General Reports

I was in playa del Carmen recently and while driving around town noticed that the pharmacies were advertising Viagra, Cialis, Azithromycin, Ambien and "pain medications " on signs all set up on the curb. I went into a pharmacy and inquired and indeed generic drugs, including valium. Ambien, Tylenol with codeine and percocet were available over the counter (although they were quite expensive). I decided against purchasing some sleepers and oxycodone, despite the temptation. I suspect that the narcotics are all fentanyl in small doses, but have no real idea what they are actually selling.

But I wondered, is this also true in a border city like Tijuana? I would have thought the DEA would be all over this, but I guess they are busy enough with the larger scale narco traffickers.

[QUOTE=MamaGuevos;2644162]I was in playa del Carmen recently and while driving around town noticed that the pharmacies were advertising Viagra, Cialis, Azithromycin, Ambien and "pain medications " on signs all set up on the curb. I went into a pharmacy and inquired and indeed generic drugs, including valium. Ambien, Tylenol with codeine and percocet were available over the counter (although they were quite expensive). I decided against purchasing some sleepers and oxycodone, despite the temptation. I suspect that the narcotics are all fentanyl in small doses, but have no real idea what they are actually selling.

But I wondered, is this also true in a border city like Tijuana? I would have thought the DEA would be all over this, but I guess they are busy enough with the larger scale narco traffickers.[/QUOTE]I assume the DEA only has jurisdiction inside the borders of USA. Only an assumption of mine.

I am beginning to believe that the drug war could be won or a big dent into it is possible. But then the funding for the DEA and funding to Mexico for the assistance in the drug war would dry up. Therefore once in a while show some big drug busts to valid their existence and purpose but don't shut it down! Maintain status quo.

[QUOTE=MamaGuevos;2644162]I was in playa del Carmen recently and while driving around town noticed that the pharmacies were advertising Viagra, Cialis, Azithromycin, Ambien and "pain medications " on signs all set up on the curb. I went into a pharmacy and inquired and indeed generic drugs, including valium. Ambien, Tylenol with codeine and percocet were available over the counter (although they were quite expensive). I decided against purchasing some sleepers and oxycodone, despite the temptation. I suspect that the narcotics are all fentanyl in small doses, but have no real idea what they are actually selling.

But I wondered, is this also true in a border city like Tijuana? I would have thought the DEA would be all over this, but I guess they are busy enough with the larger scale narco traffickers.[/QUOTE]I purchased some Ambien clone in Nuevo Progreso, TX last year and tried a few, seemed ineffective. Crossing by land you can legally declare up to 50 dosage units per day but must be for personal use. By air I don't think so and as you mentioned risks and even if placebos what a waste of phucking money. I think if get to know Tijuana farmacias well can get the good and safe stuff. Last trip back from Tijuana last month was surprised they sold Soma (carisoprodol) muscle relaxer in one of the farmacias along the stores right before the border. Was $50 I think for 50 pills but just wondered if legit any good or just a fake placebo?

[QUOTE=Dg8787;2644208]I assume the DEA only has jurisdiction inside the borders of USA. Only an assumption of mine.

I am beginning to believe that the drug war could be won or a big dent into it is possible. But then the funding for the DEA and funding to Mexico for the assistance in the drug war would dry up. Therefore once in a while show some big drug busts to valid their existence and purpose but don't shut it down! Maintain status quo.[/QUOTE]Yeah pretty much how everything in the world works. Every group, every politician or government organization is for sale. It would be near impossible to find one that isn't.

[QUOTE=Dg8787;2644208]I assume the DEA only has jurisdiction inside the borders of USA. Only an assumption of mine..[/QUOTE]Sorry, I did not mean to imply that the DEA had formal jurisdiction in Mexico, only that they are there and God knows what type of shit they are doing. All we really know is that a DEA undercover guy was murdered in the 80's by the Guadalajara Cartel (Enrique Camarena) and that a US Homeland Securities guy (Jaime Zapata) was killed in San Luis Potosí a decade ago. I have not heard or read that the US Government has stopped trying to fight drugs since then, although I can appreciate the skepticism that they really want the drug war to go away.

I don't know if the drugs are fake or not, only that they were available everywhere in Carmen del Playa. Presumably there is SOMETHING in the pills that keeps the customers happy (and I am guessing that "something" is fentanyl). I am not opposed to over the counter Viagra and Cialis, but OTC oxycodone seems a bit wild to me. After all, people are shooting each other in New York and Los Angeles over this shit! We might as well legalize it all and stop killing each other over it.

