Sights in Northern Baja
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Museo de Cera
Most of the motley crew at the Museo de Cera look mildly constipated, but it’s fun anyway. Madonna appears to have had open-heart surgery, Michael Jackson looks creepy and John Lennon, yep, appears appropriately stoned.
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Museo de las Californias
The Museo de las Californias chronicles the history of Baja California from prehistoric times to the present. The exhibit kicks off with replica cave paintings, then covers important historical milestones, including the earliest Spanish expeditions under Hernán Cortés, the mission period, the Treaty of Hidalgo, the Chinese immigration, the irrigation of the Colorado River delta and the advent of the railroad. It's an excellent introduction to the peninsula and should not be missed.
Displays in glass cases mix with scale replicas of ships, missions, other objects and fairly realistic dioramas. All explanatory paneling is in English and Spanish, and touch-screen terminals…
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Frontón Palacio Jai Alai
Oddly baroque in style, the striking Frontón Palacio Jai Alai is a Tijuana landmark fronting nearly an entire block of Av Revolución. Construction began in 1926, but wasn't completed until 1947. For decades it hosted the fast-moving ball game of jai alai - a sort of hybrid between squash and tennis, originating in Spain's Basque Country. Unfortunately, a strike by Mexico City players combined with the game's obscurity and lack of attendance forced the owner to close down the operation.
The building now hosts cultural events including music and theater performances, and you can usually get in to take a look at the courts and lobby area.
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Av Revolución
Virtually every visitor to Tijuana has to experience at least a brief stroll along raucous Av Revolución, also known as 'La Revo'. It's a mishmash of nightclubs, bellowing hawkers outside seedy strip bars, brash taxi drivers, tacky souvenir stores, street photographers with zebra-striped burros, discount liquor stores and restaurants.
If you're walking north to south but find the sensory assault from high-tech sound systems too overwhelming to return the same way, try the more conventional shopping street of Av Constitución, paralleling La Revo one block west. It has a far more local flare.
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Cervecería Tijuana
If you're a beer-drinker, make a pilgrimage to this microbrewery, which opened in early 2000. Owner José González Ibarra's vision was to make a potent brew in the tradition of pilsner beer, which originated in the Czech Republic. He imported all the technology from that country and a young Czech brew master whose efforts have clearly paid off.
Sold under the brand name Tijuana, this is a superior and full-bodied beer that easily measures up to some of Europe's finest. It is best enjoyed in the atmospheric, timbered brewery pub, about 3.2km (1.5 miles) south of downtown.
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Casa de la Cultura de Tijuana
Housed in an imposing neoclassical brick building (the former Escuela Alvaro Obregón, built in 1929) the Casa de la Cultura de Tijuana presents lectures, art exhibitions, film festivals and concerts. The center is located about 1.6km (1 mile) west of Av Revolución. Take any blue-and-white taxi (marked 'Colonia Altamira') westbound from Calle 3a (Carrillo Puerto) or walk up Calle 4a (Díaz Mirón); instead of the busy street, go up the hillside staircase for fine city views.
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Muso Histórico Regional
This modest museum features the 'People and Cultures of Meso-America' and is housed in an 1886 military barracks that served as the city's jail until 1986. Exhibits feature tools, ceramics and other archeological finds of the indigenous Cúcapa, Paipai, Kumiai (Kumeyaay) and Kiliwa. Also check out the cell block, where several of the tiny, windowless concrete cubicles sport murals by the former inmates. The former dormitory houses rotating art exhibits.
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Lucha Libre
Not sure how to kick off your Friday night? Treat yourself to the spectacle of Lucha Libre at the Auditorio Municipal Fausto Gutierrez Moreno, Tijuana's municipal auditorium. See two oversized masked men with names like 'The Mystic One', 'Blue Panther' and 'Heavy Metal' throw each other about a boxing ring in a theatrical display of freeform wrestling. There's nothing quite like it. Matches are held every Friday night. Rates depend on the match.
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El Mirador
For marvelous views of Ensenada and the Bahía de Todos Santos, climb or drive up to El Mirador in Colinas de Chapultepec, the hilly residential neighborhood west of downtown. The lookout is gated off, but no one seems to mind people slipping through the hole in the fence to the right of the gate. To get there from downtown, head up Av Alemán from the western end of Calle 2a. If you're driving, park in the dirt area across the street.
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Museo del Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia
Built in 1886 by the US-owned International Company of Mexico, Ensenada’s oldest public building, formerly the Aduana Marítima de Ensenada, houses the Museo del Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, a historical and cultural museum. It has a relatively small but comprehensive collection of artifacts, and discusses (mainly in Spanish) the area’s history from prehistoric times up to now.
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Riviera del Pacífico
Opened in the early 1930s as Hotel Playa Ensenada, the extravagant Riviera del Pacífico, a Spanish-style former casino, is rumored to have been a regular haunt of Al Capone. It now houses the small Museo de Historia de Ensenada and Bar Andaluz, while the Casa de Cultura offers classes, retrospective film screenings and art exhibitions.
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Cervecería Mexicali
Two blocks southwest of the rectory, the former Cervecería Mexicali sits vacant but in a good state of preservation despite fire damage in 1986. Opened in 1923 under a German master brewer, it satisfied local demand for half a century and even managed to export some of its production.
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Casa de la Cultura
The Catedral de la Virgen de Guadalupe is Mexicali's major religious landmark. One block north, on Av Madero between Altamirano and Morelos, the former Escuela Cuauhtémoc is a neoclassical building that now serves as the city's Casa de la Cultura, which hosts rotating art exhibitions.
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Jardín Caracol
The Jardín Caracol is a charming garden whose layout is intended to resemble a snail (hence the name) and often hosts free events and exhibits, many of them geared toward children. In summer the Voladores de Papántla (Totonac indigenous performers) can be seen here.
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Maritime Museum
Built in 1887 by the US-owned International Company of Mexico, the former Marine Customs House is Ensenada's oldest public building. The Maritime Museum houses rotating exhibitions - from archeological exhibits to contemporary art - with a cultural or historical angle.
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Museo Regional de la Universidad Autónoma
Permanent displays at the Museo Regional de la Universidad Autónoma cover subjects like geology, paleontology, human evolution, colonial history and photography. Traveling exhibitions include themes such as indigenous textiles from mainland Mexico.
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Mundo Divertido Río
If Av Revolución (La Revo) is too intense for the kiddies, consider taking them to the American-style amusement park Mundo Divertido Río. It has miniature golf, a huge arcade, batting cages, rides and the essential snack bar.
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Colorado River Land Company
Just north of the imposing 1922 Palacio de Gobierno building, the former headquarters of the Colorado River Land Company is now used for offices, but its attractive patio fountain and restored balcony murals merit a visit.
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Museo de Historia
The Museo de Historia traces northern Baja history from the indigenous inhabitants to the mission period. On the building's basement level, the Galería de la Cuidad features Baja California artists.
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Parque Morelos
Parque Morelos is an ecological reserve and the largest park in Tijuana. Bring the kids and enjoy the spacious recreation areas, pool, lake, botanical garden, playground, BBQ areas and snack bar.
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Catedral de la Virgen de Guadalupe
The Catedral de la Virgen de Guadalupe is the city’s major religious landmark.
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