A festival on water

The first day of the trip with "boots on the ground" was spent floating through the gardens of Xochimil and its some 100 square miles of canals.

According to Wikipedia, "Xochimilco is best known for its canals, which are left from what was an extensive lake and canal system that connected most of the settlements of the Valley of Mexico. These canals, along with artificial islands called chinampas, attract tourists and other city residents to ride on colorful gondola-like boats called trajineras around the 170 km (110 mi) of canals. This canal and chinampa system, as a vestige of the area's precolonial past, has made Xochimilco a Works Heritage Site in 1950,"

With long-haul flights and missed connections, it was a great way to start the trip.Read more