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Terminal Boardumb => Non-Music Shit => Cities => Topic started by: settingson on July 27, 2009, 10:08:21 AM
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I'm going down there in a few weeks. Any tips?
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Flithiest place I've ever been in my life. Bought a HUGE switchblade there though.
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Get yerself stabbed by a tranny hooker.
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Went on the DC Snipers/Livefastdie across America tour. Couldn't find a donkey show or any pills. Just some shitty tacos and watered down Coronas.
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keep a lookout for my man with no feet layin in the gutter. buy him a beer.
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watered down Coronas.
Huh?
Nogales, MX is way filthier and the decadence is in plain view. Try it next time you're in AZ!
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Just went a couple weeks back. The Anglo American is a rare breed there lately. Theys scared of drug war shootouts and swine flu. Bah. More people got killed that weekend in the east bay than in Tijuana. Word of advice though, unless you've never been, avoid walking down Revolucion right now unless you look like a local. Otherwise you, the lone tourist, will be mobbed by people wanting to sell you shit. Walk down one of the side streets. And bring your passport otherwise it will be hell to get back in the US.
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I was put up against a building and patted down by police. They found some sort of political badge on one of my fellow travellers, then stepped back to confer about how to proceed. They interrogated us, asking if we had drugs (we did not), before ultimately letting us go.
I've had better experiences in the city on other visits, but it's never come off as a nice place in any sense.
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I wouldn't go. SSR has a bad ass attitude, but if you talk to someone who lives in San Diego, most of them will think you are crazy. If you speak spanish it might be ok. If you are really going to go, I would get out before night comes, which should be pretty easy in the summer. Avoid taking taxis whenever possible, that's probably one of the most common places to get mugged. It is sort of confusing when you get over the border, in san diego, it can seem like you are stranded on this little island and the taxi cab drivers will tell you that you need to take a taxi to get out of the area you are in. That, like everything else the taxi drivers tell you, is a lie. Just walk around for a little while and you will find the semi concealed path to the main area.
Don't be a tough guy! If you get mugged, just give them your wallet. Don't dress hip, just wear cloths that look cheap, buy a disposable camera. Oh, don't buy drugs. If you get caught with drugs it is going to cost a lot of money to bribe your way out of that.
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I wouldn't go. SSR has a bad ass attitude, but if you talk to someone who lives in San Diego, most of them will think you are crazy.
I'll be hanging out with a friend of mine who lives there. He says people who live in San Diego and are afraid to go to Tijuana are stupid and should grow a pair.
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Paranoia paranoia.... People in San Diego are pussies - whiteys who are a-scared of the brown menace. Really, SD is one of the softest place to live on god's good earth. They hear a car going down the street, with a busted muffler, and they are on the phone to the cops thinking its Hollister '47 again. The most thrilling thing about SD is the crazy plane ride on the way in.
As denkinger can attest, the only thing "dangerous" were perhaps the two teenage girls who propositioned us on Constitution or maybe the guy who followed us down the street saying "Pretty girls, massage, 40 dollar, legal." More people get gunned down on a daily basis in Oakland or LA than in Tijuana. The chance of getting mugged walking out of the 16th Street BART station at night is the same as walking around alone in downtown TJ at midnight.
Like any other fucking place you use common sense:
Don't buy drugs from strangers.
Don't walk around wasted alone.
Don't accept rides from strangers.
If you take a cab, make sure it is official and negotiate a price before you hop in (and make sure it is clear where you want to go).
Don't flash money/keep a small amount of spending money (in small bills) in your front pocket/put large bills in your shoe.
Keep your wallet in your front pocket.
Don't flash a watch or jewelry.
Stay out of the slums unless you are with a local.
Don't talk shit to the locals.
Stay out of bars that you arent familiar with.
Don't buy local women drinks.
And ignore unsolicited offers for pretty much anything.
That advice applies anywhere from Paris to Tijuana to Sacramento.
If you are going to Tijuana for whores, don't go outside Zona Norte - which is pretty much safe at all hours. After all, the whoremongers don't want people getting worked over there. It is bad for business. Personally, I'd keep it in my pants.
Other Tijuana specific advise:
Know where the bathrooms are (there is a pay bathroom in the Mexicoach building on Revolucion). Finding a bathroom should be your #1 concern, not drug violence.
Bring ones, fives, tens, and a few twenties. Tijuanans will take US cash but they often feign that they don't have change. At some places, expect a Yankee surcharge. Dont worry about it. The peso is weak and prices are cheap.
