Tijuana

The Mexican city on the United States border, reached on foot from San Diego in under ten minutes. Harry arrives with the statistic — consistently ranked the most dangerous city in the world, 1,844 murders the previous year (from video – unverified) — and spends the day finding a normal one.

The border economy

• The commute runs in both directions. Mexicans cross daily to work in San Diego; American citizens live here because San Diego is among the most expensive cities in the US, and cross every day for work or school.
• Pharmacies serve Americans. Medicine at roughly half the US price, plus dental treatment, all along the tourist street.
• The airport is on the border, with a $35 bridge crossing into it, after which domestic flights are cheap.
• More English is spoken here than in the rest of Mexico, because it is a border city.

Safety, as explained by people who live there

• The cartels want the territory, not the tourists. The taxi driver’s account: Tijuana is valuable for moving drugs into the US, so organisations from across Mexico compete for it, and the violence is between them.
• Petty crime is close to non-existent, which is what makes the “most dangerous city” label misleading for a visitor.
• A military convoy goes down the main tourist street while he films, which he offers without comment as evidence that this is not the US.
• The red light district operates openly in daylight. He films it briefly and carefully and moves on.

Playas de Tijuana

• Families everywhere on a Sunday, which is the image he keeps against the statistic.
• Mango with chilli from a beach seller — sweet then hot, and better than he expected.
• The wall runs into the sea. Two walls, empty ground, San Diego beyond, and a soldier watching with a rifle. He asks for a conversation and is politely refused.
• The meeting place. Part of this wall was where families split across the border could come to talk and touch hands — including people who will never be able to enter the US. He is told it may no longer happen.
• Murals along the wall, salt-damaged, including a Free Palestine piece and a political cartoon.
• The bullring stands nearby, which he understands is no longer used on animal-cruelty grounds.

Eating

Tacos at 40 pesos, around $2.30, at a touristy beach restaurant — soft, with fried corn, and the reason he says he came. He notes it is likely the most he would pay anywhere in the country.

Harry’s tips

• Cross on a Sunday if you can; weekday afternoons run to hours.
• Talk to the taxi drivers. Both of them gave him more than any guide would have, and one of them gave him life advice.
• Ask the pharmacies what you’d pay at home first. The saving is the entire reason the street exists.

Source

• A Journey Across the US/Mexico Border into Tijuana 🇺🇸 🇲🇽 — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F2cspOu3_iQ