I realize many of you dont like to read any of my politically incorrect banter but this is a topic i think that needs mentioning.

Many of you mongers have decided to live in Playas because it is more of a tranquil environment and you can live on the beach relatively cheap. It has great gyms, the food is healthy and most of chicas from AB and CC live there. I have visited Playas for about 8 years and have lived there for almost a year. Playas at one time was a mecca of new housing and fairly nice restaurants..a haven for those who want to escape the hustle and bustle of TJ. But Now...

I am ready to move out to either Chapultepec, Cacho or back to U.S. and here is why:

-Although there are many nice homes and buildings in Playas, over the last several years the glue-sniffing ratero gangs have made it their destiny to spray grafitti on every flat space in Playas. No exaggeration, even the nicest homes in Playas have their walls absolutely covered in graffitti. The result...many whom own homes in Playas are moving out and renting the homes out to those whom normally cannot afford to do so. This creates a criminal element in the area and makes Playas look like a complete ghetto.

-The Beach itself is now decrepid and absolutely filthy. The biggest problem with a beach in TJ is that it is free. Every local family goes to the beach on the weekend, their kids destroy as much shit as possible and they litter their asses off. Empty lots on the beach have turned into dumpsites. Old apartment buildings have been abandoned and are filled with squatters.

-Everyone with a car (no matter how worthless the car) has an alarm. Most of the alarms have been installed improperly and they go off randomly during the night for no reason. Those whom have working alarms have no idea how to use them and they turn them on by accident every time they get back into their car. Tough to sleep this way.

-Trucks that carry propane tanks or bottled water honk their horns loudly starting at 7 am and continue to do so for 2 straight hours. At 8 am, the tamale guy has a loud speaker attached to his Chevy Chevette and announces his menu so that everyone from a mile away can hear. Don't even think about sleeping in on a Sunday unless your completely passed out.

-The drive to and from Playas has become MAD MAX 4. Cars that can barely run pile up cars on one lane while the other lane is full of narco's in Lincoln Navigator's going 90mph. Dead dogs everywhere. Cars will slam on their brakes in the middle of a freeway to turn onto side streets without using a turning signal. A fairly long drive becomes dangerous quickly. It's doable but you must constantly be on your toes.

Anyways, just thought I give you the dark side of Playas in case you decide to move there.

Hola Vecino. I do live in Playas as well but have done so for only 6 months. It is pretty much as you describe. I still feel it is more tranquil and safer than many parts of the city though. Like anywhere it depends a lot on your immediate neighbors. (I'm in Costa de Oro).

Blazers;

Dude! I know EXACTLY what you are talking about. You are starting to go thru the same thing I started going thru about 2 months ago. It was like BAM! Overnight, it was no longer worth it to live in TJ anymore.

But watch out, I started posting about the pluses and minuses of living in TJ vs. SD, and a bunch of fruits started calling me a NAZI and shit. It is like you can't deal with reality with these guys. You can't talk about the truth...

The DEAD DOGS thing is SO TRUE! It is fucking UNBELIEVABLE, isn't it? I could base a stand-up comedy routine(for Tijuana residents) based on this subject alone.

And the TAMALE SALESMAN thing! FUCK! I forgot about that one... You can NOT sleep in. Even my girlfriend has MOVED TO THE BACK ROOM, because of these fuckers with their loadspeakers and all kinds of special horns and shit. The thing that I can't understand is how these assholes make any money - nobody ever buys their shit, and gasoline is SO expensive in Mexico... They MUST BE STEALING GAS - it is the ONLY answer. I figure that there are a bunch of PEMEXs that are rigging the pumps to OVERCOUNT THE LITERS PUMPED, thus overcharging the public - then they sell the leftover to their buddies for dirt cheap... leaving them to keep us in misery all day long!

Have you noticed what a ripoff the price of gas is in Tijuana? And have you ever noticed HOW MUCH IT REALLY COSTS TO FILL YOUR TANK? Some stations are better than others, but I recommend that you avoid buying gas in Tijuana.

(I know many of you guys aren't interested in the FACTS, but for those of you who are, I thought you might like to know).

Blazers,

All of the things you mentioned are absolutely correct regard the Playas de TJ. However, they are the common problems in MX as a whole (hold your horses fellow mongers, I'm not bashing, I love MX and MXcans). The way I look at it is how "severe" the problems comparing to other locations. I spent some "quality" time at night there, and it's actually pretty mellow. Well, with the occasionally gangbangers coming down with their low-riders blasting loud music.

The major problem that I have with the Playas is with the "ingenious engineer design" of the city sewage system. In the US, the sewage pipes run underground and straight into the ocean. In the Playas, they are sticking out at the end of the boardwark seawall and city sewage run on the beach sand into the ocean. With that, everyday around 5-7pm during sunset, you are entitled to a very "undesirable flavor".

I have been looking for a place there just for the weekend to relax and to party with cool fellow mongers and chicas. Since I said the area is mellow at night, I might have problems with my potential neighbors. I've also been looking at some locations in Rosarito Beach for the same reason. At the moment, I'm leaning towards RB because it's a better enviroment in general.