If you feel like grabbing a dollar beer on Revolucion, one is the limit. After the first the price mysteriously creeps up. Also the price for a beer to you is $1, for the pretty Mexican "girl" who wants you to buy one for her, the price will be $10. She can pay for her own drinks.
In bars, especially on Revolucion, there is a 50/50 chance that the Mexican "girl" you are talking to has a vagina.
Walking into downtown Tijuana from the border crossing is pretty easy: stay on the main streets, walk toward the arch and go down Revolucion or Constitution. Walking back to the border gets a little tricky, especially when you try to get to the crossing. Use the arch as your landmark. The border crossing is to the east of the arch. When you get around the crossing, follow the signs.
Downtown there are at least three farmacias per block and you can buy pretty much any drug you want. Do you need a prescription? Depends. Some farmacias will set you up with one. That said, there are so many ways to fuck up buying drugs from farmacias. One is that, the 'scipt that they just set you up with is part of a set up. You walk out the door, get nabbed by the cops, pay them off (while they take your drugs), and they let you walk, a hundred dollars poorer. This isn't anything new. Tijuanans have been pulling this scam for half a century. More likely is that the drugs you are buying are sugar pills or asprin. The only drug I buy in Mexico is Soma, which you can buy in a grocery store along with Advil. It is an everyday pain killer for Mexicans (and really good for migraines). If you do buy a bottle, pop it open before you cross the border. If asked, you had a headache and was recommended this.
You might see one Mexican official crossing into Mexico. No one cares. Crossing back, as long as you have a passport and arent stinking drunk or acting suspicious you will get waved through.
Forget a back pack. Bring a shoulder bag. Don't worry about dressing like a local to blend in. Tijuanans dress like Americans, including the early 20s hipsters who look like hipsters anywhere.
Check out http://www.tijuanagringo.com/turinfo/turinf01.html This is a really good site for anyone interested in Tijuana.
As noted, it is not dangerous there, not more than any major US city. Personally, aside from a few war zones and some Islamic countries like Yemen, you use common sense and you are in as much peril as anywhere else. Of course there are risks, but I risk my life every time I get on my bike to ride to the pool. The drivers here are more dangerous than the hucksters on the streets of TJ. Random violence is RANDOM. Stay where it is "safe" and you limit yourself to your house.
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There's supposed to be a record store that carries alot of old psych and garage. Sean or Erin Spits tried to give me directions but I couldn't find it. I know a couple people who've been, so it's got to be there somewhere.
There's an old hotel right near the arch when you walk in that has good cheap drinks. I partied there with the Ratas del Vaticano guys a couple years ago. The pharmacies suck. I've been to TJ twice and got ripped off both times. But admittedly, I'm a sucker. Maybe your local friend can take you to a good one.
First time I was there, I was in SD for a wedding and spent the whole day before in Tijuana getting drunk by myself. Stumbled through the bad neighborhoods, hung out in strip clubs where they give you laminated menus with the costs of BJs, and still didn't have any problems.
Maybe it's gotten worse since the drug wars have gotten more intense, but you should have a pretty good time.
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there's a store called nuclear waste thats got some cool stuff. eduardo and yanine run it. at least ya got some locals to hook up with. calle 3RA #2015 enter at revolucion and madero in the central zone. follow SSR's advice and have fun.
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One more thing: If you are gonna buy a bottle or two of tequila or mescal to bring home, stay out of the tequila shops on Revolucion or in tourist areas. You will pay double for so-called premium tequila that you could have bought at a grocery store. The real premium tequila is gonna cost you money anywhere. You might save $10 on a $100 bottle but that is about it. The deals for premium are gonna be buying straight from the distillery. A bottle of good tequila - not Cuervo, think of it as the Budweiser of tequila - you can get at grocery stores. Expect to pay $15 - 25 for a bottle that would cost you $25 - 50 in the US (or at a tourist area tequila shop).
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Thanks for all the tips!!
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Went on the DC Snipers/Livefastdie across America tour. Couldn't find a donkey show or any pills. Just some shitty tacos and watered down Coronas.
Donkey shows havent existed for years, at least 25. At this point consider it an urban myth.
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Went on the DC Snipers/Livefastdie across America tour. Couldn't find a donkey show or any pills. Just some shitty tacos and watered down Coronas.
Donkey shows havent existed for years, at least 25. At this point consider it an urban myth.
If that group of assholes can't sniff out a donkey show then it doesn't exist. REAL TALK.
Also, Soriano...just curious, how do you know so much about the donkey show?
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I am a man of many talents.
--- Scott "Donkey" Soriano
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I am a man of many talents.
