The beginning of the end

When I started Border Beat, I had no idea what to expect. I knew I'd have to create a weekly blog, but I didn't know what that meant or what I'd have to learn and download to execute this said blog. But as I quickly found out, I'd be learning as I go along and making mistakes and learning from them is part of the journey. I quickly found out that blogs vary differently from the normal style and subjects than the style of journalistic writing that I've spent 4 years learning throughout my career here at the University of Arizona.

Looking back, I've enjoyed the creative freedom that we've been given to create our blogs. With this freedom came the opportunity to use programs available on the Internet and make our blogs what we wanted them to be. This departure from the regular class structure was a breath of fresh air and a well deserved chance to learn important multimedia that will be essential for a future in journalism.

As I begin to close this chapter, I am feeling both excitement and fear. I am 22 years old, and for my whole life I have been defined as a student. What will I do now? I am excited to begin something new and find a job, but I am also fearful to become a real life adult with responsibilities and a career. I've always herd that college is the best time of our lives, and I couldn't agree more. I've met some amazing friends from across the county and the globe and learned invaluable things both scholastically and personally that I will carry with me for the rest of my life. I'm having such an amazing time, and I really don't want college to end. I've even managed suck one more semester out of college, and it's been a great one. But as with all other things in life, I must move on. No one has ever died from exposure to the real world, and I won't either. I will take the lessons I've learned throughout college and in Border Beat and apply them in the real world, and in my future careers.

What, exactly, the future holds for me I can't say for sure, but I do know that it's bright. I plan to move home for a bit and save some money and maybe learn some financial responsibility. In October, I plan to move to Spain to teach English for a while, and travel. There is a whole world out there for me to visit and explore and I'm going to hit the ground running.

For next semester's Border Beat students I have to say good luck! Enjoy every week and remember to expose yourselves to as many multimedia programs as possible. The more you learn the better you will progress. Multimedia experience and knowledge is becoming more and more necessary an in demand these days, and allowing yourselves to take advantage of the opportunities you have in front of you and you will have a whole arsenal to list to boost your resume. Enjoy it while it lasts, because before you know it college will be over and you will be thrusted into the real world!

Thank you so much for reading and all of your continued support!!!

25th Annual El Tour de Tucson

On Saturday morning while most were still sleeping, thousands rose early to participate in the 25th annual UMC El Tour de Tucson, a race around most of the perimeter of Tucson. My roommate's brother, Ryan, participated in the race, and we left the early rising to him, but met him at the finish line at the Tucson Convention Center. If there ever was an event that makes Tucson a travel destination, El Tour is it. This event draws participants from all over. Cyclists came from as close as Scottsdale to as far as a small town even smaller than my own (Los Gatos, Calif.), Monte Sereno, Calif., as well as Vancouver, BC, Canada, Orlando, Anchorage, Alaska, and Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico.

Participants could choose to ride for 109, 80, 66, or 35 miles, and families with little kids could do the fun Kids & Family Fun Ride of four miles or quarter mile.

Organizers estimated participation was more than 10,000 cyclists.

Carols Hernandez from Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico, who wore shirt number 3195, rode 109 miles to victory and came in first place with a time of 4 hours 10 minutes and 51 seconds. He kept a pace of 26.1 miles per hour. The rest of the results can be found here.

To commemorate the 25th anniversary of the race, the League of American Bicyclists named El Tour the National Bike Rally of 2007. So, cyclists were participating in two races at once.

In addition to being race that draws participants from around the country and neighboring countries, El Tour also raised money for many charities. The race's theme was "cycling in the pursuit of wellness," and Tu Nidito Children and Family Services, American Parkinson Disease Association, Lukemia & Lymphoma Society as well as Water for People.

Tucson All Souls Procession

Even after the end of Halloween, ghouls and goblins still came out to play once the sun fell in Tucson on Sunday night. All Souls Day is an opportunity to remember our fallen loved ones and honor their lives. The tradition is to dress up as a skeleton, make an alter to honor a loved one, and creating elaborate puppets. The costumed parade through midtown Tucson, in a procession that grows as it moves down North 4th Avenue and finally ending at the Franklin Street Docks.

