Let's organize a Meetup (San Diego/Tijuana)

Arrange meetups and get togethers with other Happier Abroad members in your area, or coming to your area.
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fschmidt
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Post by fschmidt »

I spoke to Jester and he prefers Hotel Ticuan over Hotel La Villa de Zaragoza because Hotel Ticuan has a lobby. If no one objects in 24 hours, we will stay at Hotel Ticuan.

We currently have me, drealm, Jester, djfourmoney, and hornyabc coming. If anyone else wants to come, please post here or contact me.

For those coming, please let me know where you are coming from, when you will leave, and when you expect to arrive at the border. Do you prefer meeting at border or meeting at the hotel in Mexico? I will PM djfourmoney and hornyabc with this question.
drealm
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Post by drealm »

fschmidt wrote:I spoke to Jester and he prefers Hotel Ticuan over Hotel La Villa de Zaragoza because Hotel Ticuan has a lobby. If no one objects in 24 hours, we will stay at Hotel Ticuan.

We currently have me, drealm, Jester, djfourmoney, and hornyabc coming. If anyone else wants to come, please post here or contact me.

For those coming, please let me know where you are coming from, when you will leave, and when you expect to arrive at the border. Do you prefer meeting at border or meeting at the hotel in Mexico? I will PM djfourmoney and hornyabc with this question.
Hotel Ticuan is fine for me.

Coming from Bay area. I'm leaving from OAK airport at 12:30. Plan to arrive at border 5pm. Border is preferable to me.

I'm open to meeting elsewhere if needed. My plane arrives in SAN airport at 2:00pm.
Jester
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Post by Jester »

Ok so I'm coming in late here to get caught up and throw in my 2 cents

It sounds like the plan is shaping up as follows:


RIGHT NOW:
--Everyone should let FSchmidt know right now:
(1) If they are coming Friday 6/27
(2) if Hotel Ticuan is OK

...so he can tell them how many rooms to reserve.

-- Also consider providing FSchmidt with your phone number to facilitate meeting up. (You can PM me too if you like, and I will reciprocate!)


THEN
-- FSchmidt reserves rooms
-- FSchmidt posts a map of the parking lot and the McDonald's in San Ysidro where you will all be meeting.



FRIDAY AFTERNOON (6/27):
FSchmidt and DRealm fly in separately to San Diego and catch cabs or trolley to San Ysidro.

DJFourMoney takes the bus down from LA.

HornyABC (and a friend or two?) drive down. Car(s) then parked at border parking lot.

FSchmidt designates a meeting place, perhaps outside McDonald's in San Ysidro at 5pm. Everyone except me meets there.

FSchmidt leads you guys across the border, on foot.

I meet you guys with my 1998 Jeep Grand Cherokee, Army-color (olive drab), and we go to Hotel Ticuan, check in, pay, drop off luggage.



FRIDAY EVENING:
Meet in lobby.

Hit the Zona Centro, to, um, take in the sights, escorted by our personal DJ (I am volunteering him for this.) Not that he's ever BEEN there :wink:



SATURDAY MORNING
--We meet, in lobby
--go out for coffee
then we take my car and
--go to a Farmers market (it's called something else, I forget) that FSchmidt knows about, and eat breakfast there.
-- go to an upscale shopping mall right nearby, again escorted by FSchmidt, and take a look at upscale eye candy.



NOON SATURDAY:
-- OPEN TIME(See below.)



SATURDAY EVENING:
-- Nice restaurant in TJ (my suggestion).
-- Maybe find a friendly bar or club with some non-pro girls (my suggestion).



SUNDAY MORNING:
-- Meet in lobby.
-- Go out for coffee.
-- Check out of rooms
-- Mexican Power Breakfast



SUNDAY 12 NOON
-- OPEN TIME (See below.)


SUNDAY 2PM:
-- Drop DRealm at the border so he can stand in line for 3 hours to get back to the USSA, get to San Diego airport by 7pm, catch his 9pm flight home).



SUNDAY 3PM:
--OPEN TIME (See below)



******************************
SOME OF MY IDEAS OF WHAT WE CAN DO IN OPEN TIME: (Please add your own, or designate which of my ideas you personally like)

TIJUANA
-- Drinks in TJ and shoot the breeze.
-- souvenir shopping -- great prices, haggling necessary.
-- Las Playas de Tijuana



SOUTH OF TIJUANA, DOWN THE COAST
Or head down the coast in my car and see the sights.
-- beautiful gringo-friendly high-rises on the beach (doesnt have to be that far south)
-- some art galleries in Rosarito or further south in Puerto Nuevo. Great art, great prices.