--- Scott "Donkey" Soriano
God compensated him well for making him so short and hairy.
Or so I was told by the trannies in TJ. Nice folks!
That psych store is not too hard to find, it's right off one of the main drags. He doesn't keep too much stock around there, even the stuff he's put out is only there in individual copies. I had to helplessly watch the Donkey pull the last Dug Dugs LP. I laced his guacamole at lunch with Spanish Fly to make him pass out from blood loss to the brain so I could get the LP into my bag, but all it did was turn his eyeballs bright red and induce these weird polyps on his neck.
Sorry Donkey, I know I blamed the Dirty Mexicans but that was my fault. Lo siento! You can send me the $17 clinic bill.
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ay carumba, i knew it was you! good thing i stocked up on mexican switchblades. i have one with your name on it.
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If you have friends there it is a different story, but why are you asking a bunch of Americans for cool things to do if you have friends there? I am not saying that there are 100,000 Mexican gangsters waiting around to torture hapless Americans, but people do go missing and there are tons of crime. A family friend of mine went missing for ten days and turned up dead. He was probably in to drugs/prostitution, but still. There are also random shootouts in the street. A bunch of people died outside another family friends house in TJ in a shootout. I guess you could compare it to oakland except for the fact that all the parts you would go to if you went over the border without knowing anything are a huge tourist traps, the food is fairly likely to get you sick, and the police are more dangerous than the criminals. At least you can get a good beer and better mexican food in Oakland. I have been a bunch, but honestly unless you know someone the coolest part about going to TJ (unless you see a Jai Alai match or a bull fight) is coming back and being all "Dude, I went to TJ" and have your friends be all "Dude, seriously?". If it were me, I would just save my parking lot / trolly ticket and buy a 7" or a quality San Diego beer. There is a reason so many people from TJ hang out and do all their shopping in San Diego. Oh, floor tiling is super cheap there if you need that.
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Bullshit.
The people getting killed - Americans included - are idiots trying to break into the the drug trade.
The street battles are very over sensationalized - by Mexican and US press - and they are over. What was happening was a turf war and the turf has been established, mostly. The murders that happen now are dealers against dealers and cops against dealers who won't pay off.
Prostitution in Tijuana is legal and unless you are trying to rip off a whore there is no violence involved. The Red Zone is - in fact - one of the safest parts of the city. Now if you try to get in on the business action, of course you are going to meet trouble.
The food is fine. Ate there recently. Bowel movement that resulted was firm. Like any other place in the world - including the US - you drink bottled water and you wash fruits and veggies before you eat them. Also best thoroughly cook your meet.
Cops can be a problem in Tijuana but again common sense prevails. If you aren't going there to score drugs or arent walking around wasted at 1 am, basically, if you arent giving cops any reason to fuck with you, they dont fuck with you.
There are a few fucked up areas not to wander around in. It is easy to find out where, just ask "Where are the slums" and don't go there. Just like you dont hang out in Hunter's Point or Compton. Common sense.
To recommend San Diego over Tijuana is to advise someone to shop at the mall instead of a thrift store. So what if the thrift store is in a shitty neighborhood and is a bit rough at the edges? That's called life. Tijuana is sometimes dirty and fucked up and crazy and mind-boggling, but so is Memphis. I've wandered around far more fucked up parts of Memphis and Detroit looking for records than Tijuana. The difference between those places and Tijuana are Mexicans. That's it. English? Hard not to find a Tijuanan that doesn't speak English. Like I said before, unless you are a total MZITF-brain washed pussy, stick to common sense that you would use anywhere you aren't familiar with and go. I am quite sure, I've spent more of my life traveling around and wandering through fucked up places than MZITF and while my attitude might be big, physically I've been described as a greasy Rick Moranis so it isnt like here's Jake Lamotta rolling down the blvd. Just carry yourself with ease, dont be flashy and be polite.
That said, knowing the people on this board, MZITF might be saying "Stay out of Tijuana! I have a prime record spot there that I don't want to be discovered!"
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The line about more people being gunned down in Oakland than TJ is just completely false. In 2008, there were 844 homicides in TJ. Oakland had about 120. Even adjusting for the population difference (TJ has about 2 million residents, Oakland about 500,000), TJ had way more per capita murders. That said...as of this point, very few of the murders in TJ are tourists. The victims are largely people involved in the drug trade somehow. If you take the precautions listed earlier, you should be okay in TJ.
I may be making a trip down there for dental work soon if the work I need winds up costing as much in California as I think it will. Anyone know a good dentist in TJ, Tecate, or Mexicali?
