Boarding Pass: TIJ
Photo map of San Diego, Tijuana, and Valle de Guadalupe. Click image for interactive map.
I always have several ideas for trips marinating in the back of my mind. They emerge from their mental lair when opportunity, in the form of time or proximity, presents itself. A visit to Valle de Guadalupe had been placed there by a travel program highlighting its vineyards and gastronomy (RIP Anthony), and was let loose with an invitation to an event in San Diego. We live in the eastern US, so destinations on the west coast have a tough temporal battle to win over more exotic locations in South America or the Caribbean. But we had RSVP’d yes, so San Diego became a first stop en route to a Baja Norte adventure.
We were late to the event due a flight delay. Fortunately, the man of the hour was a pilot, and was very understanding. We got there in time for the end of the soiree and did our best to make up for lost time. The following morning, we took advantage of a moody marine layer and the cool San Diego temperatures to do a little shooting around downtown as a warmup for Mexico. By noon, we were packed and at the train station. Next stop, San Ysidro border crossing.
Moody morning in San Diego.
The advice is clear; cross the border on foot rather than in a vehicle if possible. Truer words have never been spoken. After a brief exchange of pleasantries with a pretty lady who glanced at our passports, we were in Mexico. Total time, under five minutes. Outside the station, we grabbed a taxi to an airport car rental location, and picked up our wheels to head south and east.
The toll road is the answer, no matter the question. It is dead cheap, and the non-toll road is an absolute stop-and-go disaster. The toll road is parallel and right beside the non-toll: same views, exponentially less frustration. We zipped down the coast and decided we were hungry for lunch as we approached La Fonda. Dmytri’s looked cute from the front, and we could see that there was a view out the back. We were seated on the back patio, and WOW. The view was absolutely stunning. There was even a beautiful sand mermaid sculpted on the beach far below us. Amazing tacos, a cool breeze, and the sounds of the ocean. Bienvenidos, indeed.
Our lunch table view in La Fonda.
Back into the car to navigate ourselves to Valle de Guadalupe and the Hotel Los Amantes. Surprisingly few wrong turns given the paucity of the map and the plethora of dirt roads delivered us to our lodging. We relaxed in our beautiful villa and settled in. Since we were in for the day and it was almost sunset, I took out my camera and walked the property taking photos of the desert plants and quirky features of the hotel. This spur-of-the-moment photowalk yielded some of my favorite photos of the trip, including the backlit tractor that is the cover image for this post.
Just a casual walk around the hotel grounds.
The next morning, we woke ready for the main event: a visit to Vena Cava Winery and its resident gourmet food truck, Troika. We made a quick spin through the town of Guadalupe which provided a few shots for me, then squinted at Google Maps until we found the faint white line on the light gray background that was, in fact, the road to Vena Cava. We arrived victorious, just in time for our reservation. We enjoyed a varied and interesting tasting in the winery, followed by a delicious al fresco lunch overlooking the duck pond and mountains. On our way back to the hotel, we stopped at the vineyard next door to inquire about the peacocks we heard yelling that morning. It was then that we learned the Spanish word for peacock: pavo real. Living language. Add to this the perfect weather, and this may have been the perfect afternoon.
Old boats turn into a winery at Vena Cava.
The plan for our last day included a stop in Tijuana, where I planned to shoot the iconic border wall which extends into the ocean. I had seen many photos of the wall itself, but didn’t really know what to expect of the surrounding area. Would it be depressing, dangerous, heavily patrolled? Absolutely none of those. It was relaxed, safe, and cheerful (unless you are afraid of ice cream cones and espressos). I went from one end of the beach to the other, with an incredible number of photos to show for it. With our last objective complete, we returned the car and headed back to the border station. As we stood in the long and tedious line to reenter the USA, we kind of wished we were headed back the other way.
Fishing by the wall in Tijuana.
The clear lesson from this trip was to seize opportunity. The trip itself, the restaurant in La Fonda with fabulous views, the surprising photos taken on the hotel grounds, learning the word “pavo real” by meeting one. Every trip is made of moments, and this one had plenty. I could never have built an itinerary that included all of these things, but they showed me the soul of Valle de Guadalupe and Baja Norte.
