8 replies to this topic

[gocanucks]

i'm driving down to mexico in august from BC with a buddy of mine for a few days. we were going to stay in Tijuana but everyone up here is convinced we would be killed. i dont really buy into that, but to make my family happy we are going to rosarito instead.

ive never been to mexico before, in fact i've never left BC. so this is all a big adventure. couple questions:

1) good place to stay in rosarito? i'd prefer bars and beaches. what is the opinion on the festival plaza?

2) am i going to be killed? i always figured the media overhypes the violence in mexico, and if i dont mess with the wrong people i should be fine.

3) if mexico is anything like canada, nobody likes americans. everybody will think i am american. how should i expect to be treated? am i going to get ripped off a lot? would it even make a difference if somehow people figured out i was canadian?

4) will people assume i have tonnes of money because im white? (i don't)

5) whats a good muffler shop in rosarito? my car needs a new exhaust and the guys up here want about $450cad which is about 5200 peso's.

thanks for any help. if anyone is taking a trip or thinking about a trip to british columbia i'll answer any questions they might have.

[Miggiesmallz- TEXMEX]

2) am i going to be killed? i always figured the media overhypes the violence in mexico, and if i dont mess with the wrong people i should be fine.


3) if mexico is anything like canada, nobody likes americans. everybody will think i am american. how should i expect to be treated? am i going to get ripped off a lot? would it even make a difference if somehow people figured out i was canadian?

Welcome to the Board... now you get to visit North America's OTHER BC, Baja California. Myself, I sure would LOVE to visit Vancouver and British Columbia one of these days.

You will not be killed just for being here and you are not going to contract swine flu either.

Now as for distinguishing yourself from the American's... that is a good question. MAybe you could wear a t-shirt with a Canadian Flag on it... or dress up as a mountie.

Welcome to the board!

[Rosarito Gary]

i'm driving down to mexico in august from BC with a buddy of mine for a few days. we were going to stay in Tijuana but everyone up here is convinced we would be killed. i dont really buy into that, but to make my family happy we are going to rosarito instead.

ive never been to mexico before, in fact i've never left BC. so this is all a big adventure. couple questions:

1) good place to stay in rosarito? i'd prefer bars and beaches. what is the opinion on the festival plaza?

2) am i going to be killed? i always figured the media overhypes the violence in mexico, and if i dont mess with the wrong people i should be fine.

3) if mexico is anything like canada, nobody likes americans. everybody will think i am american. how should i expect to be treated? am i going to get ripped off a lot? would it even make a difference if somehow people figured out i was canadian?

4) will people assume i have tonnes of money because im white? (i don't)

5) whats a good muffler shop in rosarito? my car needs a new exhaust and the guys up here want about $450cad which is about 5200 peso's.

thanks for any help. if anyone is taking a trip or thinking about a trip to british columbia i'll answer any questions they might have.



The festival is fine but loud. Rosarito Hotel is better. There are good deals here in Rosarito. Check out Craigslist under vacation rentals, etc. Rosarito is a very safe town and I have lived here 9 months and have yet to see anything bad happen here. Feel totally safe here and enjoy it. There are several good mechanics here in town. You won't be killed in Tijuana or Rosarito or anywhee else in Mesico as long as you stay away from drugs. The mexican people here love americans and canadians. Rosarito is a very friendly place......Enjoy your trip.

[bajashrink]

i'm driving down to mexico in august from BC with a buddy of mine for a few days. we were going to stay in Tijuana but everyone up here is convinced we would be killed. i dont really buy into that, but to make my family happy we are going to rosarito instead.

ive never been to mexico before, in fact i've never left BC. so this is all a big adventure. couple questions:

1) good place to stay in rosarito? i'd prefer bars and beaches. what is the opinion on the festival plaza?

2) am i going to be killed? i always figured the media overhypes the violence in mexico, and if i dont mess with the wrong people i should be fine.

3) if mexico is anything like canada, nobody likes americans. everybody will think i am american. how should i expect to be treated? am i going to get ripped off a lot? would it even make a difference if somehow people figured out i was canadian?

