jmmom

^^^ Hard act to follow, but I will give you some first hand information.

We have a second home just south of Tijuana and north of Rosarito Beach (legally, we are actually in Tijuana, but it doesn't feel like we are; as it takes about 15-20 minutes to get to Centro).

I don't know why you would want to be near Avenida Revolucion - perhaps you could explain that.

Tijuana is a city of 2.5 million people. It has upscale areas, including some right in the heart of the city. Others are south of what feels like "city", such as where we are.

A city of that size has crime, for sure. You could find links not dissimilar to UCLABandMom's about Detroit, LA.... However, I would certainly want you to know that there is some stirring up around Tijuana because current government is making a concerted effort to oust the drug lords, get rid of corrupt police who were in bed with them, etc. They are not taking it lying down and I have no idea how quick success will come, nor how thorough it will be.

I would not walk alone in some areas of Tijuana alone at night - but, frankly, I don't even really know where those areas are. I have no occasion to go to them. I feel perfectly safe alone in some areas of Tijuana.

I have not had any occasion to go to Avenida Revolucion since I went there as a tourist ~10 years ago.

I spend several months a year in our home in that area and don't encounter the kinds of problems UCLA~mom mentions in my daily life. Remember that coeds are murdered wantonly in Burlington, VT; Chapel Hill, NC; etc. You can't rely on press drama to get a feeling of what a city such as Tijuana is really like, imo. Coverage of the routine of everyday life doesn't make the news. BUT, again, there is unrest over the drug warlord culture and it has stepped up related violence.

I also cross the border 1x/2x per week. Crossing that border you should allow a minimum of 2 hours UNLESS you have a SENTRI pass, which we do. I don't know what the prospects are for you getting one, but they are certainly not limited to US citizens. Mexicans have them as well and I don't know why citizens of other countries couldn't, but I am no expert on that. Having a SENTRI pass means border crossings can take from 0 minutes to maybe 30 minutes at very rare times (the month prior to Christmas when it seems everyone in Mexico wants to cross the border to shop in the U.S.).

The US has an Embassy there, but I've never had occasion to go there. My Spanish teacher does a lot of work teaching Embassy staff Spanish. Your being fluent in Spanish would make the transition easier, but Spanish is not necessary. Most Americans don't really learn it, which I think is a shame. I'm intending to be fluent within the year (don't know if I'll make that time goal, but I will make the goal).

The adjustment would be, imo, like the adjustment to any different culture. But Baja California Norte is an area where one would have feet in both cultures simultaneously. It is really the San Diego/Tijuana metropolitan area - hence the 2-3 hour border crossing because so many live in TJ but work in SD. We listen to NPR San Diego and our satellite dish brings us American TV as if we were in San Diego.

It is an extremely friendly and hardworking culture; and I do not find a culture of animosity towards Americans; no pervasive anti-Gringo feeling at all. That is one of the things I wanted to know before buying a second home there.

It is a poor culture, despite affluent areas. And there are many areas of poor infrastructure along with better areas. It is a relatively low cost of living. It is also a culture of "manana." There is the bad side of that - things don't happen as fast as one might like. There is the good side of that - one can learn to live more in the moment, sort out whether everything really does have to happen lickety-split.

That's a bit of an overview.