When I first met Oliver Castañeda a couple years ago, he was running a small coffee shop named El Gnomo (The Gnome) in downtown Tijuana in the alley known as Pasaje Gomez. When Pasaje Gomez …

“The dollar keeps getting more expensive! Isn't it awesome?” Jimmy told me excitedly one payday a couple months ago. At age 20, Jimmy was my youngest coworker while I was working in retail. He had …

Every Saturday morning I play a pick-up game of soccer with friends from San Diego and Tijuana. The field we play on varies each week, but it is always south of the border. When we …

My mom loves this pizzeria situated almost at the end of the boardwalk on Playas de Tijuana (half a mile south from the border wall). We went there as a family for Mother’s day and …

On September 11, Tijuana city leaders held a meeting at the chamber of commerce (CANACO) with citizens, representatives of public transit, and other authorities to discuss conflict between taxis and Uber. The meeting started an …

"There's a generational gap," explains David Peña, who moved south of the border about a year ago with his brother after graduating with a B.A. in art from CalState Long Beach. David teamed up with …

The Gastrocourt Colectivo 9 opened on September of last year and has grown in popularity and volume. What was once an empty hallway leading to the semi-hidden food court is now a bustling row of …

Humo Avenida Ocampo between Boulevard Agua Caliente and Calle 11, Tijuana In his vegetarian days, Reader reviewer Chad Deal visited the Telefónica Gastro Park, didn’t try any meat, and still called the location an undeniable …

The image of a businessman holding a cord tied around a homeless man's neck outside a bar in Ensenada's tourist district while his friends laugh was published on Wednesday, July 22. A clear abuse of …

“Chun kun!... Chun kun!” A Chinese woman yells as she pushes a stroller that holds a greasy cardboard box through the streets of downtown Tijuana. She stops as soon as someone shows interest and says …

Since my brother married a Tijuana local, most of the recommendations I receive on where to eat in Tijuana have come from the two of them. When I was short on cash and tired of …

As the 33rd annual book fair in Tijuana was coming to an end, a completely different book fair was starting up. The first fair of independent publications hosted by Raices Infoshop, Food Not Bombs, Publicaciones …

The second installment of Borderland Noisefest landed at La Caja Fuerte, a newer venue in the art and culture passageway of Pasaje Rodriguez, Tijuana. Featuring bands and projects from Los Angeles, San Diego, and Tijuana, …

Since January of 2010, El Hotel del Migrante Deportado (Hotel of the Deported Migrant) in downtown Mexicali gave free shelter, food, access to showers, clean clothes, and general support to over 300,000 deported people and …

Maria Fernanda (MaFer) Treviño, also known as La Brownie Girl, biked around Tijuana delivering brownies to customers and coffee shops that sponsored her products. Her popularity grew as she made appearances at music festivals and …

Entering Tijuana through the San Ysidro pedestrian border crossing is nothing like going to the United States. Instead of waiting in line for hours on a crooked sidewalk while beggars and salesmen of all types …

The corner of 6th and Constitución is near the epicenter of Tijuana’s active nightlife. Eight years ago this corner hosted La Chupiteria, an after-hours bar frequented by foreigners and extreme partiers. The bar got shut …

On May 1, at around 1 a.m., a friend of mine, Danger Dave, got stabbed four times in the torso on Calle Sexta. He was rushed in an ambulance to Tijuana’s Hospital General almost an …

Urban Adventures Beach Town Suburban Ocean & Bay Backcountry Mexico

Tacos El Rey Calle Segunda (2nd) and Avenida 5 de Mayo, Centro, Tijuana Like many taco stands in Tijuana, Tacos El Rey has no menu anywhere. Except this is not a taco stand but a …

Wonder and Hope — Mom always convinced me it would be an adventure. By Ian Anderson The Animal Keeper— Animals spoke to my mother “in a language only she understood.” By Whitney Butler La Gringa …

My mother was born Jody Ann Teschner in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, on July 9, 1957, and raised in the suburbs. I don’t know much about my grandparents, except that my grandfather fought as a lieutenant colonel …

The news of dog meat in a Chinese restaurant spread like wildfire. I overheard people in every corner of Tijuana talking about it — while eating street tacos or just walking around. Social media was …

A food truck near the Iris Avenue trolley station has caught my attention every time I go by. It has a painting of the same food truck crossing a black bridge and reads “Mariscos El …

