# Coming to Rosarito



## Monty Floyd

I will be going out to TJ/San Diego in about a week. I plan to visit Rosarito (and maybe Ensenada), to look for a long term rental.
Any suggestions, advise or tips would be greatly appreciated. I have limited Spanish skills but have survived 15 months in the back-waters of Mexico.
My son lives in San Diego now and I would like to be able to see him once in a while.
I have looked on craigslist but most of those places are in TJ. I don't have anything against TJ, I've never been there but I have been to border towns and I would only live in TJ, if there were nothing available in Rosarito or Ensenada.
I don't have a car, so I need to be relatively close to transportation but my biggest need is for a dependable, high-speed internet.
I currently am paying $2000 p/mn for a 3 bedroom. 2 story house. I don't expect to find anything like that, there. I don't need all this space anyway, it just fell in my lap and it is a good deal. A one bedroom is sufficient, a two bedroom would be better, in case my son would stay over. Prefer a furnished place as I am leaving everything that I cannot sell or give away. A view of the ocean would be a plus. I have room in my budget to increase the rent, for the right place. 
Well, thanks for your time


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## Monty Floyd

How about recommendations for an affordable hotel?


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## maryellen1952

I plan to move to Rosarito this month from Tijuana and there are plenty of 1 or 2 bedroom rentals under $300/month provided you do not expect luxury. If you limit your search to Craigs List you won't find much in the budget category so try better sources such as vivastreet.com.mx or vivareal.com. Most ads are in Spanish so you will need to use the Google translator. This person at Lemus Realty is helping me so contact her...she speaks English.
Celia Bahena <[email protected]>


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## Monty Floyd

THANK YOU, maryellen, you're an angel.
You don't have anything available under $300, do you?


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## joelpb

maryellen is right. you will have no problem finding a place. you will love it 
baja. check out ensenada or la mission. great palces to live. you will not
need to know a lot of spanish but it helps.


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## AlanMexicali

*Spanish required*



joelpb said:


> maryellen is right. you will have no problem finding a place. you will love it
> baja. check out ensenada or la mission. great palces to live. you will not
> need to know a lot of spanish but it helps.


I agree you "might" not need to know a lot of Spanish when staying exclusively in Rosarito, however living in T.J. or Ensenada you will need a low or intermediate level of Spanish to function properly and get you daily business done. There is a difference between living and vacationing in Mexico. The tourist destinations, restaurants, shopping, tours are not the same as going to a supermarket or store and trying to figure out what they say to you when Spanish is used exclusively. Even in any local restaurant you will not meet many, if any, that speak any English. My experience from going to Baja regularly for 30 years.


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## TundraGreen

AlanMexicali said:


> I agree you "might" not need to know a lot of Spanish when staying exclusively in Rosarito, however living in T.J. or Ensenada you will need a low or intermediate level of Spanish to function properly and get you daily business done. There is a difference between living and vacationing in Mexico. The tourist destinations, restaurants, shopping, tours are not the same as going to a supermarket or store and trying to figure out what they say to you when Spanish is used exclusively. Even in any local restaurant you will not meet many, if any, that speak any English. My experience from going to Baja regularly for 30 years.


Ditto. I have a little experience with several border towns (Tijuana, Mexicali, Ciudad Juarez and Ensenada). Except for tourist facilities, people don't speak much English.


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## canzis98

i've lived in rosarito for 5 years and am perfectly comfortable comunicating my broken spanish. there are many reasonable places to rent and are in gated communities. i am happy to say i live way over my head here. you pick up what you need to get it across and as long as you try everyone is helpful, but you already know that. as a resident i am treated differently than a vacationer. better


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## Monty Floyd

Any recommendations on an affordable hotel? I have the INAPAM card for a discount. I don't want a luxury place, just somewhere clean and safe to sleep, shower and convenient to transportation and restaurants.


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## maryellen1952

If you expect to find a place less than $300 you need to do a lot of looking around on all the websites, as I mentioned. I found a place in Rosarito that is furnished for $250 and on the beach side (although not directly on the beach) close to Home Depot and Walmex. I have a car and spent a lot of time looking on the mentioned websites and then had the agent, Celia, go with me to check them out. 
Get in touch with her when you are in Rosarito as you will definitely need to check the places out in person. 
I have lived in Tijuana in a regular Mexican neighborhood for the past 9 months and I believe there is more English spoken in Rosarito versus TJ. You'll find the Americans living in Rosarito or farther south are in a different financial situation than the ones living in TJ; there are a lot of Americans in TJ who are on some type of welfare, SSI, etc. so they financially aren't able to move farther south and usually less educated as well. The 2 apartment buildings where I am now living in TJ have over 70% of Americans on some government assistance and few of them work. That is one reason I am moving to Rosarito along with the horrible TJ pollution.


