Viajamos: A boy’s recollection of the Baja, Part One.

The Baja-California border is always busy, truckers and surfers, vagabonds and voyagers.

As I look upon the slums of Tijuana through a slightly tinted window, I feel sorrow, but also a messed up feeling of “this seems like an interesting place to hang out”

LA CASA DEL WHOPPER says a McDonalds on the side of the road, as a fat man on a tiny motorcycle peels out of the parking lot. Baja, the only place where you can find a burnt out husk of a passenger jet lying on the side of the road. A policia coche goes screaming past at at least 90 miles an hour, on a 2 lane highway. Alright, first military checkpoint comin’ up. Put on your cute faces kids, and remember to smile. Alto! Qué es esto? Ah si, es bien. De donde eres? San Francisco? Es bien. Adios chicos! — — Waved through. Smile, bien, waved through. Repeat until to destination. That’s some legit Baja life hacks right there. Road, road, road, heyyy its MORE ROAD!!! *nodding off nodding off nodding off* Wait! dats a cactus! WE IN REALY COUNTRY NOW BOYYY. just kidding, we’ve been in the country for 10 minutes aND we’ve seen hundreds of cacti. But this one, ITS BIGGG *thats what she said*. I’M SORRY! not sorry. Look ahead, oh goodie, it’s a checkpoint in a fog bank. Absolutely wonderful. Over the border and through the fog, to Scorpion Bay we go. Now it’s just straight open 2 lane highway, and we’re hitting 90 in a stock 2012 Ford F-150. We got our travel buddies in their F-250 and a little man in a toyota tacoma pushing 100. Wut. How does that even work? Ah well, a good book awaits- HOLY CRAP ITS A 18 WHEELER IN OUR LANE, BRAKE…