Life As Nomad

2018-07 Tijuana, Mexico

Documenting my 4-day “extended July 4th” overland trip to Mexico.

Learned about the other California, brushed up my Spanish, and got my daily dose of fish tacos.

#Mexico #Tijuana #Ensenada

SFO-SAN.
@SanDiego
From airport to downtown wouldn’t be too long of a walk. But Lime Bike is everywhere so I gotta give that a try! Any ride less than 30 minutes is free.
@SanDiego
Mobike and ofo. Lime Bike is facing some serious competitions here.
@SanDiego
Took the UCSD Blue Line trolley from Downtown San Diego to San Ysidro, where the US-Mexico border is located.
@SanDiego
Once in San Ysidro it was just a matter of walking across the border to Tijuana. Without a car, going through customs took no time.
@SanYsidro
The Mexico-US border is an international border separating Mexico and the US, extending from the Pacific Ocean to the west and Gulf of Mexico to the east. The US states along the border, from west to east, are California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas. The Mexican states along the border are Baja California, Sonora, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas.

This 2000-mile border traverses a variety of terrains, ranging from major urban areas to uninhabitable deserts, along which some 600 miles are fenced. With approximately 350 million legal crossings every year, it is the most frequently crossed international border in the world.
@Tijuana
The Mexico-US border is an international border separating Mexico and the US, extending from the Pacific Ocean to the west and Gulf of Mexico to the east. The US states along the border, from west to east, are California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas. The Mexican states along the border are Baja California, Sonora, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas.

This 2000-mile border traverses a variety of terrains, ranging from major urban areas to uninhabitable deserts, along which some 600 miles are fenced. With approximately 350 million legal crossings every year, it is the most frequently crossed international border in the world.
@Tijuana
The Mexico-US border is an international border separating Mexico and the US, extending from the Pacific Ocean to the west and Gulf of Mexico to the east. The US states along the border, from west to east, are California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas. The Mexican states along the border are Baja California, Sonora, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas.

This 2000-mile border traverses a variety of terrains, ranging from major urban areas to uninhabitable deserts, along which some 600 miles are fenced. With approximately 350 million legal crossings every year, it is the most frequently crossed international border in the world.
@Tijuana
The Mexico-US border is an international border separating Mexico and the US, extending from the Pacific Ocean to the west and Gulf of Mexico to the east. The US states along the border, from west to east, are California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas. The Mexican states along the border are Baja California, Sonora, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas.

This 2000-mile border traverses a variety of terrains, ranging from major urban areas to uninhabitable deserts, along which some 600 miles are fenced. With approximately 350 million legal crossings every year, it is the most frequently crossed international border in the world.
@Tijuana
The Mexico-US border is an international border separating Mexico and the US, extending from the Pacific Ocean to the west and Gulf of Mexico to the east. The US states along the border, from west to east, are California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas. The Mexican states along the border are Baja California, Sonora, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas.

This 2000-mile border traverses a variety of terrains, ranging from major urban areas to uninhabitable deserts, along which some 600 miles are fenced. With approximately 350 million legal crossings every year, it is the most frequently crossed international border in the world.
@Tijuana
Playa de Tijuana (Tijuana Beach).
@Tijuana
The Mexico side.
@Tijuana
The US side.
@Tijuana
The Mexico-US border is an international border separating Mexico and the US, extending from the Pacific Ocean to the west and Gulf of Mexico to the east. The US states along the border, from west to east, are California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas. The Mexican states along the border are Baja California, Sonora, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas.

This 2000-mile border traverses a variety of terrains, ranging from major urban areas to uninhabitable deserts, along which some 600 miles are fenced. With approximately 350 million legal crossings every year, it is the most frequently crossed international border in the world.
@Tijuana
Monumental Plaza de Toros (Bull-Fighting Arena).
@Tijuana
Monumental Plaza de Toros (Bull-Fighting Arena).
@Tijuana
My mystery soup.
@Tijuana
My mystery soup.
@Tijuana
Eat mango the Latin American way: Sprinkle chili powder all over it.
@Tijuana
Eat mango the Latin American way: Sprinkle chili powder all over it.
@Tijuana
Local market selling chili, piñata, and other things.
@Tijuana
Tijuana Arch on Avenue Revolución.
@Tijuana
Tijuana Arch on Avenue Revolución.
@Tijuana
Cuauhtemoc, the last Aztec Emperor in Central Mexico.
@Tijuana
At Museo de las Californias, there were exhibits of Yuman and Guaycura (indigenous tribes of Baja California). Back then, men could have several wives, and women used to bathe their newborn in urine for disinfection. Today, there are still a few hundred indigenous people living in Baja California.
//
Going further back, the first human beings that populated the Americas migrated from Asia during the last Ice Age, about 15,000 years ago. These groups then crossed the land bridge that once connected Siberia and Alaska (under water today), following heards of migratory animals and continuing their migration southward. The first colonizers were primarily nomadic, large-game hunters.
@Tijuana
Albertosaurus inhabited in Baja California some 70 million years ago. So were the sea cows.
@Tijuana
Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
@Tijuana
Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
@Tijuana
A frugal backpacker at heart, I stay at hostels for most non-business travel and kind of like it. But I have racked up quite substantial points from my RTW journey and was able to travel-hack at some fairly unique hotels through the state of Baja California in Mexico.
@Ensenada
A frugal backpacker at heart, I stay at hostels for most non-business travel and kind of like it. But I have racked up quite substantial points from my RTW journey and was able to travel-hack at some fairly unique hotels through the state of Baja California in Mexico.
@Tijuana
Chalupas. To me, taco / chalupa / tostada are all the same thing.
@Tijuana
There is Greyhound Bus in the US, Tica Bus in Central America, and ABC Bus in Mexico. The 1.5-hour ride took me from Tijuana to Ensenada.

The Mexican states of Baja California and Baja California Sur is a long stretch of a peninsula: Between Tijuana in the north and La Paz in the South, there are 1000 miles of mountain ranges in between. It would take 20 hours one-way to travel the entire stretch.
@Tijuana
Flagpole.
@Ensenada
Flagpole.
@Ensenada
The Mexican state of Baja California is surrounded by ocean and seafood is abundant. Gotta try tacos de prescado y camarón (fish and shrimp tacos) at one of the street vendors – Good stuff! I had 6 tacossssss in one sitting.
@Ensenada
Came back the next day to satisfy my addiction to fish tacossss. @Ensenada
La Matrícula de Tributos (the tribute roll) is a 16th-century Central Mexican manuscript on bark paper, listing the tribute paid by tributaries of the Aztec empire. Each glyph shows an item that the city had used for tribute. It is considered an important document in learning about the Aztec culture and economy. @Ensenada
Today US$1 worths about $20 Mexican Pesos. During the 2008 financial meltdown, the exchange rate was 1:10.
@Tijuana
Mission accomplished. No one cared to put a stamp on my passport in either direction.
@Tijuana
Once getting off the San Ysidro trolley, I rode Lime’s electric scooter from Downtown San Diego back to the airport. Carrying nothing but a backpack, the 30-minute scooter ride along San Diego Bay was rather fun and easy.
@SanDiego
Once getting off the San Ysidro trolley, I rode Lime’s electric scooter from Downtown San Diego back to the airport. Carrying nothing but a backpack, the 30-minute scooter ride along San Diego Bay was rather fun and easy.
@SanDiego
Bird, Lime’s main competitor in San Diego.
@SanDiego

More posts