Trolley to Tijuana–and a dental visit

I know that many in the RV community chose to have their dental work done in Los Algodones.  And really this is an excellant choice when travel includes the Yuma, AZ area.

However, it makes sense for us to go to Tijuana as it’s an easy trolley ride to the San Ysidro border crossing.  Not only did Rufus suffer some abuse on the Alaskan adventure, our dental hygiene was also somewhat neglected.  Today our destination is the Washington Dental Clinic just south of Tijuana Centro.


An all day Senior Pass on the trolley is $3, compared to $5 for an Adult Pass.  Not a big savings and the hardest part of this adventure was trying to find how to buy the Senior Pass!  There are ticket kiosks at every stop that only dispense Adult tickets.  A few stations have a manned ticket booth to obtain the discount (Old Town, Downtown and South Bay).

We found it easier to use the trolley stop at the bottom of our hill and pay the extra fee to the kiosk and hop on the Green Line to downtown.


In theory only two bicycles are allowed on the trolley, but that appears to be only a suggestion.  I saw as many as 5 in one trolley car, and none of those in the designated area.


The trolley line follows the railroad tracks south, through some of the older sections of San Diego.  These are some areas we have not seen in many years.  Despite having lived here for 40 years this was our first trolley adventure.

The artwork crossing over the San Diego River is pretty lame, there is much nicer work in the Barrio as you'll see in a bit.  Kansas City Bar.B.Que is famous for the piano scene in Top Gun, is an easy walk from the Convention Center or Gas Lamp trolley stop.


Reaching the end-of-the-line for the Green Line in downtown, we need to change to the Blue Line.  Depending on the stop and distance between stops the trolley can be expected every 15 minutes.


The artwork in the Barrio is truly mural quality.  It was obviously not done in the middle of the night with a spray can.



As I mentioned in a previous post the pedestrian crossing into Mexico is now on the East side of I-5 near the trolley stop.  Look for the signs, which can be easily missed in the confusion and bustle.


All persons entering Mexico must have a visa (FMM) in their possession.  This can be obtained online or filled out at the Immigration Station.  I obtained our forms online and paid for the 6 month multiple entry, we only needed to have them stamped upon entry.  Note that BOTH the FMM and the bank receipt are needed!!!  The FMM (Mutliple Migratiry Form) can be filled out here at the Nacional de Migration.


Once in Tijuana things moved quick!  A well-dressed cab driver, speaking fluent English, offered us a ride knowing we were going to Washington Dental.  He explained that Washington Dental would pay the fare ($5) and refused our money.  Sure enough!  Although he did accept a tip … This is definitely an E-Ticket ride – sit-down, shut-up and hold-on!


Washington Dental is a large building among other medical buildings and banks.  It is clean, modern, friendly.  They offer a large screen in the waiting room, free beverages and snacks.  The reception area and dental liaison are all fluent in English.  The dentist and hygienist are ok … better than my Spanish, but not fluent.


The offices are on the south side of Zona Centro on the famous Av Revolucion.  Our plan was to walk back to the border to take in the shops, raunchy bars and street tacos of the tourist area.  However, they had a cab waiting for us at their expense!  And with it waiting and with Hurricane Paine creating a hot and muggy walk, we took the cab.




The cab could take us to either the old East entry or the new West entry.  We chose West as it is typically faster and Fran needs some new tennis shoes.  There is an Asics in the Outlet Mall.

And had I only known, there is also a husband baby-sitting area with free WiFi, big screen, free beverages, cushy chairs …. ARG! – next time!


If you happen to remember when the West side was southbound and East was northbound, and Google Maps still shows it that way;  here are what the old West (southbound) parking lot and Duty Free shops looked as we took the pedestrian overpass back to the trolley.


Since we missed the street tacos we decided to get off the trolley early in Old Town for one of the excellent Mexican Restaurants Cafe Coyote.  The Margarita for Two comes in a convenient single- serving carafe, ok we shared and still didn’t finish it!  My Chili Colorado and Fran’s Taco Salad were both too much, we could have split something.


Financials:
Cleaning by our local dentist is now $150!!! up from $125
Washington Dental $40, Fran has a partial - she was charged $20!  not bad

I need a crown replaced:
local $750
Washington Dental $250

Not sure what’s up next.  There’s been lots of changes in Tecolote Canyon, more of an interest to the locals.  I’d like to again start my Friday ‘Urban Hikes’.  Stay tuned.

June Gloom - Finally sunshine!

The May Gray stepped right into June Gloom without missing a beat.  More of the dismal gray skies for the first two weeks of June and then … SUMMER!  Those Lazy, Hazy, Crazy Dayz of Summer!  It’s 80 F. on the beach and 116 in Borrego.  Skipped right past Spring.

Our only outings since the last blog are a couple bike rides around Mission Bay.  Nothing really blog worthy, except to mention the Mission Bay Dump Station is again open and the OB Pier is being repaired.