I went to the procession last night and was suddenly immersed into a culture that I never even knew existed. I found that the procession, which has become a public Tucson tradition, attracts people of all ages and from all over. Most processions are a private time for mourners to privately honor and remember their loved ones, but the parade has allowed the process to become a public celebration of life.

Even at an event that is so focused on death, I found so much life and culture on Fourth Ave., that I almost forgot where I was. Everyone was dancing and celebrating and I found it to be a unique way of celebrating life that I've never seen before. Most talk of death in the US is usually somber and sad, but this holiday is not meant to bring down the mood, but celebrate the life of the person who lost their life.

I met a man who was pushing around a cart that was a robot-like statue modeled after a skeleton. He told me that he made the alter to honor his son who had a bone marrow transplant around the age of 5 and died from Hepatitis C at 21. Every year, he brings the skeleton, made from his son's toys and x-rays, to the procession to "let him walk," like he used to when he was a kid.

You don't see celebrations of this kind very often here in the US, but the All Souls Procession allowed Tucsonans and visitors to honor their loved ones with a celebration, music, dancing and costumes. While each city and family member has their own way honor those they have lost, the Tucson procession has grown into a great celebration that attracts audiences and participants from far and wide.

Border Wait Times

Waiting in lone lines sucks. That's why you should check out the Border Wait Times Web site from the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol. The same people who brought us the SENTR card, CBP updates their site with the most up-to-date information on how long the wait times are for for each port of entry along the U.S.-Mexico Border. On busy days and holidays this site can be of great service because travelers can monitor the wait times, and be sure to leave for the border when the times are at their shortest. I haven't had the privilege of traveling across the border on busy holidays or weekends, so I don't know what the long lines are like, but I wanted to watch the site and see how much the lines really move.

At 12:10 a.m on Sunday night, a time that doesn't seem like a busy traveling hour, seven of the 37 entry points had a wait time of 30 minutes or longer. As I reported earlier, when I introduced the SENTRI card program, each inspection point has a lane just for SENTRI members for expedited entry. All of those lanes were reporting no delay.

Here are my findings for the Monday morning rush hour

8 a.m.: Nine ports saw a 30 minute wait or more. Brownsville B&M saw a 40 minute wait with four lanes open, but SENTRI members saw no break lights.
The longest rush out waits were in Calexico West, and San Ysidro, both with one hour. Even with the most lanes, nine and 19 lanes respectively, both saw the longest waits. But not all ports have long, long lines. Some ports saw no waits at all, Stanton Dedicated Community Lane, Laredo World Trade Bridge and Brownsville Gateway all saw no delay for the 8 o'clock traffic hour.

9 a.m.: Traffic at the 9 o'clock hour going into and out of Mexico saw a decrease of one lane with over 3o minutes of wait times. San Ysidro, a port that earlier had a wait of one hour is no longer on the list, with a wait of only 20 minutes. But some that weren't on the list before, like Calexico East racked up a wait of 45 minutes in one short hour. Another area of the border that seems to see a lot of traffic is El Paso, earlier only one of its port was jammed, now two of it's three inspection points Bridge of the Americas and Paso del Norte face 31 and 52 minute-long waits respectively. But not everything looks grim, while commuters are waiting in long lines in some ports, six of the ports have no wait at all, and 21 are seeing waits of five minutes or less.

From this experiment, it's obvious that traffic can fluctuate and be unpredictible, unless you have internet in your car, you can't be 100% positive what your wait looks like until you get there, but the CBP's Web site can help you better plan your trip and maybe help you avoid a port that has a long wait.

Sitting in non-stop traffic can put a damper on the beginning or ending of a good trip, but having a tool that can let you know what's in store can make everyone breathe a little easier. Check out the Border Wait Times site so you can plan your trip around the crowds and have a few more hours to lay on the beach at Rocky Point. This is especially good for Rocky Point frequenters, because the Lukeville port of entry is the busiest, as Rocky Point is the closest beach to hot Arizona.

