Mexico City

By and large, people have the wrong idea about Mexico City. To many the very name summons two words: crime and pollution. No doubt there are areas to be avoided, but the Distrito Federal is packed to the gills with decent people who will usually look out for one another, and for you. Pollution summons visions of unwalkable, megahighway-filled cities jammed with cars, which this is not. The smog is real: the Aztecs built their city of Tenochtitlan in a high (7,347 feet) valley that often waits days for the air to move. But there are a little over 2.5 million cars and buses in the city, just more than one for every 10 of 20-million-something inhabitants (reports vary). Truth is, those living in the capital do so more sustainably than most people in the industrialized world, at high—yet comfortable—densities (though not in high-rises), and move mostly by foot and public transit. (If you are tempted to drive this Gordian knot of merged villages, well, we would recommend that you not.)

Most of Mexico City is aligned on two major intersecting thoroughfares: Paseo de la Reforma and Avenida Insurgentes—at 34 km (21 mi), the longest avenue in the city. Administratively, Mexico City is divided into 16 delegaciones (districts) and about 400 colonias (neighborhoods), many with street names fitting a given theme, such as rivers, philosophers, or revolutionary heroes. The same street can change names as it goes through different colonias. So, most street addresses include their colonia (abbreviated as Col.) Unless you're going to a landmark, it's important to tell your taxi driver the name of the colonia and, whenever possible, the cross street.

Mexico City's principal sights fall into three areas. Allow a full day to cover each thoroughly, although you could race through them in four or five hours apiece. You can generally cover the first area—the Zócalo and Alameda Central—on foot. Getting around Zona Rosa, Bosque de Chapultepec, and Colonia Condesa may require a taxi ride or two (though the Chapultepec metro stop is conveniently close to the park and museums), as will Coyoacán and San Angel in southern Mexico City.

What's In a Name?

Mexico City is rarely referred to as "Mexico City" by its residents, or by anyone in Mexico for that matter. The term Mexico City is of course an Anglicization: the official name of the city is Ciudad México; residents often refer to it as "D.F." (pronounced deh-effay), short for Distrito Federal (Federal District). On train and bus schedules and in addresses, you'll often see it listed simply as México. And elsewhere in the country, when anyone refers simply to México, they mean here.

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