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Tijuana, Mexico

 
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The Hammer



Joined: 18 Jan 2003
Location: Ullungdo 37.5 N, 130.9 E, altitude : 223 m

PostPosted: Sat Jul 08, 2006 6:40 am    Post subject: Tijuana, Mexico Reply with quote

Next week my girl and I will take a day trip into TJ.

Any suggestions for what to see, do, and avoid?
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JLarter



Joined: 17 Apr 2006

PostPosted: Sat Jul 08, 2006 8:38 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I spent a day there. The missus found a GAP that had jeans so freakin cheap it was unbelievable.
That's about it unless you want mexican rugs and stuff!
It's a bit of a dive really but just cool to say you've been to Mexico.
Go for Mexican food!
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Wangja



Joined: 17 May 2004
Location: Seoul, Yongsan

PostPosted: Sat Jul 08, 2006 4:21 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I stayed one night there in 2004. My wife was stunned at how ramshackle and dirty the place was. To me, it seemed more like a large African village along the lines of Abeokuta.

Good fun thoygh: try and find the brass section. Wink
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cgroch



Joined: 22 Jun 2006

PostPosted: Sat Jul 08, 2006 8:06 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Went across for a day awhile back.

If your girlfriend wears shorts (and heck, even if she doesn't), she can expect to be groped by guys selling ankle bracelets. They don't hesitate one bit, just go right on up and start putting them on ya. Guess they figure if they can put them on you, you'll buy it.

Men will not hesitate to make cat-calls, whistle, make inappropriate gestures to and say derogatory things about your girlfriend, regardless of your presence. It's worse since they tend to travel in packs.

Let's see, lots of donkeys on street corners spray painted black-and-white stripes with a colorful wagon hitched up, so you can pay to get your picture taken with a 'zebra.'

And of course, don't drink the water. And watch out for kidnappers. And drug lords.

But if you're like me, you gotta go for the experience of it all! Wouldn't take it back for the world, but it's better to be prepared.
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Tiger Beer



Joined: 07 Feb 2003

PostPosted: Sat Jul 08, 2006 9:35 pm    Post subject: Re: Tijuana, Mexico Reply with quote

The Hammer wrote:
Next week my girl and I will take a day trip into TJ.

Any suggestions for what to see, do, and avoid?

Yes!

I spent two unemployed months in San Diego.. and nearly daily would walk into Tijuana.

Most tourists walk across the border and then head left through the plazas all the way down to red-light district of Avenida Revolucion. Interesting in itself, but probably wear you down real quick as well.

Instead, try to maneuver you're walking in a straight kind of direction (gotta go under an underpass which will feel left, but it'll come out straight again). Anyways, you got Senior Frogs, and if you keep going, you'll have Plaza Amigos and next one is this little block of music bars/restaurants. Very middle-class & upper-class Mexican.. gringos are well-received and welcome and not seen very often here - which meant a lot of positive attention compared to Avenida Revolucion's attitude.

If you have a car.. then just drive right on south of TJ with your girlfriend all the way down to Ensanada. Its a nice tourist town on the coast.. there is another town before it called Rosarita.. well-known for horse-riding on the ocean.. that might be ideal with your girl.
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Nemo



Joined: 28 May 2006

PostPosted: Sun Jul 09, 2006 6:31 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Ensenada and Rosarito are good suggestions. Try the Mercado Negro (fish market) in Ensenada for great seafood. There are also cheap cruises and fishing expeditions. Rosarito is nice too and has some great nightclubs and cafes (they rent jet ski's, horses, and 4-wheelers right behind IGGY'S).

TJ is far from a shackle town (unless you venture outside into the barrios).

If you want to stick to TJ, Plaza Rio is a nice place to shop, eat and even catch a movie in the luxurious VIP cinema.

Also, try the Divertido Mundo for bowling and an arcade.

Otherwise, Revolucion is the best place for tourists.

Cautionary note, avoid the top left of Revolucion (left of the Arch), at Hotel Nelson, because this is an area known for rateros and dealers.

Even though all places accept dollars, yy advice would be to change your dollars into pesos, so you can get good value for your money. You can do this at La Linea or at some of the numerous Casa de Cambios all over the place. Currently, you can buy 11.25 pesos to the dollar ($1 : 11.25), so you're more or less saving 12.5% if you buy something with the pesos price.

Food is cheap and you can get some good deals if you haggle.

Hope you have a great day trip.
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davai!



Joined: 04 Dec 2005
Location: Kuwait

PostPosted: Sun Jul 09, 2006 10:14 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

if you drive in, get the Mexican insurance. It's less than 20 bucks and your US insurance won't cover you.

DO NOT bring a rental car into Mexico.

There is a bull fighting ring where the border meets the ocean, You'll see it from the road as it turns south to Rosarito. And on your way back on that road you need to make a confusing exit, seemingly in the wrong direction, to get back to the border. I can't remember exactly where, anyone?

Buenes viajes!
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dulouz



Joined: 04 Feb 2003
Location: Uranus

PostPosted: Tue Jul 11, 2006 8:01 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I drove the distance from TJ to Ensenada many times, its an excellent coast drive. TJ? just walk around. Go to Revolution and get some Kaluha. Eat drink and get merry there. The Mexicans do hospitality well.
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dulouz



Joined: 04 Feb 2003
Location: Uranus

PostPosted: Sun Jul 16, 2006 3:17 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Quote:
Mexico questions 6 in police, civilian beheadings
Police showed up after kidnap report; say drug cartel behind killings

Friday, June 23, 2006 Posted: 1252 GMT (2052 HKT)


Manage Alerts | What Is This? SAN DIEGO, California (AP) -- Mexican authorities are questioning six people they believe are linked to or have information on this week's decapitation murders of three police officers and a civilian in Rosarito Beach, according to the Baja California, Mexico, attorney general's office.

