Valerie and I wanted to visit Mexico since it’s so close and we hadn’t been there before. Dean and Curt weren’t too crazy about the idea, but took us. There’s a lot of people that go across for medical reasons, shopping, etc. while they’re in Texas for the winter and say they’ve never had a problem. The first time in a new place, especially a new country, is the hardest. It is recommended to cross at the city of Nuevo Progreso, which is accessed through Weslaco, Texas. There is also Matamoros, which everyone says is not safe and they’ve been on the news recently with gun fights, kidnapping, etc. That is accessed through Brownsville, Texas. Another spot in the Rio Grande Valley is through Hidalgo, Texas/Reynosa, Mexico.
We parked in the parking lot on the US side and walked across the bridge. You have to pay 25 cents to get in to Mexico and 30 cents to get back in the US (strange amounts). Customs and Border Patrol website has some information as far as what can be brought back and what has to be declared. As you get to the Mexican half of the bridge,(crossing the Rio Grande River, the border line) it is closed off so you can’t see over the railing (the US side isn’t). As you get closer you can hear people calling from beneath the bridge, “a nickel, just a nickel please”.
Building, beside, building, there are people outside on the sidewalks selling their wares or asking you to come inside their stores. Lots of pottery, clothes, leather goods and trinkets. We noticed the leather belts were cheaper than we’ve seen at US stores. Lots of team sports, and the sellers knew their teams and who had just won or lost.
in Hidalgo,Texas Killer Bee
On the Rio Grande River, near the resort. This is at the palapa picnic area.
