Taking In Mexico City's History By Canoe And Bike

https://www.npr.org/2021/08/13/ [login to see] /travel-mexico-city-history-canoe-bike-spanish-conquest
These days the Mexican capital is a top spot for travelers eager to emerge from coronavirus lockdowns. The megalopolis has long lured tourists with its mix of modern and ancient, and this summer, there's even more history to entice: Mexico is marking 500 years since the Spanish conquistadors, and their Indigenous allies, laid siege to the city, leading to the downfall of the Aztec Empire.

While most tourists visit the twin pyramids of Teotihuacán, outside the capital, or the city's Templo Mayor, there are several sites off the well-worn path where visitors can get a glimpse of what the area was like before the Spanish arrived.

The best view is from a canoe.

"This is how Mexico City used to look," says historian Santiago Sosa-Salazar, paddling through one of the city's last bodies of water. This network of canals is part of a 400-acre ecological park in Xochimilco, in the far south side of Mexico City.