insurgentes Sur Av. and in zones like Polanco, Lomas, etc.