4) will people assume i have tonnes of money because im white? (i don't)

5) whats a good muffler shop in rosarito? my car needs a new exhaust and the guys up here want about $450cad which is about 5200 peso's.

thanks for any help. if anyone is taking a trip or thinking about a trip to british columbia i'll answer any questions they might have.

Yes, as I always say to my friend of many years in Vancouver whenever I e-mail him or we talk on the phone, "Greetings from the other BC"

I haven't been up there to visit for several years, but the last time we spoke by phone a few months ago, he mentioned how the Asian gang drug wars are getting bad up there, which have included shootouts. So your chances of coming into harms way down here on a scale of 0 to 10 is about the same as up there: a 1.

I concure with the other responses that the Rosarito Beach Hotel is the town's finest if you want to pay the "upscale" rates. Otherwise there are a number of other decent hotels along the main boulevard of Benito Juárez.

$450 CAN for a new exhuast? That's outrageous! In Baja there are muffler/radiator shops all over the place. I can't recommend any specific ones in Rosarito, but know of some in Tijuana. They're all about the same in relation to price and quality. You should be able to get a new exhuast system installed for substantially less.

And yes, if you don't want to be confused for an ugly Amerikaner, wear one of those T-shirts with a large red maple leaf and "Canada" on it.

I'm light-complexioned and am often taken for granted by locals who don't know me as being gringo. Some will automatically start speaking English to me, whereupon I will just ignore them and act like I don't understand. Others walk up to me and ask if I speak Spanish, whereupon I will reply in Spanish, "Why, haven't you ever seen a guero (light-compexioned) Mexicano in person before, or only on TV from your ranch?" The exception to such responses is when I'm in an area heavily frequented by foreign tourists. Otherwise it's very offensive to light-complexioned Mexicans to be confused for gringo by fellow Mexicans or told by gringos, "You don't look Mexican", even though an average of 1 out of every 10 Mexicans is "guero", and "Mexican" is a multi-shade nationality--not a race. That's why I often wear my T-shirt with the large HECHO EN MEXICO logo on it when I'm out and about.

[gocanucks]

thanks for the tips, i will look into the rosarito beach hotel.

also, will people be insulted if i cant speak spanish? should i even try or will they just see a white guy and speak english to me?

does everyone speak english?

[bajashrink]

thanks for the tips, i will look into the rosarito beach hotel.

also, will people be insulted if i cant speak spanish? should i even try or will they just see a white guy and speak english to me?

does everyone speak english?

The majority of educated cachanillas (natives of Baja California) speak at least a functional amount of English and just about everyone related to the tourist industry speaks it. However, they pronounce English words with ou as au and not oo

[gocanucks]

well thats cool. its pretty normal here to converse with people who speak english as a 2nd language, so im very accustomed to different pronunciations of words or sentence structures.

also what can i expect the weather to be like mid-august? where i live it would be in the high 30's or low 40's with about 0 humidity.

[bajashrink]

well thats cool. its pretty normal here to converse with people who speak english as a 2nd language, so im very accustomed to different pronunciations of words or sentence structures.

also what can i expect the weather to be like mid-august? where i live it would be in the high 30's or low 40's with about 0 humidity.

Here in August the temperature is normally in the high 20s to early 30s with average humidity. The hot weather season in the non-desert areas of southern California and northern Baja is from early September thru mid-October.

[GreyGhost]

In my experience, most Mexicanos appreciate gringos at least making the attempt to speak spanish...It's not like France where people will turn their noses up at you for not mastering the correct syntax or pronunciation.

Most Mexicanos are much more warm, welcoming & congenial than (in my experience) Americanos are to them in the US...Xenophobia is rare in Mexico.

There are raterros (thieves) in drug-infested areas of Tijuana who prey on the rare tourists who frequent those haunts but that's also due to desperate economic times...You may run into the occasional merchant who tries to overcharge you but negotiating is part of the culture..

The rare violence in Rosarito (that I know of) was between drug cartel thugs & upper level local police. Anyone not involved in either milieu should have no worries for their personal safety.

Here's hoping you have a great time!