Reynosa is an old city, originally founded in 1841, and "moved," due to persistant flooding, about 10 k.m. to the present location in 1817.  It's an agricultural hub, with many different crops grown, including green pepper, tomato, squash, cantaloupe, watermelon, grain sorghum, corn, etc.  Thanks to NAFTA and the maquiladora program, there are now scores of manufacturing plants, turning out consumer electronics, auto parts, medical supplies and many other fields.  Like in many other cities in Mexico, "farmacias," doctors and dentists are plentiful.

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Verious websites suggest the alternate spelling of "Reinosa."  I didn't see any signs with that spelling, but I saw many signs that were spelled "Reynosa,"  so my assumption is that is the correct spelling.  However, I didn't see any of those chintzy "Work From Home" signs either...

We crossed the Rio Grande (or Rio Bravo, as it's known in Mexico) river at Hildago, crossed into Mexico, and were waved through Mexican customs without incident. For a city of nearly a half-million or so people, the border crossing was surprisingly empty; there were only two or three vehicles in front of us and we crossed with incident.  If you don't care to drive in Reynosa, there is a parking lot on the U.S. side, which features a twenty-five cent bridge toll if you're walking, and a 1/2 mile walk to the downtown area.

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To get things into proper perspective, the other day we travelled via the "business route" of Federal Highway 2, which passes through Reynosa.  The "business route" was lined with businesses that catered to travellers, as well as the local citizens.  The downtown area is to the north, adjacent to the U.S. border, and is marked by signs directing you to "El Centro."  From the "business route" one needs to turn to the right, cross the railroad tracks and simply head to the U.S. border.

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The downtown area of Reynosa is both compact and extensive, and very densely populated by American standards, which seems to be the "norm" in most Mexican cities.  We are talking about an area of about 15 city blocks by 30 city blocks that is devoted to businesses of all kinds. The streets are very narrow; with a vehicle parked on each side, two, full-sized vehicles must do the "duck-and-cover" thing and two sub-compacts can forge a strong friendship.   Many of the streets are one-way; you have to be careful to observe what you can, and can't do. You can imagine the fun that Jerry had manoeuvring his full-sized Dodge pickup through the narrow, congested city streets! "Situational awareness" definitely applies when driving the narrow, congested streets of downtown Reynosa!  I had it easy; as I was riding shotgun and didn't have a clue of where to go or what to do. Edna is a great back seat driver as she has a keen sense of direction and an even stronger opinion of what must be done to get there, so things happen. If you need a back-seat navigator/drive, Edna is the person to have.

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