Police officers Ismael Arellano Torres, 36; Jesus Hernandez Ballesteros, 42; and Benjam�n Fabian Ventura, 35; were killed after a large group of armed men -- possibly as many as 100 -- surrounded their cars Tuesday night in a remote part of the city, about 15 miles (24 kilometers) south of the U.S.-Mexico border, authorities said.

The officers were responding to a report of a possible kidnapping.

The mutilated bodies of the three officers and an unidentified civilian wrapped in blankets bound with tape were discovered Wednesday morning in an empty lot, police said. Police later located the four heads in the border city of Tijuana, across from San Diego.

'Drug war frenzy'
Experts said the attack bears the trademark of killings committed by increasingly violent drug cartels that are battling to control key smuggling routes.

"It's a disturbing manifestation of the latest drug war frenzy. The militarization of the drug war in many ways on the side of law enforcement has corresponded with the militarization of tactics and personnel on the criminal side," said David Shirk, director of the Trans-Border Institute at the University of San Diego.

A witness told police that about 100 men, some wearing uniforms resembling those of Mexico's Federal Agency of Investigation, or AFI, were at the scene of the alleged kidnapping when the officers showed up, said a spokesman with the attorney general's office in the state of Baja California, where Rosarito is located. The person asked not to be identified because he is not allowed to publicly discuss the investigation.

The federal attorney general's office in Baja California said in a press release that no officers were involved in the disappearance of the four men. The office said it has opened an investigation to determine who the men impersonating AFI agents were.

Latest of similar attacks
The Rosarito killings are the latest in a series of attacks on law enforcement officials by suspected drug traffickers, who have formed large squads of heavily armed assailants.

Last month, three men armed with AK-47s burst into the Mexican federal attorney general's office in Tijuana and shot two agents, killing one.

In April, nearly two dozen heavily armed men tried to assassinate Baja California's top-ranking public safety official on a Mexicali street.

In December, gunmen attacked the Tijuana home of a state police commander and killed two of his bodyguards.

And in October, gunmen fired more than 50 bullets at the car of Tijuana's homicide chief in an unsuccessful assassination attempt.

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The Hammer



Joined: 18 Jan 2003
Location: Ullungdo 37.5 N, 130.9 E, altitude : 223 m

PostPosted: Sun Jul 16, 2006 9:15 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

We went to TJ yesterday and had a great time looking at pottery and paintings near Revolution Avenue.

We stayed there for about 3 hours and drove back to San Diego. There was a huge line of people trying to get back into the US on foot and it was moving very slowly. In the car we didnt have to wait long.

I'd recommend going there.
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SeniorEnglish



Joined: 18 Jun 2006

PostPosted: Thu Jul 27, 2006 3:49 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I used to live in San Diego. All I can say is get the heck out of there before the sun goes down. The freaks come out at night. Hide your wallet in a very safe place. There are many pick-pockets.
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Wangja



Joined: 17 May 2004
Location: Seoul, Yongsan

PostPosted: Thu Jul 27, 2006 5:55 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

The Hammer wrote:
We went to TJ yesterday and had a great time looking at pottery and paintings near Revolution Avenue.

We stayed there for about 3 hours and drove back to San Diego. There was a huge line of people trying to get back into the US on foot and it was moving very slowly. In the car we didnt have to wait long.

I'd recommend going there.


You in SD right now? I am in La Jolla ....

glad you enjoyed TJ
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Tiger Beer



Joined: 07 Feb 2003

PostPosted: Thu Jul 27, 2006 8:25 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

SeniorEnglish wrote:
I used to live in San Diego. All I can say is get the heck out of there before the sun goes down. The freaks come out at night. Hide your wallet in a very safe place. There are many pick-pockets.

Was that years ago?

Its usually one of the more safer cities in the U.S... it was only the downtown that was known for a congregation point for homeless and otherwise for a good dozen years or so.. but now its all cleaned up.

Downtown has been revitalized.. condos being built.. a number of blocks are known as a nightlife area and well-policed.. etc. It almost has a Manhattan-esqe quality within those few strips of blocks. All somewhat reason within the last 5-6 years or so.

--

Or Tijuana.. the redlight district isn't all that great after the sun goes down - sketchy.. I'd agree with that. The middle class bars/clubs areas are just fine though. Good times there, and no problem at night whatsoever.
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The Hammer



Joined: 18 Jan 2003
Location: Ullungdo 37.5 N, 130.9 E, altitude : 223 m

PostPosted: Thu Jul 27, 2006 9:56 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Wangja wrote:
The Hammer wrote:
We went to TJ yesterday and had a great time looking at pottery and paintings near Revolution Avenue.

We stayed there for about 3 hours and drove back to San Diego. There was a huge line of people trying to get back into the US on foot and it was moving very slowly. In the car we didnt have to wait long.

I'd recommend going there.


You in SD right now? I am in La Jolla ....

glad you enjoyed TJ


We are back in Korea.

During our stay in San Diego we were able to go to Sea World, visit Balboa Park, swim at Mission beach, watch a Padres game, and visit TJ.

The area sure does have a lot to offer!

After living here for five years, going back and seeing the high quality of life available to people in the US has me making my return plans.
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