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## maryellen1952

canzis98 said:


> i've lived in rosarito for 5 years and am perfectly comfortable comunicating my broken spanish. there are many reasonable places to rent and are in gated communities. i am happy to say i live way over my head here. you pick up what you need to get it across and as long as you try everyone is helpful, but you already know that. as a resident i am treated differently than a vacationer. better


Most of the gated communities are more than $300; more like $400 plus. The more reasonably priced places will be in regular neighborhoods.


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## maryellen1952

If you expect to take advantage of the lower cost of living anywhere in Mexico you really need to have a basic understanding of Spanish. I see everyday Americans in my apartment who refuse to learn Spanish getting either ripped off or paying much more than needed simply because they don't understand Spanish. 




Monty Floyd said:


> I will be going out to TJ/San Diego in about a week. I plan to visit Rosarito (and maybe Ensenada), to look for a long term rental.
> Any suggestions, advise or tips would be greatly appreciated. I have limited Spanish skills but have survived 15 months in the back-waters of Mexico.
> My son lives in San Diego now and I would like to be able to see him once in a while.
> I have looked on craigslist but most of those places are in TJ. I don't have anything against TJ, I've never been there but I have been to border towns and I would only live in TJ, if there were nothing available in Rosarito or Ensenada.
> I don't have a car, so I need to be relatively close to transportation but my biggest need is for a dependable, high-speed internet.
> I currently am paying $2000 p/mn for a 3 bedroom. 2 story house. I don't expect to find anything like that, there. I don't need all this space anyway, it just fell in my lap and it is a good deal. A one bedroom is sufficient, a two bedroom would be better, in case my son would stay over. Prefer a furnished place as I am leaving everything that I cannot sell or give away. A view of the ocean would be a plus. I have room in my budget to increase the rent, for the right place.
> Well, thanks for your time


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## Monty Floyd

maryellen1952 said:


> If you expect to find a place less than $300 you need to do a lot of looking around on all the websites, as I mentioned. I found a place in Rosarito that is furnished for $250 and on the beach side (although not directly on the beach) close to Home Depot and Walmex. I have a car and spent a lot of time looking on the mentioned websites and then had the agent, Celia, go with me to check them out.
> Get in touch with her when you are in Rosarito as you will definitely need to check the places out in person.
> I have lived in Tijuana in a regular Mexican neighborhood for the past 9 months and I believe there is more English spoken in Rosarito versus TJ. You'll find the Americans living in Rosarito or farther south are in a different financial situation than the ones living in TJ; there are a lot of Americans in TJ who are on some type of welfare, SSI, etc. so they financially aren't able to move farther south and usually less educated as well. The 2 apartment buildings where I am now living in TJ have over 70% of Americans on some government assistance and few of them work. That is one reason I am moving to Rosarito along with the horrible TJ pollution.


I sent an email to Celia Saturday. Yeah, I wouldn't rent a place unless I've seen it personally. $250 furnished, that's MY place... ; ) j/k That would be what I am looking for. 
I am living on less then $1000/mn now. Most months I can save some money because there is nothing here to spend it on. I know that won't be a problem there.


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## Monty Floyd

maryellen1952 said:


> If you expect to take advantage of the lower cost of living anywhere in Mexico you really need to have a basic understanding of Spanish. I see everyday Americans in my apartment who refuse to learn Spanish getting either ripped off or paying much more than needed simply because they don't understand Spanish.


I understand, I am working on it. I believe that I would pick it up faster there than here. With more people that are native to english, it is easier to ask what is proper. My taxi driver speaks very good english but has no interest in me learning spanish because it will deprive him of some business from me. My next door neighbor teaches english and when I met her, she asked if she could practice her english with me. I told her yes, as long as she teaches me some spanish. That was the last mention it, six months ago.
I know words, it's the sentences and mostly the verbs that mess me up. Most of the time, I can get by without help.


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## RVGRINGO

How true! You must learn the root verbs and the common conjugations for each one. As you do so, you will see a pattern emerge for the regular -ar, -er and -ir verbs. The irregular ones will require memorizing and practice, as there is no pattern. Stem changing verbs seem hard, but there is a sound pattern for them, which will also become evident.
I suggest two books as being absolutely indispensable: "501 Spanish Verbs" and "Madrigal's Magic Key to Spanish". It will take work, but those books will prepare you for whatever lessons you may choose to take. Que tenga buen dia. Yup, that's the subjunctive tense, which is used a lot in Spanish.


