Tlatelolco Plaza (Three Cultures)

This remarkable plaza layered with Aztec ruins, a Spanish colonial church, and modernist government buildings tells Mexico City's complex history through its very architecture. The site was the center of the ancient Aztec city of Tlatelolco and later became a tragic symbol of 1968 when student protests were violently suppressed here. Walking among the three distinct cultural layers feels like moving through centuries, where indigenous foundations literally support colonial structures that stand beside mid-20th century monuments.