Almost from the moment they arrived in 1519, the Conquistadors set about dismantling the ancient city of Tenochtitlan and building upon its ruins what was to become the modern Mexico City. Little remains from that time, but the city has just completed a $2 million restoration of one of the last direct links to the Aztecs: the floating gardens of Xochimilco.
In the far south of the city, just off the main ring road called the Periferico, Xochimilco (pronounced so-che-MIL-co) is a remnant of the five great lakes that filled the Valley of Mexico when the Spaniards first arrived. In 1989, the city expropriated about 2,000 surrounding acres to halt development, cleaned up the water and sewage that flowed through the area, and dredged miles of canals between raised beds where farmers still grow corn, squash and many varieties of flowers.Had the city not acted, Xochimilco could have disappeared. Instead, local residents and visitors can spend an enjoyable afternoon at the new Xochimilco Ecological Park.
Admission to the Xochimilco Ecological Park costs around $3.25. Children under 14 enter free and adults over 60 get in for 5 pesos, or around $1.60. The park, a 30-minute drive from downtown Mexico City (cab fare is about $10), has a newly constructed visitors' center filled with exhibits explaining the area's history. There is also a recreated farming area, called a chinampa, where corn stalks grow 12 feet high and pumpkin gourds are the size of basketballs.
The most traditional way to see Xochimilco is by flat-bottomed pleasure boats, called trajineras, that cost $1.60 an hour a person. Brightly painted and decorated with wreaths, the boats are powered by a tender who gently poles along, gondola style. The tenders may or may not sing, but in the older section of Xochimilco, floating bands on other trajineras will play for a few pesos.