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## Monty Floyd

Muchas gracias señor. Yo necesito mucho practico.
I remember when I first got here and I asked the taxi driver "how much" as como mucho... lol I'll never forget the look on his face.


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## TundraGreen

Monty Floyd said:


> Muchas gracias señor. Yo necesito mucho practico.
> I remember when I first got here and I asked the taxi driver "how much" as como mucho... lol I'll never forget the look on his face.


We all do it. I was with a friend once when he asked where the "groceria" was when he wanted a grocery store. But of course they heard "groseria" since it doesn't exist with a "c". And "groseria" is not the same thing at all.


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## Monty Floyd

My initial plan was to take the bus to Tijuana. It's about $320 round trip, Because I have the INAPAM card, my cost would be half. Then I found out that it takes TWO days to get there by bus. It's not the "leave in the evening on day one and get there the morning of day two, it's 48 hours or so. The thought of riding on a bus for 48 hours didn't appeal to me much, so I started to check the airlines and despegar.com.
After much searching and waiting, I found some pretty good airfares. I originally wanted to fly into San Diego and I found round trip tickets for about the same price as the bus (bus=$160, aeromexico=$180) but I would have to take a bus to Mexico City and back. I did some more searching and came up with Volaris at $40 one way from Zacatecas to TJ and TJ to Zacatecas fro $30. Those are not discounted, those are their economy rates. Their website is one of the best I have ever seen. It's in english or spanish, it is extremely easy to navigate, they have english speaking customer service and they have some excellent rates.

Volaris


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## Monty Floyd

Please correct me if I'm wrong, there are two crossings in TJ, the eastern one is Otay and the western one is San Ysidro?
Does anyone know if there is bus service from the border to downtown SD?
How for is Ensenada from the border?


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## TundraGreen

Monty Floyd said:


> Please correct me if I'm wrong, there are two crossings in TJ, the eastern one is Otay and the western one is San Ysidro?
> You are correct, San Ysidro (west) and Otay (east).
> Does anyone know if there is bus service from the border to downtown SD?
> How for is Ensenada from the border?


The San Diego Trolley goes from the border to Town Center Transit in San Diego with lots of stops along the way. The San Ysidro trolley stop is right outside the building when you come out of the border crossing from Tijuana. 

Look at Google to see how far Ensenada is from the border.


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## Monty Floyd

TundraGreen said:


> The San Diego Trolley goes from the border to Town Center Transit in San Diego with lots of stops along the way. The San Ysidro trolley stop is right outside the building when you come out of the border crossing from Tijuana.
> 
> Look at Google to see how far Ensenada is from the border.


Thanks much!


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## maryellen1952

if you are not driving, you need to go through San Ysidro. Otay has very limited bus/public transportation so it will take you twice as long as going thru S.Y.
Mexicoach runs a bus to San Diego. Check their website. Ensenada is a 1 to 1 1/2 hour drive from TJ so taking public transportation means double the time depending on the bus or taxi you use.
If you check the San Diego Trolley website you will find the schedule.


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## Monty Floyd

Thanks maryellen. I'll be there Sunday. I have also contacted Celia and talked to some people in Ensenada about a place. 
Looking forward to seeing some different scenery.
A lot of good information, I do appreciate it and hope to return the favor some day.


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## TundraGreen

maryellen1952 said:


> ... If you check the San Diego Trolley website you will find the schedule.


The Trolley runs frequently during the day. Unless you are coming in very late or early, you probably don't need to worry about the schedule. I just show up and have never waited more than 10 minutes. It costs $1.25 usd for seniors from the border to Town Center. I don't know what the full fare costs.


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## Monty Floyd

TundraGreen said:


> The Trolley runs frequently during the day. Unless you are coming in very late or early, you probably don't need to worry about the schedule. I just show up and have never waited more than 10 minutes. It costs $1.25 usd for seniors from the border to Town Center. I don't know what the full fare costs.


What age gets the senior discount?


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## RVGRINGO

If it is like most such transportation systems in Mexico, those of 'tercer edad' get a 50% discount; however, it may be limited to only a few seats on each trip.
Oh, "Tercer edad" = 60+


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## Monty Floyd

I believe Tundra was talking about the trolley that goes from the border to San Diego.


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## TundraGreen

Monty Floyd said:


> I believe Tundra was talking about the trolley that goes from the border to San Diego.