Fran lost a crown from one of her molars, so we were once again off to Washington Dental Clinic in Tijuana.  The western pedestrian crossing, PedWest, remains closed.  Thus, the east crossing at San Ysidro, is taking the full load of foot traffic.

It’s an easy crossing and we are waived thru immigration with no paperwork.  That’s a nice change.

It’s fun to tell the cabdriver we want to go to Washington D.C.  They all get the play on words and know the location.

I’ve blogged the dental facility a couple times already (HERE), but there are a few changes.

Streaming movies in English are still offered, as is free, very, usable WiFi and a fridge of beverages.  However, the Fanta now has a warning “No recomendable en ninos’; “Exceso Calorias”; Exceso Azucares”.  Too much calorie and sugar intake for kids, but served at the dentist office.  Hmm, we'll stick with water.

And their hand sanitizer contains hemp oil.  Yes, personal Marijuana is now permitted in Mexico, but cannot be transported across the border in either direction.  I Had to try the sanitizer to see if the ICE border dogs might notice.  They didn’t care.

Across the street from the dental office is the former Jai Alai Palace, which is now a music/cultural venue.  

Adjacent to the palace is Tia Juana Tilly’s, a nice place to enjoy a margarita with Fran, once her dental work is completed.

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We took our time walking back to check out some of the renovated shops along the way.

A Hookah Lounge? 

On our return, we got a chuckle as outside the office was a wheelbarrow full of “dulces” – confectionary treats and sweets off all kinds.  

Washington DC provides a cab to return us to the border.  They pay for the cab to/from the border, another nice touch.  After about 3pm the border crossing line is shorter, but there are fewer border agents … it’s always a bit of a wait going north.

Today - June 15th, California officially relaxed its Covid and face mask restrictions!  The caveats are lengthy and confusing.  A more complete explanation is HERE, if you like to read the press release and limitations.

The county libraries have been open for a few weeks, while the city continues to keep its libraries closed.  It is possible to request books online and pick them up at one of the pickup libraries.  Our local library is completely closed, and the closest pickup location is the Pacific Beach Library.  This makes for a good excuse for a bike ride, and some days we choose to complete the loop around Mission Bay.

The view from the West Mission Bay Drive Bridge looking west toward Hospitality Point. 

This trip we stopped at the Seaforth Landing for an adult beverage.  It's nice to sit and be tourists once in awhile when the boardwalk is quiet.

On premise beer/wine was originally planned for the De Anza Revitalization, but alas the city reneged on that and failed to issue the required permits.  The Mission Bay Beach Club has become a snack bar and rental facility for beach toys.  :(

Grandgirl #1 graduated high school last week.  Congrats Kg!

Avenida Revolución - Urban Hiking Tijuana

Living in San Diego we use the various services available in Tijuana (TJ), including dental, when it makes sense.  I’ve blogged about the process of obtaining a Mexican Visa and the process of getting to the border crossing last Sept here. 

We’ll need to renew our ‘visas’ next month.  Again I’ll fill out the forms and pay online at their website Nacional de Migration.  When we cross into TJ the forms will need to be presented and stamped by immigration to be valid.

Tijuana, with nearly 2 million citizens, is the largest city in Baja and with over 300,000 crossing the border daily it is the busiest border crossing in the Western Hemisphere, or also reported as the busiest land border crossing in the world.  I’d much rather be going to a medical tourist destination like Los Algodones, but we live in San Diego not Yuma.   It’s an easy trolley ride from home to the border and Washington Dental pays for the taxi to/from the border.   And very good dental health care can be had at a fraction of the US price.

This week I’ll share my experiences as I walk along the historic Avenida Revolución while waiting for Fran to finish up.


This was the heart of the tourist district back in the day.  Altho the ‘Red Light’ district remains legal in TJ, it is no longer prevalent nor are the tourist trinket shops.  However, the bar and disco scene remain popular attractions.

On the same corner of our dental office, Show Girls share the corner with a nice coffee shop and the Waldo’s dollar store.



Tijuana Tilly’s has been at the same location since 1947.  The fish tacos tasted like they were in the warmer at least that long, but the Margarita was really good.


A few tourist traps and attractions remain.  The TJ Arch is near the pedestrian crossing to return to the US.  The shops do not compare to the vibrant attractions found elsewhere.


The passageways were once full of tourist shops, but the few that remain no longer cater to the gringos.  This upscale alley houses artworks, sculptures and another dental office.


My Spanglish is not sufficient to ask a lot of questions, but the library walls are covered with historic photos. 


Fruit, drink and taco carts are still popular on the side streets, although more taco trucks are seen than carts.


A nice park setting for kids play time is not just well maintained, but well used during my visit.


And then there is Hotel Caesars!  Still a very well kept hotel/restaurant noted for the creation of the Caesar Salad.  We’ll celebrate Fran’s last dental visit here next month … with a Caesar Salad!