ENSENADA, WHICH IS FURTHER SOUTH, PROBABLY BEST FOR SUNDAY AFTERNOON OR MONDAY:
-- Just south of Ensenada, the Bufadora peninsula, famous tourist site and blowhole, great views and hiking
-- ocean swim and barbecue at my place on the beach in Ensenada (2 hours south of Tijuana)
-- raw shrimp, octopus or clam cocktail with beers outdoors right at the beach
-- the Ensenada real estate tour I mentioned earlier, including trailers foir sale, houses for sale, and houses for rent
-- a sample Spanish language class in the small, classy, peaceful tourist zone of Ensenada
-- although I don't really know how to fish at all, there are fishing boats in Ensenada and I am sure I could find a skipper who would take on newbies
-- poking around town to see how different classes live
-- souvenir shopping, great prices, no haggling necessary (unless you're a hard-ass).



WAY SOUTH, 2 HOURS SOUTH OF ENSENADA IN SAN QUENTIN ( MONDAY OR TUESDAY)
Old timey Mexican fishing village, migrant workers picking strawberries, I can show you how the people live. And yes the women there are interested in gringos.
Jester
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Post by Jester »

ONE OTHER IDEA:

if there is a lot of Ensenada stuff to do, we could leave Tijuana Saturday morning, but keep the hotel room. Head south, do everything, then return to Tijuana for dinner and/or nightlife. Sunday would then be reserved for FSchmidt's Farmers Market, Shopping Mall, and last-minute souvenir buying.

Everyone would then see the whole northern coast.

This is my personal favorite. (But it does limit the time in Tijuana.)
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Winston
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Post by Winston »

djfourmoney wrote:
Winston wrote:
djfourmoney wrote:
gsjackson wrote:Jester, I can't make this gathering because I'll be in Europe, but you've gotten me interested in Ensenada real estate. What are the odds you'll still be there around this time next year?
If we can set it up, maybe you can attend via Skype?
That's a good idea. For those of us who can't make it, maybe we can all do a group conference by Skype, so we can all get acquainted as real people, rather than just on a forum? It would be the next best thing.

How many people can be on a Skype conference at the same time?
I think its up to six people. But I Google +/Hangout might be better. It has internal switching via mic/voice/noise detection and I don't know what the limit is, but it's more than six.

Isn't HA on Google+?
No, how do you get HA on Google Plus? You mean you can create a page for HA on it? How?
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Winston
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Post by Winston »

Jester,
Do you mean you own property south of TJ in Ensenada? Wow. If so, I'll try to make it.

Who else can stay longer? Who is picking up fschmidt at the airport?

I'm going to send your outline and schedule of our plans to our mailing list and facebook group to see who else can make it, and announce the date as well.

Jester, how much cash should we bring? And do we have to change them into pesos or keep them in dollars?
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Join my Dating Site to meet thousands of legit foreign girls at low cost!

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Jester
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Post by Jester »

Dollars are OK.

The change they give you will be in pesos though.
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Jester
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Post by Jester »

Winston wrote:
Jester,
Do you mean you own property south of TJ in Ensenada? Wow. If so, I'll try to make it.

Who else can stay longer? Who is picking up fschmidt at the airport?

I'm going to send your outline and schedule of our plans to our mailing list and facebook group to see who else can make it, and announce the date as well.

Jester, how much cash should we bring? And do we have to change them into pesos or keep them in dollars?
Glad you'll be coming Winston!

We'll have a blast.
Wu hu!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opk4x7jzRS4


PS
Please PM me and FSchmidt your contact info.
Jester
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Post by Jester »

Winston wrote:
Jester, how much cash should we bring?
FSchmidt says the hotel is $80. So figure 2 nights in Tijuana. If we head south after that, we'll spend $40 per night on motels. There are $20 ones, harder to find.

Food is cheap on the street, but a good restaurant meal costs what a bad one does up north.

I use cash exclusively, so I carry a good bit, but a friend who visited used CC's exclusively, no prob. A few restaurants are all cash, and obviously street food is for cash. IMO cash rules. Mexican ATM'S will give you 4000 pesos max, thats about 300$. So personally I would bring $2000, change half into pesos in San Ysidro or TJ (hoping for a 13 to 1 rate), then stay in Mexico till I use up most of the pesos.

If you do the math, SOME places it is better to use dollars, but MOST places pesos are better.

I'm up for anything, even drive down Baja and ferry over to Sinaloa (Mazatlan, Sinaloa).

Let's do a video!
Jester
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FEEDBACK NEEDED!!!

