Tecate.  Let's see, in a word, what does that mean to you?  Beer, artesians, sophisticated, beautiful?  Whatever the word means to you, in my opinion, Tecate is the most beautiful border town in Mexico that I have ever seen.

Tecate is situated in a valley in the Sierra Juarez mountains, also called Laguna Mountains on the California side, of the line.  However, you'd never know it, as although Tecate is a border town, it is worlds away from the United States and is not your typical border town.  It is not tacky; it is artsy.  Unlike most border towns, Tecate doesn't have a Zona Roja that includes strip joints and honky tonks.

 

Photos:  Entering Tecate from Mexico Highway 3, coming up from Ensenada, and looking into downtown Tecate.

Tecate is blessed by abundant water, a commodity not found in many northern Mexican towns.  Due to the plentiful and pure water found in the area, the town is host to a major attraction, and employer, the Tecate Brewery.  If you're a fan of Mexican beer, I'm sure you're familiar with their fine product!

I came into Tecate from the south, on Mexican highway 3, after leaving Ensenada and touring the Guadalupe Valley, which is known as the heart of the Mexican wine country.  As I neared Tecate, I crested a small hill and spread before me, was the beautiful city of Tecate.  Before crossing Rio Tecate, I just had to stop and savor the view and take a few photos of the picturesque view.

 

Photos:  Residential neighborhoods on the south side of Tecate.  Note the beautiful Sierra Juarez mountains in the background.  In winter, it is not unusual to see the mountains snow-capped.

It never ceases to amaze me how compact Mexican cities are.  Tecate's population is somewhere between 80,000 to 100,000 inhabitants, yet it has a "footprint" similar to an American city of, perhaps, 20,000.  Yet there aren't any highrise buildings in Tecate, or Tijuana for that matter.  In the case of Tecate, there aren't any suburbs.  You crest a small hill and immediately you see Tecate spread out in the valley below.  It's quite a sight!

 

Left:  Tecate is built in a hilly valley and it never ceases to amaze me how the engineers who built the town can place houses, power lines and roads, on the many steep hills.  Right:  Av. Benito Juarez, the main street of Tecate, also Mexico Highway 2, as seen from Hotel El Dorado, where I spent the night.

Tecate is now a household word, both in Mexico and the United States, due to the founding of the Tecate Brewery in the early 1940's, which produces the world-famous Tecate brand of beer.  However, besides the brewery and other assorted light industry, agriculture remains the primary enterprise.  Tecate is not know as a tourist-mecca, although it is an important source of local revenue.

Tecate is the sort of place where you'll want to visit many times.  I'll be back as soon as my busy schedule allows.