Kathrin Wildner examines the perception and appropriation of urban space using the example of the Zócalo in the historic center of the 20-million-strong city of Mexico City. The study follows a qualitative approach, focusing primarily on the everyday perspective, experiences, and actions of the city's residents. Through ethnographic methods, the author highlights the heterogeneous functions and concepts that make the Zócalo a public space and a symbolic center. Social relationships are shaped by the built environment, but urban complexity only arises with the everyday and symbolic appropriation of space by the people.