Yes. On the Trolley, the senior fare is half price for those over 60. Full trolley fare is $2.50 for one ride. In the US, the discount generally is not as good as it is in Mexico. However, this time it is the same.


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## Monty Floyd

Oh, I got ya. Thanks.


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## Monty Floyd

OK, I got here late Mon night and got a room at Hotel Corona. Looks can be deceiving. From the looks of the place, it appears to be an upscale hotel... stay away, in fact, across the street and down a block is Hotel Brisas Del Mar. It is $50/night and a much nicer place and everything works.
I may try the Rosarito Beach Hotel for one night, just to see what it is like.
This place is 180 degrees different than Rioverde. I have not met many who do not speak at least some english and everything is quoted in dollars instead of pesos. There is so much to see and do. Just going to the beach and watching the waves is more than there is where I now live. Many interesting shops, many artsy type stores, the traffic, the wide streets, the transit options, the restaurants and I have only been here one day.
Going out to look at apartments today.
I went to San Diego for a couple days to visit my son. I took the trolley down to the border, $1.25, it was very easy and convenient. I got a cab from the border to Rosarito because I didn't know any other way. That was 200 pesos. I have learned since that there are better alternatives. The weather is beautiful, the people are friendly, the border was easy to cross (especially coming south), but I am on foot which makes it easier.
Looking forward to finding a new home and moving out here, soon.


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## TundraGreen

Monty Floyd said:


> ... I got a cab from the border to Rosarito because I didn't know any other way. That was 200 pesos. I have learned since that there are better alternatives. ...


As you have learned in this case, there are almost always cheaper alternatives than taxis, not necessarily better, but definitely cheaper. If you have a group, taxis can be pretty competitive for short trips. For one or two persons, there is usually a bus or combi van (9 or 12 passenger van) that will go where you want and save money over a taxi. It pays to ask. 

For example, a cab from the airport in Tijuana to the border is around $150 mxn ($12 usd). The local city bus costs $4.50 mxn ($0.30 usd) for seniors and about twice that for full fare.


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## maryellen1952

TundraGreen said:


> As you have learned in this case, there are almost always cheaper alternatives than taxis, not necessarily better, but definitely cheaper. If you have a group, taxis can be pretty competitive for short trips. For one or two persons, there is usually a bus or combi van (9 or 12 passenger van) that will go where you want and save money over a taxi. It pays to ask.
> 
> For example, a cab from the airport in Tijuana to the border is around $150 mxn ($12 usd). The local city bus costs $4.50 mxn ($0.30 usd) for seniors and about twice that for full fare.


You have to consider that after 8:00pm on any night you have limited choices for transport including those vans going from TJ. The buses stop running in TJ at 9:00-9:30pm which means the taxis will always be more expensive as they will usually be the only public transport available. And you will find that Rosarito is not a place where things are open late at night; it is much smaller than TJ with a different crowd of people. Someone in my apartment took a taxi from the airport which is close to our apartments and he spent more than $15 and he speaks Spanish so don't know about the $12 fee.


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## TundraGreen

maryellen1952 said:


> ... Someone in my apartment took a taxi from the airport which is close to our apartments and he spent more than $15 and he speaks Spanish so don't know about the $12 fee.


I said about. Actually, the $12 usd fare is a quote I got to go the other way, from the border to the airport. It is always more expensive from the airport, because they have a captive audience. I forgot about that. I always take a bus into town.


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## jasavak

*How did you make out ?*



Monty Floyd said:


> OK, I got here late Mon night and got a room at Hotel Corona. Looks can be deceiving. From the looks of the place, it appears to be an upscale hotel... stay away, in fact, across the street and down a block is Hotel Brisas Del Mar. It is $50/night and a much nicer place and everything works.
> I may try the Rosarito Beach Hotel for one night, just to see what it is like.
> This place is 180 degrees different than Rioverde. I have not met many who do not speak at least some english and everything is quoted in dollars instead of pesos. There is so much to see and do. Just going to the beach and watching the waves is more than there is where I now live. Many interesting shops, many artsy type stores, the traffic, the wide streets, the transit options, the restaurants and I have only been here one day.
> Going out to look at apartments today.
> I went to San Diego for a couple days to visit my son. I took the trolley down to the border, $1.25, it was very easy and convenient. I got a cab from the border to Rosarito because I didn't know any other way. That was 200 pesos. I have learned since that there are better alternatives. The weather is beautiful, the people are friendly, the border was easy to cross (especially coming south), but I am on foot which makes it easier.
> Looking forward to finding a new home and moving out here, soon.




