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I would just like to visit the US-Mexico border without actually crossing it. I did this with Canada-US border last year, and it wa sjust kinda cool seeing all the goings on and such. i know it's kinda weird, but I just need to know which of thr larger border towns would be safest for me to just check it out. I was thinking el Paso, or Nogales, YUma, or San Diego, or some smaller city in NM. Any ideas? I know it's unusual to ask this, but humor me THanks!! BTW I'm living in Tulsa right now so that's my starting point
On our drive from east coast to west we happened to stop in El Paso at night at a gas station/truck stop. There was a dark shadow of night behind the store then tons of lights- that was Mexico.
Was a sight!
Other than that, in San Diego the area at the border is busy, even on the US side.
Safest? I don't understand the questions. Most of the border crossings are well lit and well manned, for obvious reasons. On my list of interesting sights, border crossings would be one of the bottom items.
The crossings are underwhelming to say the least. But if you are there why not just cross the darn border, it's pretty hassle free to cross over into Mexico, go to El Paso and have lunch over the border in Juarez so you have a better story, for returning you might have long lines during rush hour but once you get to the U.S. line you usually get through with a wave. Better is to walk over the bridge in El Paso. Just do it, no big deal.
Well, it's the furthest away, but the San Ysidro border crossing in San Diego is the busiest land border crossing in the world, AFAIK, and you'll find plenty do see without crossing.
It's actually not strange at all in San Diego. Wait times to get back into the US can be atrocious... upwards of an hour walking and 4-6 hours driving, so lots of folks like to go down, show the out-of-towners what Mexico looks like, but not actually cross... plus, due to recent eruption in gang violence, the official recommendation is not to cross into TJ right now anyway.
From San Ysidro there's all sorts of ways to see Tijuana without crossing. There's an area of shops and restaurants right there at the border you can walk around, as well as an overpass that the taxis rank up on that's about 100 yards away from the border. You can walk up that and get a nice view of Tijuana, all while being stateside. Check out the Las Americas outlet mall too. The back of the mall's property line is the fence pretty much.
My daughter went to U of Arizona. When my wife and I would visit we would sometimes take a side trip to Nogales (last time was in '05 after her graduation). We would always park at a lot and walk across the border. Nogales has a main street worth walking but be careful in other areas. We walked all one night and ate at a hole in the wall restaurant. Had a great time, but then we heard about some bad things going on there (not necessarily to foreigners). I would go during the day for a few hours and you'll have fun and a good experience. If you just want to watch the goings on, there are a lot of shops on the American side of the border walk that you can see all the activity going on. It's also only an hour or so from Tuscon and about 2 1/2 hours from Phoenix. I certainly wouldn't go to Tiajuana. Never been to Juarez, but that sounds like it was a good suggestion too.
One other thing I just remembered. The restaurant didn't have any diet soda so the waiter went next door to the market and bought me one.
I would just like to visit the US-Mexico border without actually crossing it. I did this with Canada-US border last year, and it wa sjust kinda cool seeing all the goings on and such. i know it's kinda weird, but I just need to know which of thr larger border towns would be safest for me to just check it out. I was thinking el Paso, or Nogales, YUma, or San Diego, or some smaller city in NM. Any ideas?
I have been to nearly every border town.
I would recommend El Paso\ Ciudad Juarez where you have a 10 mile stretch where you can look over the border.
Do realize that you can hook up with the AAA to get a tour of Juarez and that there are a couple of charter buses that run along the better parts of Juarez.
The only border town that I really disliked was Laredo/Nuevo Laredo. Neither town did much for me.
There is a huge drug war going on right now so I would beware of the bordertowns. It's spilling over to the States. I work in government and we've gotten orders to "stay away" so just be forewarned. With that said, The only bordertown I've been to is Nuevo Laredo. It "felt like" Mexico on either side of the border. This was back in early 2000 and it was a lot of fun going with a big group. My suggestion to you is don't go alone! Or if you do, make sure someone knows that you're doing this. Please BE CAREFUL!
I'd recommend moving up the coast just a little, like the Gulf town of Port Aransas, TX. That would be a great place to enjoy Spring Break for someone of drinking age.
How ironic. This article is in our local newspaper today, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Remember, the protest are on the Mexican side. I really believe the last line in the article.
STLtoday.com - Printer friendly - CIUDAD JUAREZ, MEXICO: Protests are held on 3 bridges to U.S. (http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/emaf.nsf/Popup?ReadForm&db=stltoday%5Cnews%5Cstories.nsf&do cid=CD828DE7F2F360CA862575610017EAFC - broken link)
CIUDAD JUAREZ, MEXICO: Protests are held on 3 bridges to U.S.
Wednesday, Feb. 18 2009
Hundreds of people blocked bridges to the United States in three border cities
Tuesday, demanding that the army leave, in another challenge for the Mexican
government as it struggles to quell escalating drug violence.
The protests in Ciudad Juarez blocked traffic for about two hours across three
bridges connecting the city to El Paso, Texas. Similar protests broke out on
bridges in the border cities of Nuevo Laredo and Reynosa. Demonstrators blocked
a main avenue in Monterrey and roads in the Gulf state of Veracruz.
Army officials claim that drug cartels organize such protests.
On second thought, I'd avoid Mexico. This was in today's St. Louis Post Dispatch:
Quote:
•Violence in Mexico: Gunmen killed a police officer and a jail guard Friday and left signs on their bodies saying they had fulfilled a promise to kill at least one officer every 48 hours until the Ciudad Juarez police chief resigns. Cesar Ivan Portillo was the fifth police officer killed this week in Mexico's deadliest city.
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THanks!! BTW I'm living in Tulsa right now so that's my starting point
Never been to Juarez, but that sounds like it was a good suggestion too.