Rock on,
Sakebomb

hi blazers

i was gonna move there last year - the rents were nearly the same as what i am paying now in chula vista.
what surprised me was the beach.

all kinds of dogs taking a swim too , bums taking baths in the water , and shit - real shit littering the sand. - it made some of these san deigo beaches look good.

the places i wanted to rent were all taken but i am glad i didnt rent there.

plus in certain areas there were bad odors in the air.

i went to rosarito too and stayed there for a month with my friend- but all that black soot and crap on the ground is terrible for your health - its like a welcome wagon for health problems

take care
milkman

Blazer, how sad it is that you feel that you and your elite neighbors should be isolated from the terrible social ills of the less fortunate. Instead of embracing their vibrant culture of the living you prefer the static conservatism that rewards only a few and abandons the rest.

Why is something carefully painted on an exterior wall by a poor man of color any less of value than that which you might hang on your own interior walls. Why are the families of the poor seen to dirty a public beach by their presence and enjoyment of a brief moment of escape from their toils? Are the bodies and activities of the greedy elite somehow purer in content? Why is a pitiful vendor who announces his wares from the street offensive when your big screen TV serves a virtual nonstop diet of propaganda?

Hey Blazers, just having fun with you. Ever noticed how when a conservative property owner wishes to enhance the value of his environment he is labled as greedy and insensitive? But when a liberal does the same, and makes sure the gate is closed at night and the unregistered handgun is on the bed stand, he is viewed as caring and giving.

PS: on her last tour Barbara Streisand was asked by some charity groups to contribute some tickets for them to sale and raise funds. Being the great giver that she is known to be, she SOLD them the tickets at face value and the groups were forced to scalp them.

Tight fit, your so called PC rant smacks of elitism at its worst... 'poor man of color' eh?What color would that be? Sounds a bit too much like 'colored'to me. I would bet cash money that you are a college student, probably at some effette liberal arts school. Me? well... I used to be "less fortunate " but I didn't like it so i worked really hard. now I'm "Mr. Greedy Elite" and I spend my hard earned ducats on having sex with "Less Fortuate Persons of Color". How far you are from reality my friend.

Mmmvelour, you must have missed the first sentence of his third paragraph, where he wrote: "Hey Blazers, just having fun with you." That is the problem with attempting satire on the 'net: most people just don't get the joke.

Anyway, the only political camp I belong to is the sparsely populated anarcho-nihilist tent, and I think that the american right and left wings are both bloated with bullshit. And I would rather kick back on a beach with poor people in Mexico than a bunch of pompous assholes in Newport Beach any day of the week.

Kendricks

Blazers is right about the trash on Mexican beaches that are heavily used by the locals. I can't figure those folks out. There's certainly enough manpower down there to put some trash cans around and empty them out on a regular basis. It ain't rocket science. And it's not just the urban poor. I've spent ALOT of time surfing the beaches of Pescadero in BCS (rural area) and the regular Monday routine is to pick up the trash the locals leave around over the weekend. And there are plenty of trash cans, they just don't use them.

The filthiness of Latin American countries is my biggest, and really only beef, with Latinos. Really bugs me.

I lived in Playas for 2 years in 2 different locations. I liked it, only minus is it is SOOOO FUCKING far from anywhere. Also, at about 3 in the morning in winter Ave Internacional gets foggy. When you are coming back from downtown shitfaced and can't see 10 feet thru the fog, driving gets very interesting very fast. As to mmmlevoulr, get a fucking life, dude.

This thread sounds so WestFargo..

I really can't say much bad of Playas, lived here for like 17 years now and will continue to for awhile more.

The only really bad thing I can say about Playas is all those fucken people that tag the walls, seriously, once my friend and I were driving down the street and two dudes were tagging, we stopped and ran after them, and kicked there ass. The weird thing was that a cop saw us doing that and said thanks to us and took them away.

I remember back in the years how quiet Playas was, now with all the Juniors running around the streets. But I am young so I still have contributed to some of the violence in Playas some way or another.

Nero

hi nero

damm your brave

i wouldnt have done that.
try los angeles or boston and you would be in a body bag

and in tj i wouldnt even think of doing that.

you never know what could happen.
and life is to good to me to take a risk

change your id to braveheart
take care
milkman

A question for all you guys that are living in Playas now, What kind of internet connections are available ?, and what do they cost

Internet: Dial up thru Telnor at about $20 per month or Cable Modem thru Cablemas at about $45 per month. The cable modem is proving very unreliable though.

Nero mi vecino, You forgot to mention the problem of all the damn gringos moving into the area.

With Telnor, what actual connection speed can I expect? (I'm talking about actual connection speed, not advertised, or "theoretically possible").

Telnor is allright, it hasn't given me any problems. Now that they have knocked off the servicio medido bullshit, it is not too expensive. Ja is right, Cablemas sucks. At 3 in the morning you can get a great connection, though...

Diego writes "With Telnor, what actual connection speed can I expect?"

Gee, your self imposed exile didn't last long did it?