Post by Jester »

AGAIN FOLKS...

PLEASE PM Fschmidt AND ME WITH CONTACT INFO IF YOU'RE COMING

ALSO LET ME KNOW WHICH (IF ANY) OF MY IDEAS THAT YOU LIKE, OR ADD YOUR OWN!!


Jester wrote:
It sounds like the plan is shaping up as follows:


RIGHT NOW:
--Everyone should let FSchmidt know right now:
(1) If they are coming Friday 6/27
(2) if Hotel Ticuan is OK

...so he can tell them how many rooms to reserve.

-- Also consider providing FSchmidt with your phone number to facilitate meeting up. (You can PM me too if you like, and I will reciprocate!)


THEN
-- FSchmidt reserves rooms
-- FSchmidt posts a map of the parking lot and the McDonald's in San Ysidro where you will all be meeting.



FRIDAY AFTERNOON (6/27):
FSchmidt and DRealm fly in separately to San Diego and catch cabs or trolley to San Ysidro.

DJFourMoney takes the bus down from LA.

HornyABC (and a friend or two?) drive down. Car(s) then parked at border parking lot.

FSchmidt designates a meeting place, perhaps outside McDonald's in San Ysidro at 5pm. Everyone except me meets there.

FSchmidt leads you guys across the border, on foot.

I meet you guys with my 1998 Jeep Grand Cherokee, Army-color (olive drab), and we go to Hotel Ticuan, check in, pay, drop off luggage.



FRIDAY EVENING:
Meet in lobby.

Hit the Zona Centro, to, um, take in the sights, escorted by our personal DJ (I am volunteering him for this.) Not that he's ever BEEN there :wink:



SATURDAY MORNING
--We meet, in lobby
--go out for coffee
then we take my car and
--go to a Farmers market (it's called something else, I forget) that FSchmidt knows about, and eat breakfast there.
-- go to an upscale shopping mall right nearby, again escorted by FSchmidt, and take a look at upscale eye candy.



NOON SATURDAY:
-- OPEN TIME(See below.)



SATURDAY EVENING:
-- Nice restaurant in TJ (my suggestion).
-- Maybe find a friendly bar or club with some non-pro girls (my suggestion).



SUNDAY MORNING:
-- Meet in lobby.
-- Go out for coffee.
-- Check out of rooms
-- Mexican Power Breakfast



SUNDAY 12 NOON
-- OPEN TIME (See below.)


SUNDAY 2PM:
-- Drop DRealm at the border so he can stand in line for 3 hours to get back to the USSA, get to San Diego airport by 7pm, catch his 9pm flight home).



SUNDAY 3PM:
--OPEN TIME (See below)



******************************
SOME OF MY IDEAS OF WHAT WE CAN DO IN OPEN TIME: (Please add your own, or designate which of my ideas you personally like)

TIJUANA
-- Drinks in TJ and shoot the breeze.
-- souvenir shopping -- great prices, haggling necessary.
-- Las Playas de Tijuana



SOUTH OF TIJUANA, DOWN THE COAST
Or head down the coast in my car and see the sights.
-- beautiful gringo-friendly high-rises on the beach (doesnt have to be that far south)
-- some art galleries in Rosarito or further south in Puerto Nuevo. Great art, great prices.



ENSENADA, WHICH IS FURTHER SOUTH, PROBABLY BEST FOR SUNDAY AFTERNOON OR MONDAY:
-- Just south of Ensenada, the Bufadora peninsula, famous tourist site and blowhole, great views and hiking
-- ocean swim and barbecue at my place on the beach in Ensenada (2 hours south of Tijuana)
-- raw shrimp, octopus or clam cocktail with beers outdoors right at the beach
-- the Ensenada real estate tour I mentioned earlier, including trailers foir sale, houses for sale, and houses for rent
-- a sample Spanish language class in the small, classy, peaceful tourist zone of Ensenada
-- although I don't really know how to fish at all, there are fishing boats in Ensenada and I am sure I could find a skipper who would take on newbies
-- poking around town to see how different classes live
-- souvenir shopping, great prices, no haggling necessary (unless you're a hard-a**).



WAY SOUTH, 2 HOURS SOUTH OF ENSENADA IN SAN QUENTIN ( MONDAY OR TUESDAY)
Old timey Mexican fishing village, migrant workers picking strawberries, I can show you how the people live. And yes the women there are interested in gringos.









PS
Jester wrote:
ONE OTHER IDEA:

if there is a lot of Ensenada stuff to do, we could leave Tijuana Saturday morning, but keep the hotel room. Head south, do everything, then return to Tijuana for dinner and/or nightlife. Sunday would then be reserved for FSchmidt's Farmers Market, Shopping Mall, and last-minute souvenir buying.