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Yeah okay so I hyped the murder rate in Oakland, but to prove the point that random violence is everywhere and you can be killed anywhere. Also, it is much more likely that you are going to be killed or hurt in a car crash by some asshole texting "I LUV U SEXY" than being shot pretty much anywhere. People fear the wrong things.
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There were are many storefront dentists within a one-mile radius of the border as any other biz, including pharms and bars. Most were emphasizing cosmetic shit though.
You want to know a Mexi city that was more dangerous than TJ last year? Fucking Acapulco. You had gun battles spilling over into the hotel tourist areas, total Matrix-style shoot-em-ups.
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You hear that Acapulco?
DON'T BRING YOUR GUNS TO TOWN!
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I may be making a trip down there for dental work soon if the work I need winds up costing as much in California as I think it will. Anyone know a good dentist in TJ, Tecate, or Mexicali?
pm me.
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Just returned from Tijuana and have to report that I had an awesome time. Yes, I had some in the know tour guides, but I also did a lot of exploring on my own and found great food, warm people and no violence. Yes, there are seedy parts and the possibility of finding yourself in serious trouble is there, but that's true from New Orleans to Bangkok. Long story short, it is what YOU make of it. If anyone reading this is interested in visiting, feel free to contact me for tips.
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Welcome back! Glad you had a good time.
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I used to get dental work in TJ. I once got 10 cavities filled at once, and while he was numbing me up he dripped novacaine into my mouth and down my throat. I thought I was gonna choke the entire time since I couldn't swallow or feel anything in my throat for that matter. All this was happening while the dude in the next stall was screaming bloody murder and finally running out of the place at top speed. I spent the entire day with a numb mouth, tongue, and throat. I couldn't even drink water.
But hey, it was only 40 bucks a tooth!
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Welcome back! Glad you had a good time.
Thanks! You'll have to come downstairs and check out the records I picked up.
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I want to attend a Xolos match at Estadio Caliente? Has anyone been? I am trying to figure out travel logistics to the stadium. I would likely cross over from San Diego. Should I drive over or walk over and rely on public transport to the game? I hear rumors that there is match shuttles that depart from SD and drop off at EC.
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I want to attend a Xolos match at Estadio Caliente? Has anyone been? I am trying to figure out travel logistics to the stadium. I would likely cross over from San Diego. Should I drive over or walk over and rely on public transport to the game? I hear rumors that there is match shuttles that depart from SD and drop off at EC.
A friend of mine told me about shuttles as well, but it should be easy enough to walk over and get a cab to the stadium. I'm not sure if you live in San Diego or not, but either way it's definitely worth it to stay overnight in Tijuana. Feel free to send me a message if you need tips or anything.
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I want to attend a Xolos match at Estadio Caliente? Has anyone been? I am trying to figure out travel logistics to the stadium. I would likely cross over from San Diego. Should I drive over or walk over and rely on public transport to the game? I hear rumors that there is match shuttles that depart from SD and drop off at EC.
A friend of mine told me about shuttles as well, but it should be easy enough to walk over and get a cab to the stadium. I'm not sure if you live in San Diego or not, but either way it's definitely worth it to stay overnight in Tijuana. Feel free to send me a message if you need tips or anything.
I live on the surface of the sun. Better known as Phoenix, AZ. My initial plan would be to stay near the border and walk across for the day and return after the Xolos match. If/when this happens, I will hit you up for tips. I appreciate the offer.
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Going down to Tijuana on Friday. Xolos match at 20:30. Much excite! Driving to San Ysdiro from Phoenix and walking across the border. Not sure exactly what time I'll be crossing over but I should have, at least, a few hours to kill before the match at Estadio Caliente.
Any recommendations on shit to see or do whilst killing time? Food recommendations near the crossing or near the stadium a major help. Maybe I'll try to find a record shop too.
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La ciruela electrica is definitely worth a visit. It's downtown on 6th between Revolucion and Constitucion. Not sure if you'll want to lug records to the game, but you should easily be able to get a cab from there to the stadium. Lemme know if you need any more tips or info, I've been getting down there pretty regularly.
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La ciruela electrica is definitely worth a visit. It's downtown on 6th between Revolucion and Constitucion. Not sure if you'll want to lug records to the game, but you should easily be able to get a cab from there to the stadium. Lemme know if you need any more tips or info, I've been getting down there pretty regularly.
Pocket money: dollars or pesos? I've been getting mixed opinion.
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If you're staying for more than a few hours I'd get pesos, but if you're just going to the game small bills should be cool.