I nicknamed the pedestrian bridge, the one near the vehicle bridge as soon as you come into Tijuana through San Ysidro (Puente el Chaparral) "The Bridge of Doom." Because if you found yourself underneath it, …

I have resisted the smell of Pollos Don Pepe for about 6 months. I work in the small soccer store next door from the taco shop in the strip mall next to Northgate Market in …

Baja and San Diego have a long history of partying together. These days, the atmosphere is less belligerence and more participants. Promoters from both sides work together to throw underground shows at new and inventive …

El Arco Monumental de Tijuana is a similar structure to the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, but a quarter of its size and with a hanging clock. Its official name is “El Arco del Milenio” …

“I am immortal. I got my Sentri card,” posted Erick Mark Cavadas on his Facebook feed in early December. “Don't get too excited, the sentri lane has been sucking,” replied a girl that I did …

Dolphins play near the shore at sunrise, whiplashing their tails to form a sand circle to entrap their breakfast. The panicked fish jump up directly into the dolphins' mouths – a nature event I'd only …

Tijuana III Millennium or “La Mona” is an iconic giant sculpture of a naked woman that doubles as a house. The sculpture is five stories tall and weighs over 18 tons. La Mona is located …

The opening of more car lanes at the end of September greatly improved the San Ysidro border-crossing experience…for those who drive. My coworker who used to cross on foot now drives to work with a …

My college roommate from Minnesota recently paid me a visit in San Diego/Tijuana. It was his first time in California, so it was my responsibility to show off the amazing beer we have. My friend …

“We are having a meeting this Wednesday [October 1] with all the deported moms,” I am told by Yolanda Varona, the director of DREAMers Moms USA/Tijuana. “You are welcome to come. Hector says to bring …

It's been a month since I got a part-time retail job at Sport Zone on Coronado Avenue in Chula Vista. The job is five miles away from my apartment, but sometimes it takes me up …

The pedestrian border-wait line at the San Ysidro crossing is like the longest line in an amusement park…only you reach the end and find out that there is no roller-coaster. There is usually no one …

At the edge of Zona Norte, the downtown Tijuana neighborhood that abuts the border, there is a small sports park, Unidad Deportiva Benito Juárez. Families play basketball, kids enjoy an above-ground pool, boxers train inside …

The Bunker of the Deported Veterans of America is located on 3rd street, near Parque Teniente Guerrero, on top of Baja Gym. Dark steps behind an iron door next to the gym's entrance lead you …

“Someone will die,” posted Carlos Arreguin on his Facebook page minutes before the Carnavalito Peligroso I music festival began at Plaza Fiesta. The singer of the power-violence band Calafia Puta was one of the organizers …

A saxophone and an accordion play in unison, one female dancer and two male dancers freeze in a different position while the rest of Parque Teniente continues with its regular busy life. A couple of …

Tijuana's façade has never been a pretty one; there are not many green spaces, billboards are placed everywhere and with no clear building regulations. City folk have built whatever they want, wherever they want. In …

Renovations are taking place at Parque Teniente Guererro, Tijuana's downtown park. The plaza with the gazebo in the middle and several grassy sections has been closed to public. A larger area on the corner of …

There are countless stray cats and dogs in Tijuana, and animal control is done mostly by accidental roadkill or by people who kill animals for pleasure. Pet-ownership culture is completely different in a country that …

“It's like something out of a TV commercial. Watching you guys celebrate the goals, hugging each other, jumping in front of the TV, and drinking Tecates. I don't really get you sports people, but I …

I was people-watching on the corner of 30th and University, wondering which would be the best bar to watch the upcoming World Cup game, United States versus Ghana. An older couple walked by, the white …

Of the 32 countries participating in the World Cup, only the United States carries on like nothing is happening. Despite hosting the Cup in 1994 and having respectable finishes in 2006 and 2010, most of …

At 5 p.m., a homeless man in a wheelchair tries to cross Second Street but has trouble with the rubble; a transsexual hooker walks by wearing a short dress, stumbling around on her high heels. …

“Oh, man! You moved to a place next to Parque Teniente? That’s where the male and transsexual prostitutes hang out, robberies happen, and deported homeless people sleep,” a TJ friend informs me. For a whole …

In my search to adopt a kitten in Tijuana, a friend of mine directed me to Claudia Lomelí, an animal-rights activist who spends some of her time rescuing street animals and finding them homes. The …

I woke up in a mansion in Ensenada on Sunday morning not sure how I got there. My new next door neighbor, Freddy, had invited me to the Baja Beer Fest and told me not …