Everyone would then see the whole northern coast.

This is my personal favorite. (But it does limit the time in Tijuana.)
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Winston
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Post by Winston »

Thanks Jester. I only have a Tracfone cell phone. I will PM that number to you and fschmidt, though fschmidt probably already has it since I used it to call him before.

I will also see if I can pick him up at the airport in San Diego. Is anyone else arriving at that airport that we can pick up?

Fschmidt, can you make a reservation for me at this hotel you were talking about?

Right now, I'm at a Buddhist center near Prescott, AZ. I will head to Yuma, AZ first and spend a few days there first to relax and get ready for the meet up. From Yuma, San Diego looks to be about two hours away. It's a lot cheaper to stay in Yuma than in San Dieg too. I was going to go back to Las Vegas after this, but I figured Yuma is closer to here and closer to San Diego, so I don't have to go all the way back to Vegas and then all the way down to San Diego again.

Jester, do those hotels take credit cards? What about the $40 ones? How can this hotel in TJ cost $80? Isn't Mexico a third world country?

If the hotels take credit cards, then I think bringing $2000 is too steep. Who carries that much around in cash? Plus what if you get robbed? I don't carry that much around in cash. The most I'd carry is a few hundred dollars. In this case, maybe 400 or 500 dollars.

Jester, you assume everyone is as well off as you are. :P

Jester, did you say in an earlier post that you had some property down in Ensenada? Is it a beach front property? If so, can it accommodate people? You must be pretty well off.
Last edited by Winston on June 21st, 2014, 1:45 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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gsjackson
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Post by gsjackson »

Winston wrote:T

Right now, I'm at a Buddhist center near Prescott, AZ. I will head to Yuma, AZ first and spend a few days there first to relax and get ready for the meet up.
Relax? In Yuma, Arizona in late June? The temperature will be about 35 degrees hotter than Prescott. I had to spend a week in Yuma when my dad had a trial there. Going outside was like stepping into an oven. I'd never experienced anything remotely like it. If you want to relax, it will be a lot easier in Prescott or San Diego than anyplace in between. Unless air conditioning relaxes you.
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Winston
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Post by Winston »

gsjackson wrote:
Winston wrote:T

Right now, I'm at a Buddhist center near Prescott, AZ. I will head to Yuma, AZ first and spend a few days there first to relax and get ready for the meet up.
Relax? In Yuma, Arizona in late June? The temperature will be about 35 degrees hotter than Prescott. I had to spend a week in Yuma when my dad had a trial there. Going outside was like stepping into an oven. I'd never experienced anything remotely like it. If you want to relax, it will be a lot easier in Prescott or San Diego than anyplace in between. Unless air conditioning relaxes you.
Yeah I know. I've been to Yuma before and it is very hot. But Yuma is closer to San Diego and it is much cheaper to stay in Yuma than in San Diego. Maybe I will stay in Prescott than, or another town in between. I just want to be near San Diego so I can drive to the meet up faster and pick up fschmidt at the airport, without worrying about being late or behind.
Check out my FUN video clips in Russia and SE Asia and Female Encounters of the Foreign Kind video series and Full Russia Trip Videos!

Join my Dating Site to meet thousands of legit foreign girls at low cost!

"It takes far less effort to find and move to the society that has what you want than it does to try to reconstruct an existing society to match your standards." - Harry Browne
fschmidt
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Post by fschmidt »

fschmidt wrote:I spoke to Jester and he prefers Hotel Ticuan over Hotel La Villa de Zaragoza because Hotel Ticuan has a lobby. If no one objects in 24 hours, we will stay at Hotel Ticuan.
No one objected, so we will stay at Hotel Ticuan. I called them and they said that it's cheaper to reserve online than to pay there, so please reserve your own room online here:

http://www.booking.com/

djfourmoney will meet us at the hotel. hornyabc didn't respond. I am not sure about Winston's plans yet. If no one says that they want to meet at the border within the next 48 hours, then the border meeting is off and I will go directly to the hotel.

At the hotel, I suggest meeting in the lobby at 2 times. First we meet at lobby at 6pm and go to dinner. (I know a great taco place nearby.) Then we meet again in the lobby at 8pm for anyone who missed the first meeting.
drealm
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Post by drealm »

I booked a room at Hotel Ticuan.

fschmidt has my contact info.

Regardless of where everyone else meets fschmidt and I will first meet at airport since we're both flying in.

I plan to meet everyone else in Hotel Ticuan lobby.
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