Mexico City, Mexico - Lago de Xochimilco, canal - postcard, stamp c.1930s

• Postcard

   

• Picture / Image:  Lago de Xochimilco [Mexico City] 
• Publisher: none seen
• Postally used: yes
• Stamp:  Mexico 1934 stamp
• Postmark(s): [date unclear] cds
• Sent to:  Wisconsin, USA
• Notes / condition: 

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Text from the free encyclopedia WIKIPEDIA may appear below to give a little background information (internal links may not  work) :

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Xochimilco (Spanish pronunciation: [sotʃiˈmilko, ʃotʃiˈmilko]; Nahuatl languages: Xōchimīlco, pronounced [ʃoːtʃiˈmiːlko]  (help·info)) is one of the 16 mayoralities (Spanish: alcaldías) or boroughs within Mexico City. The borough is centered on the formerly independent city of Xochimilco, which was established on what was the southern shore of Lake Xochimilco in the pre-Hispanic period. Today, the borough consists of the eighteen “barrios” or neighborhoods of this city along with fourteen “pueblos” or villages that surround it, covering an area of 125 km² (48 sq mi). The borough is in the southeastern part of the city and has an identity that is separate from the historic center of Mexico City, due to its historic separation from that city during most of its history. 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 pre-Hispanic past, has made Xochimilco a World Heritage Site. In 1950, Paramahansa Yogananda in his Autobiography of a Yogi wrote that if there were a scenic beauty contest, Xochimilco would get the first prize.^[1]However, severe environmental degradation of the canals and chinampas has brought that status into question.

Xochimilco is characterized by a system of canals, which measure about a total of 170 km².^[18] These canals, and the small colorful boats that float on them among artificially created land called chinampas are internationally famous.^[11][19] These canals are popular with Mexico City residents as well, especially on Sundays.^[19] These canals are all of what is left of what used to be a vast lake and canal system that extended over most parts of the Valley of Mexico, restricting cities such as Tenochtitlan(Mexico City) and Xochimilco to small islands.^[6][20][21] This system of waterways was the main transportation venue, especially for goods from the pre-Hispanic period until the 20th century.^[20] In the pre-Hispanic period, parts of the shallow lakes were filled in, creating canals. Starting in the early colonial period, the interconnected lakes of the valley, including Lake Xochimilco, were drained. By the 20th century, the lakes had shrunk to a system of canals that still connected Xochimilco with the center of Mexico City. However, with the pumping of underground aquifers since the early 20th century, water tables have dropped, drying canals, and all that are left are the ones in Xochimilco.^[18][20] The canals are fed by fresh water springs, which is artificially supplemented by treated water. This because water tables are still dropping and human expansion and filling in of canals is still occurring, threatening to have the last of these canals disappear despite their importance to tourism.^{[11][18][19][20][21]}