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International Train Travel for Beginners: Ride the Rails Between San Diego and Tecate

San Diego is a pretty cool city, but once you're done with the zoo, the beaches, and the Gaslamp Quarter, you might crave a glimpse of what's beyond the border in Mexico. Sure, you could drive or take a bus to Tijuana, but the wait at the border can be a drag, and TJ has seen its fortunes decline in recent years due to violence among drug traffickers. Fortunately, the LA Times has an attractive alternative: a day trip by train to nearby Tecate. Once or twice a month, the Pacific Southwest Railway Museum runs trips from Campo in eastern San Diego to Tecate, about thirty miles east of Tijuana, where visitors tour the eponymous brewery and dine at restaurants around Parque Manuel Hidalgo square. The journey isn't about getting anywhere fast - the train chugs along at a smooth 15 miles per hour for much of the one-hour journey - but serves as a link to the halcyon days of the early 1900's, when the railroad was built to connect San Diego with the fertile Imperial Valley. The trains themselves are a relic from a bygone era. Several impeccably-restored 1930's-era passenger cars that once ferried New Jersey commuters into New York City are now filled with railfans, lager louts, and day-trippers who love the idea of a popping across the border for a nip and a nosh. As for the beer, well, it's nothing to write home about (even at the brewery it's served in cans). But on a hot day in Mexico, when you don't have to worry about driving home, it certainly does the job.

[Photo: LA Times]

Related Stories
· Visit Tecate By Train For Dose of Border Goodwill [LA Times]
· Pacific Southwest Railway Museum [Official Site]
· Cerveza Tecate [Official Site]
· Beer Travel Coverage [Jaunted]