Hello everyone

Cable can be a bid hastle but I still enjoy almost every minute of it when it's working.

For any of you people that are willing to throw the money, I would suggest having both cable and Dial up, that way when Cable goes down like it ususally does every once in awhile you can switch to dial up and continue whatever your using the internet for(piracy , child molesting selling and ripping off people online , etc.....).

Nero a.k.a. Braveheart

With all the new gangsters hangin out in the playas now, what is the current female:male ratio in the streets? I dont like a place where everyone you see is a male...

A month or so ago, a monger posted about a placed called Teatro in Playas. Cat-eyes, Crazypinoy and myself visited this place on a Wed. night and it was really happening. Cateyes and I came back Thurs. night while Crazypinoy jackhammer his favorita.
We met two girls there and we went to dinner at Las Cabanas rest. located also in Playas, this place was recently open and it is a nice place to take a chica. The prices are affordable and the place is really classy. They play romantic music, and the service was great.
From TJ take the Ensenada road towards playa, take the first exit and at the light make a left towards KFC, go pass the Domino's sign and the Rest. will be on the left hand side. Plenty of parking on the street.

Cityog,
KFC was tempting since it took a long time to find. Ended up going to Rosarito instead to eat at La Flor de Michoacan

Valentino

ReyTJ;

You have your head up your ass, and once again, don't know what you are talking about.

Diego, don't go away mad, just please GO AWAY

a bit late... but i owe an apology to Tight Fit, sorry dude,I guess I should improve my speed reading skills

Don't like the facts, eh?

Yup, Diego's right, Rey TJ's a moron! Hmm... has there ever been a more classic example of GOOD VS. EVIL???

Didn't say he was a moron - I said he had his head up his ass(referring to this subject).

I don't know why you can't stick to the facts, or why you enjoy flamefests so much.

To be fair, I could have been nicer, and just said that he had a small reading comprehension problem.

Maybe I'm just a moron too. Yeah, yeah, that's it. I took your rant de hora out of context...

I'm with you Kendricks. Some people can't see their own shit.

I see faults in latin people and the cultures, but to only see the negative aspects, exxagerate them-while turning a blind eye to their shit-only reeks of....well, put it this way: shouldn't have you included hypocritical, pretentious, in your assessment of the pompous ******** in Newport Beach.

While on the subject...Who are all these people on the Jerry Springer show... Light complected, blonde mexicans?

My purpose is not to flame, but only to apply a little balance where due.

I've been living in playas de tijuana for about a year now. I find it to be less hectic than TJ and I feel completely safe even at night in my neighborhood (close to the La Perla development) I like the fact that there is a Starbucks a couple of minutes from my house staffed by some really friendy young folks. Grafitti is still very much a problem as is the litter on the beach. I've found that the southern part of playas where I live is a bit cleaner. I like Tacos Frances for a quick meal before hitting the bars on the weekend. I usually take a taxi to the clubs for about ten dollars which are fairly easy to catch near the big Calimax Grocery. I do occasionally take my car from Playas and park in the lot next to Chicago Club if I don't plan on drinking any alcohol. In the first couple of months of 2008 I was harrassed by the police on my way to and from Playas which is why I got into the habit of taking taxis. However, lately, with the new government in place,the incedence of the police shaking down Americans for bribes seems to be on the decline. I personally have not been stopped since February. I think Playas is slowly starting to improve.By the way, does anyone know anything about real estate values here? It seems to me the problem of sagging values in California has affected the real estate here as well. Anyway I just notice the houses in my neighborhood listed for months on end without much ever closing, and I'm thinking this might be a good time to find a bargain. Also truthfully I'm wondering how much the value of the house I purchased last year has dipped.

Tacos al Frances has the best tacos in TJ IMHO. Really miss that place and the great little seafood shacks near the Toreo. Another great thing is El Yogurt Place which has exceptional healthy food, especially breakfast.

The problem is that I had to drive to get to work and an SUV is a big target there and was robbed twice by policia. At that point, I had to move.

I just looked through this thread and want to add a couple of things...I see Nero posted in 2001, so I am guessing he was a member here at age 15

As far as the gas guy, he is blowing his horn in every neighborhood all day long. If you live anywhere in Tijuana, including playas de Tijuana expect the day to be full of horns honking....the gas guy, the water guy, the tamale guy, along with sometimes even general laborers with speakers on their car offering to do plumbing, fix household problemns etc.....When you are out of propane you appreciate these guys being by often, but when you don't need it, it is simply annoying.

Blazers. When you say robbed you mean extorted, Right?

No, I mean robbed at gunpoint..twice..by police. That was when the Playas police were the modern version of the Deadwood sheriffs.

Doc42- I also bought a new house in TJ 10 months ago and live here full time. As to your real estate values inquiry, anyone iterested in northern Baja property as an "investment" is crazy. It only makes sense if you'd be living here anyway. I've been tracking a bunch of very nice homes that have been on the market for years down here, with no movement whatsoever. Don't expect any appreciation on a home, and it's a useless figure anyway. There are no cash-out re-fis down here.