Mexico City is for the most part built on a dried out lake bed. Over many years the Lake Texcoco was drained so that this ever growning city would be accommodated. The problem is that Mexico City is built on very porous earth; thus many buildings in the city are sinking, including the one you see in the picture. This building, the second of three basilicas to the Virgin Guadalupe, is listing about 2 or 3 meters lower on the one side than the other. The church is under some major renovations to stop futher damage. Since the ground is so porous, the other problem is that earthquakes, which are frequent here, are amplified. In 1985 a strong earthquake leveled many buildings, killing between 10 and 14,000 people. Even a large heavy truck driving by can shake a building, as we experienced last night at a store.
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