Taco Bout a Great Time
June 22nd, 2023
Table of Contents
“Don’t go to Tijuana, it’s not safe”. “You’re crazy if you go to Tijuana”. “Please don’t go to Tijuana, I’ll worry about you”. These were the words that rang from family and friends when we told them about our plan to walk across the US / Mexican border to Tijuana. The reputation for the area was not great, just last year the cartel had run rampant in the city in response to the arrests of high-level cartel members. However, we didn’t really care. As with most places, if you follow the simple rule of ‘Don’t be an idiot’, everything will usually ended up being okay.
Walking to Mexico
We were due in San Diego for the wedding of our very close friends, when a thought crossed our travel-addicted minds. “Hold up, that’s close to Mexico.” The idea of adding a new country to our repertoire made us foam at the mouth, and within minutes we had booked a tour of Tijuana, the closest city.
A 3 hour drive from Los Angeles took us to the border town of San Ysidro. ABC stores, currency exchanges, and cheap motels dotted the street which ran parallel to a train track that crossed through the city and ended at the border. We parked our rental car in an enclosed parking lot and made our way across the train tracks to the border.
Our tour guide, Marisol, had already reached out with instructions on how to get across and where to meet her. As we moved ahead, a sign appeared, ‘To Mexico’. We were here. Slight nerves began to creep in as we thought back to all the warnings from family and friends, and those nerves were heightened as heavily barbed wire fences loomed over us.
The border crossing was easy. “Why are you here?” “A tour.” “Ok.”
As we walked through the turnstiles, a new world appeared. We had really been in America just a couple minutes ago and now here we were in a completely different environment. Food stalls and stands selling cheap, miscellaneous items crowded the border entrance. A man at the end of the street yelled at everyone walking by to get into his taxi. A giant, colorful ‘Farmacia’ displayed itself in the distance promising the best prices on all drugs. It was loud, bustling, energetic. We loved it.
Marisol met us just outside. Our tour group consisted of me, Emily, and an older man from Guatemala, Manuel. We chatted with him about our experience in Antigua, which he was happy and surprised to hear. You can read about our experience in Guatemala. He was visiting the USA to see his new grandson for the first time and send in a new VISA application.
Marisol pointed to a van just down the street and said we’d be using public transportation to get to the center of town. We were handed a small ticket and sat in the van with a couple of locals.
Tourists on Tour
The short ride took us to Avenida Revolución, the main tourist street in downtown Tijuana. The street was colorful and lined with palm trees. Very touristy, but nice.
At the end of the street was the Tijuana Arch, built in 2001 to revive tourism in the area. It dominated the view of the street and was actually quite impressive. Next to it was the other touristy photo op, the Tijuana Sign. If you Google Tijuana, you can be sure to find a picture of this sign. We did our bit as tourists and posed with them to get our Instagram photos.
Our tour continued through the Plaza Santa Cecilia as we made our way past countless stalls and waiters ushering us in to their restaurants. “Real Mexican food in here” they would say as they easily spotted the only two white people in the center. We didn’t not believe them, but Marisol had promised us something very exciting: Mexican candy tasting.
We pulled in to a colorful store packed with candy of all kinds and pinatas hanging from every part of the ceiling. It smelled amazing. Marisol saw us in awe of the many pinatas and told us a fun story about them.
When you think of pinatas, you just think of birthday parties right? Well here in Mexico we use them for every occasion. Got divorced? We’ll throw a party and fill it with condoms and tequila.
We would get to try a couple different candies here that Marisol had picked out for us. The first was a sweet, dried mango covered in chili powder, which tasted exactly how it sounded: a spicy mango. The second was a coconut tequila candy, which I regrettable forgot the name of (It was similar to coquito). This was delicious, we both agreed it was the best. I wonder why the tequila one would be our favorite? And last, but not least, freshly made caramel, straight from the bucket it was being made.
We continued our walk through more markets. Meats, cheeses, dried chilis, beans, and vegetables filled the small corridors. We stopped by a local cheese seller who gave us a taste of his Queso Fresco. It was so fresh.
One thing we had noticed about Mexico was how colorful everything is. Simply walking through a market is sensory overload.
Like most Latin American countries, Catholicism is the main religion. In fact, 78% of the Mexican population is Catholic, which makes no surprise that the region is filled with massive churches. One of the most notable in Tijuana is the Santuario de la Virgen de Guadalupe (Sanctuary of the Virgin of Guadalupe). The Virgin of Guadalupe is simply the Catholic title of Mary, mother of Jesus. Originally built in 1902, this Cathedral was the only one in Tijuana up until the 1930s.
Inside was beautiful. White walls bordered by gold paint. An intricate glass chandelier hung over the sanctuary. As we walked in about 10-15 people were kneeling and praying. We stood in the corner as Manuel went to pray. A lady at the front started loudly talking to everyone. I looked to Marisol to see what she was saying. “She is saying good things”.