I read your posts and was wondering how things went. I also am considering retiring in Rosarito , but I am still a few years away . I use to live in California and have visited Baja California dozens of times. My wife and I both speak Spanish because she is from Guanajuato, but I really don’t want to relocate to central Mexico because I feel that the Rosario area has much to offer. Close to U.S. for shopping, medications, ect. Low cost of utilities because of the mild climate. It also beats the U.S. Because of the super low property taxes , great food , fishing and Mariachi’s . I imagine the fruits vegetables, fish and meats test better and cost a bit less too. 

What area did you settle in ? I seen some nice places on the beach for less than $1,000 per month and some luxury ones for less than $1,500 . I suppose you could find some other places inland for less than $500 . 

Best wishes , James


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## Monty Floyd

jasavak said:


> I read your posts and was wondering how things went. I also am considering retiring in Rosarito , but I am still a few years away . I use to live in California and have visited Baja California dozens of times. My wife and I both speak Spanish because she is from Guanajuato, but I really don’t want to relocate to central Mexico because I feel that the Rosario area has much to offer. Close to U.S. for shopping, medications, ect. Low cost of utilities because of the mild climate. It also beats the U.S. Because of the super low property taxes , great food , fishing and Mariachi’s . I imagine the fruits vegetables, fish and meats test better and cost a bit less too.
> 
> What area did you settle in ? I seen some nice places on the beach for less than $1,000 per month and some luxury ones for less than $1,500 . I suppose you could find some other places inland for less than $500 .
> 
> Best wishes , James


Sounds like I should be asking you questions. Your previous visits and language skills put you ahead of me in knowledge of the area and ease in living here.
Some parts of the move went alright and some did not. Pretty much what I expected. When you are a low income American who does not speak the language very well, it is difficult.
I am not yet settled. I am looking for an apartment and much of what I am finding in my price range is not good.


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## jasavak

Well the problem is that it's been 10 years since I've been to the Northern Baja area . We used to live in California , but We now we are in Texas and the heat , utilities and property taxes are extremely high . The only current information I get about Rosarito / Ensenada is from online sources . My wife's family is in Leon , GTO . We will be there this Christmas . The problem with Leon is that is ugly , crowded , expensive and polluted because everyone wants to be in the city for the jobs and conveniences . Rosarito seems to make good sense for retirement or even part time commuters . 

Here is an apartment for $350 a month that looks decent: 
Condos for Rent/Lease in Mision de Rosarito, Playas de Rosarito, Baja California $350 monthly


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## maryellen1952

Did you notice that La Mision is way south of Rosarito so that price is not representative of Rosarito. The farther remote you go the cheaper the prices which means less conveniences and more expensive prices for goods in the area. There are many Americans renting out places in those area including Puerto Nuevo, La Mision, etc. as they are more remote and many people don't want to be that far from conveniences esp.if they don't speak Spanish. For many Americans who haven't been to Baja or Mexico for several years will find things have changed including prices. Yes it's still cheaper than the U.S. in general but many have unrealistic expectations about what is available. 





jasavak said:


> Well the problem is that it's been 10 years since I've been to the Northern Baja area . We used to live in California , but We now we are in Texas and the heat , utilities and property taxes are extremely high . The only current information I get about Rosarito / Ensenada is from online sources . My wife's family is in Leon , GTO . We will be there this Christmas . The problem with Leon is that is ugly , crowded , expensive and polluted because everyone wants to be in the city for the jobs and conveniences . Rosarito seems to make good sense for retirement or even part time commuters .
> 
> Here is an apartment for $350 a month that looks decent:
> Condos for Rent/Lease in Mision de Rosarito, Playas de Rosarito, Baja California $350 monthly


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## zsantas

I am looking for employment opportunities in the Baja California region of Mexico. I have a bachelors degree in Human Service and work at the present as a Substance Abuse counselor. What is available to me. I would like to find employment in Ensenada or Tijuana. 
I speak sapnish fluently. I can also read and write in spanish.
zsantas


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## joelpb

zsantas said:


> I am looking for employment opportunities in the Baja California region of Mexico. I have a bachelors degree in Human Service and work at the present as a Substance Abuse counselor. What is available to me. I would like to find employment in Ensenada or Tijuana.
> I speak sapnish fluently. I can also read and write in spanish.
> zsantas


I think your best bet for work is to start your own business. Or work in the SAN DIEGO
area. Get a sentri pass, it makes it much faster to cross the border. No matter where
you pick in BAJA you can not hardly go wrong. La mission and Ensanada are great
areas and not far from the USA.


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