More than a dozen Baja and southern California bands came together atop a parking garage for Rumble Fest Tijuana. The second edition of the DIY-defined event offered a location that’s also the best view in …
December 11, 2015
Mexico
One night in a Tijuana parking garage
Mexico: Five or so years ago
Smugglersville “The cops mess with us. The thieves mess with us. Everybody messes with us.” I was hobbling back from the store with a liter of milk, when I saw three young men sitting on …
December 5, 2015
The fridge between worlds
“It’s the border,” Rodrigo says. “So crazy. It stops good things happening all the time.”
Mexican-Americanized is close enough
“Hey man, I’m in L.A.!” I got a text from my friend Jaime couple months ago. “Hahaha, funny joke,” was my reply and then I ignored him. A couple of weeks later I got another …
November 30, 2015
Shot on a motorcycle in Tijuana
A young motorcyclist suffered a bullet wound to his leg on Saturday, November 28, when a Tijuana police officer mistakenly opened fire, according to a report in El Sol de Tijuana. According to the newspaper, …
November 30, 2015
El Tigre leaves the punks behind
One year ago, El Tigre had punk shows on a regular basis. They served cheap beer on tap, caguama (bottled beer), and mixed drinks intended to get you drunk for the least amount of money. …
November 28, 2015
Rumble Fest II coming at you!
“I guess it was just a matter of being in the wrong place at the wrong time,” says Tijuana Rumble Fest organizer David Villegas. “This random crook popped out of nowhere and tried to pick …
November 25, 2015
Middle-Easterners from the south
Two groups of mostly Pakistani — and several Afghan — men were detained by U.S. Border Patrol agents in western San Diego County in October, Border Patrol officials have confirmed. The first group — 11 …
November 16, 2015
An easy gathering spot in downtown Tijuana
“Why don’t you try Praga? They have really good chai.” My friend Claudia suggested this after I told her that I did not feel like eating vegan at her Happy Vegan locale. I was looking …
November 7, 2015
¡Rape Trump!
A mile west of the Tijuana airport, where the road ends and dirt road begins, a mural that reads “¡Rape Trump!” has been painted on the old border wall. The presidential candidate's face is depicted …
November 6, 2015
Halloween in Tijuana
Thousands of locals and tourists flocked to Avenida Revolución to party and celebrate Halloween, also known in Mexico as “Día de las Brujas.” I arrived at the scene around 9 p.m. and police had already …
November 3, 2015
She hailed a cab, they hailed the rocks
Drivers of yellow taxis situated near the international border in Tijuana attacked the driver of a competing taxi libre on Tuesday, October 27, then set his cab ablaze, according to an account published by El …
October 30, 2015
Tijuana sex-promotion project goes limp
Anaheim has Disneyland. Las Vegas has casinos. And Tijuana has, well, prostitutes. Red-faced city officials are back-pedaling ferociously after a high-ranking functionary suggested in a recent television interview that Tijuana should promote sex-for-sale as a …
October 27, 2015
Tijuana facelift
Last year, Calle Segunda in downtown Tijuana was destroyed in order to be redesigned. For a couple of months, it looked like the end of the world. Businesses and residents suffered difficult access and water …
October 26, 2015
Which part of the pig do you prefer?
The carnivore paradise that is the Telefónica food-truck park had one stall that served vegan food when I last visited in July. That place is gone and has been replaced with a food truck named …
October 20, 2015