Wining and Dining
“The historical section of the tour is over” Marisol declared, “Now we eat and drink!” These were words to our ears. As much as we had enjoyed learning about Tijuana, it was a hot day and we are The Hungry Voyagers after all. Our first stop would be to The Beer Garden. We walked into a little courtyard and up some short stairs into a big empty room. It was nice inside, very modern, but a little too American for our liking. You could tell they were trying to cater to people coming across the border. We sat outside on the balcony and looked down at the street below us. “That’s the wall that Trump built over there” Marisol pointed out a large brown, tin structure in the distance.
The owner of the tour came by to chat with us, he was a nice, genuine guy. “Mexican craft beer is really kicking off. Some people say the beer is better here than in San Diego”. I didn’t believe him.
I was recommended two beers from Cerveceria Wendlandt, a brewery from Ensenada, a coastal town about 2 hours drive from Tijuana. Vaquita Marina was a Pale Ale and Perro Del Mar was an IPA (I was told it was a Mexican Beer World Cup winner). The IPA was fantastic and lived up to the hype. The Pale Ale was okay.
After getting a little loose, it was the moment we had been waiting for: Food.
Marisol took us to a little street vendor called El Doradito. It was just a small tent covering a couple of stools sitting in front of a grill and countertop. A lady and a man stood inside, smiling as we approached. I told Marisol to order the two things that she would order if here for the first time. “Tacos are great, yes. But Tijuana is more known for our Quesadillas”. I ordered a Deshebrada (Shredded beef) Quesadilla and Taco Adobada (Marinated pork). Emily ordered an Asada (Beef) Gordita and Taco.
On the bar sat 3 plastic tubs, each containing a different liquid. I chose the Horchata, a sweet, refreshing drink made from rice, milk, vanilla, and cinnamon. I excitedly slurped it down from my Styrofoam cup as I watched our food made right in front of us. Meats were thrown on the grill, tortillas thrown into deep fryers, and veggies chopped up. Does food taste better when it’s cooked right in front of you? I think so.
We were handed paper plates with our dish of choice. The Quesadilla looked like no Quesadilla I’ve had in America. It was thick, fried dough acting as a pocket for the shredded beef, lettuce, tomato, salsa, and white cheese. I took a bite. It was tasty but nothing incredible. Many flavors combined together in this fried pocket of dough. I could feel my arteries clogging.
The taco looked more familiar. A fried tortilla held the pork, onion, lettuce, and two large slices of avocado. Again, as with the Quesadilla, it was tasty. Tacos are tacos.
“Woah woah, careful!” Marisol looked over at me in fear, “That salsa you are putting on is very spicy”. “Yeah right” I thought as I drenched my remaining food in the bright red liquid. My cockiness did not go unpunished. The liquid lava hit my tongue and immediately hit me. I turned to Emily, tears in eyes, “This was a mistake”. She simply laughed at my pain.
Drinking Scorpions..?
When in Mexico there are two things you must consume: tacos and tequila. We’d had the tacos, and now it was time for tequila. Marisol led us to a small store, absolutely covered from floor to ceiling in tequila. Strangely enough, at the back of this store was a barber. Tequila while getting a haircut? Maybe it’ll catch on in the US.
Here we were met by an enthusiastic man that was very passionate about his tequila. He grabbed about 10 bottles and started pouring us shots. Before each taste he gave us a description and where it was made. Like our rum tasting in Mauritius, after 2 shots I had stopped listening and just began blanking smiling and nodding my head while pretending the words made sense.
Finally, he brought out the bottle that had caught my eye from the beginning. A Mezcal with a scorpion inside. This was the type of stuff you see in movies. I was eager to try it. It tasted like beef jerky, no other way to put it.
I bought a bottle of the Scorpion Mezcal to give to my friend before his wedding. We (the groomsmen) ended up drinking the entire thing and taking bites out of the scorpion the night before the wedding. I took a bite of the claw and body, all I tasted was shell and liquor. It was grim.
Back to the USA
And just like that, it was time to head back to the border. We hopped in the local van transportation and headed towards the USA.
Right next to our drop off point was a lady standing at a small tent selling food. I asked Marisol to translate what it was. Breaded beef tacos for about $2. I was sold. It was a nice little thing to snack on as we walked towards to the border crossing.
Marisol had been a great guide around Tijuana. We experienced everything we could in a single day in Mexico: tacos, burritos, beer, tequila. What more could we ask for?
However, the most important takeaway from this journey had been not to judge a book by its cover. Our friends and family had told us to stay away from Tijuana. We were told it was too dangerous. Too dirty. Why would you even think about going there? Of course, we never listened. There is beauty to be found in all corners of the earth. There are cultures to be experienced, foods to be eaten, and amazing people to meet no matter the country they reside in. Sticking to what you know simply feeds ignorance. Take a risk, do something you wouldn’t usually do. You never know what you might find.
And with that, I leave you with this photo. Emily happily eating a churro while waiting in line to cross into the USA.
The Hungry Voyagers 