The Blue Line Trolley, previously terminating at downtown, was recently extended all the way up to UTC / La Jolla area. Now you can park for free at the Nobel Drive station in a brand new parking structure next to a great shopping center, avoid the horrible south-bound traffic in the evenings (2 PM on wards). The ride is 1 hour, but I had my laptop and a Inseego WiFi hot-spot so I got myself a comfortable seat and setup a mobile office, and got a lot of work done. The hot-spot gets you 50 Mbps - 80 Mbps data rates. I probably could have driven ad saved 20 minutes, but this was a far better deal. Folks using the trolley stations for parking ([URL]https://sdmts.com/rider-info/transit-station-parking[/URL]) should look into this option of parking up further north and saving yourself driving through rush hour traffic. These trolleys run every 15 minutes.

A major advantage of using a dedicated Hot-spot: I carry 2 cell phones and a laptop, so I just have a unlimited data plan on a Verizon SIM and that has helped me in Tijuana with all 3 devices and also when I have bad coverage in Cascadas and definitely outside the hotel. The Cell pones need to have WiFi calling mode enabled.

Queue was not bad on Tuesday evening, and was okay on Wednesday until 11 AM (showing 30 min wait) but then it suddenly swelled to 2-3 hours wait. Street action was not that great but I went with known quantities. I wonder how long these long waits will continue. IMO if you don't have SENTRI, right now it is not worth the wait if you are not going to see anyone specific.

Was wondering if anyone has been in Tijuana on New Yeas eve. Seems like fun. I am a bit concerned things could be crazy and lines will be very long heading back.

I know Ticuan has a private lot 'on prem', but I wanted to ask how secure that and Caesars Valet lot seem to be?

[QUOTE=Hargow20;2644769]Was wondering if anyone has been in Tijuana on New Yeas eve. Seems like fun. I am a bit concerned things could be crazy and lines will be very long heading back.[/QUOTE]I think I posted my experience a couple of years ago. It sucks. I think it's because single guys within flying distance are coming in, and most of the better girls are home. As I recalled, there were more guys than girls. By 10 pm, you better have a girl and a table or you will be alone and standing by midnight. Yeah, it's going to cost you a bundle to keep her for 2 hours. As a local, I'm going in the daytime to get my fix. Then get the fuck back across the border before night hits. And leave New Year's Eve for the newbies and tourists to play in.

[QUOTE=Hargow20;2644769]Was wondering if anyone has been in Tijuana on New Yeas eve. Seems like fun. I am a bit concerned things could be crazy and lines will be very long heading back.[/QUOTE]I was wondering the same thing. I mean how much more packed could HK get even if is NYE!

That's good to know Urfikhan. I always liked the UTC area.

I like to hotel in San Diego when visiting from USA And find these days rooms in San Diego City are pretty expensive. I may stay in a hotel near UTC for my next trip.

[QUOTE=CocrBrotheler;2645355]That's good to know Urfikhan. I always liked the UTC area.

I like to hotel in San Diego when visiting from USA And find these days rooms in San Diego City are pretty expensive. I may stay in a hotel near UTC for my next trip.[/QUOTE]Hotels in UTC area can be expensive also. Try for hotels near the Balboa Ave or Clairemont Dr area (the 2 stops after the Nobel Drive) these stations have parking also. You will still be North of Downtown San Diego. Other good areas to look for hotels is near the 8th St (National City). Hotels near H St, Palm Ave and Palomar St stations should be reasonable also. All these stations have a good number of parking spots, and are south of Downtown San Diego.

[URL]https://www.sdmts.com/schedules-real-time?fragment=uc_san_diego_blue_line[/URL] is the link for the Blue Line trolley.

I'm looking for a new cell phone carrier. I hope to find an American provider that has a Mexico option that actually works well.

(And, yes, I am aware of the option to get a Mexican phone or SIM card. That doesn't work for me, for reasons that I'll not boor you with.).

[QUOTE=WombatEd2;2645414]I'm looking for a new cell phone carrier. I hope to find an American provider that has a Mexico option that actually works well.

(And, yes, I am aware of the option to get a Mexican phone or SIM card. That doesn't work for me, for reasons that I'll not boor you with.).[/QUOTE]My verizon phone swaps to a local Intl carrier on its own.

The -challenge- is, if the phone even _sniffs_ it's home carrier, it will NOT seek out a roaming carrier. So a carrier that will roam, is not necesarily the answer.

For the pitifully few dollars it costs, load up a local SIM with a few GB of data, and carry on. And once a day or so in your hotel room (or more) swap in the home SIM when you're in good wifi area, or close to the border to catch up on txt's for that #.

But your apps won't care (WhatsApp, etc) what SIM in in the phone, they'll just work. Just native TXTs and Phone Calls to your home SIM won't work.

If you're an android user, get a dual SIM phone.

[QUOTE=WombatEd2;2645414]I'm looking for a new cell phone carrier. I hope to find an American provider that has a Mexico option that actually works well.

(And, yes, I am aware of the option to get a Mexican phone or SIM card. That doesn't work for me, for reasons that I'll not boor you with.).[/QUOTE]T Mobile works great in Mexico and is included in the data / call plans.