Art in Tubac Arizona

"Art for art's sake is a philosophy of the well-fed." –Frank Lloyd Wright

If Frank Lloyd Wright is accurate in his statement, then the people of Tubac, Ariz., must have food coming out of their ears.

This weekend I went down to Tubac, a small town just 23 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border that is a virtual hub for foreign and American art. As you drive into Historic Old Tubac, you are greeted by rows and rows of unique art stores and shops.

Tubac is the home of the Tubac Presidio State Historic Park, and was established in 1752. The population is just over 1,000, but this small town is a great travel destination in Southern Arizona.

I went down with my parents who were visiting for Family Weekend, and we were there to look at art and jewelry.

We started at a pottery store, South of the Border, that featured beautiful and affordable pots and artwork. The man running the store told me that most of them were from Mexico, Peru, and Ecuador. I picked up a little box made out of silver for my roommate, while my mom got a pot to put in our backyard at home in California.

Each store had something completely different to offer, like Native American Indian jewelry, the Feminine Mystique featured art made only by women, and James Culver Leather is store that featured belts made from lizard skin and traditional leather bags and wallets. We also stopped into a quilting store Quilts Ltd Gallery that showcased beautiful quilts made by local and international quilters.

I wish I could have afforded more, but I saw a bunch of really beautiful rings and necklaces made by native artists with rare and precious stones in sterling silver.

After a long day of shopping, we ate some lunch at the Old Tubac Inn and Saloon. I'd have to say I didn't have the best dining experience there, but Tubac does offer many other places to dine and enjoy the scenery and company.Beyond the main Old Tubac town, there are also other destinations within Tubac. Visitors can golf at the Tubac Golf Resort, bird watching and hiking at the Anza trail.

If you are planning on visiting Tubac, you can find more information about this historic town from the Tubac—Santa Cruz Visitors Center.

Enjoy, and happy travels in Southern Arizona!!

--Photos taken by Danielle Rideau

Tuscon Meet Yourself

This weekend, cultures from across the globe came together in El Presidio Park, 115 N. Church Ave., for the annual Tucson Meet Yourself festival sponsored by the Tucson Citizen. This event, hosts booths serving authentic international food, art, and dance and song performances. Visitors munched on gyros and baklava from Greece, tamales from Costa Rica, fry bread garnished with honey or sugar from the Navajo Nation, and Jamaican jerk chicken. While everyone mingled and traveled the world through their taste buds, international music performances dazzled audiences and the stage.

And being the food lover that I am, I went for the food! A friend and I started off in Spain, the country that brought us together. I met Rachel while studying abroad, so we decided to begin with churros, one of our favorite Spanish desserts. These fried pastries are traditionally served as breakfast with a bowl of warm, thick chocolate. The Spaniards dip the long thick strips of fried dough in the chocolate, and when they are finished, they drink the rich pudding-like chocolate like water. The pastries served by Club España de Tucson were served with sugar and cinnamon, presumably because warm chocolate is too hard to serve to traveling patrons.Of course you can't go to a Spanish booth without having paella. The traditional meal was served by Casa Vicente at the Club España de Tucson booth. Paella is a rice dish spiced with saffron that contains chicken, bell peppers, shrimp, calamari, and crab meat. Traditionally called Paella Valenciana, because it was born in Valencia Spain, a coastal town that is known for its seafood dishes. And, although I don't eat seafood, this was by far my favorite meal in Spain. After Spain, we went to the Greek booth, so Rachel could get a famous gyro. The greek booth was manned by the Sisters of Penelope who also served baklava, other pastries and Greek coffee.

You'd think that at this point, we would be so full and incapable of eating more, but oh no. How could we pass up the Italian booth?

Another of our favorite countries is Italy. As you know from previous posts, I love Italian food, and I loved it even more when I went to the country of pasta and pizza. The Tucson chapter of Order Sons of Italy served various sandwiches, pasta and lemoncello drinks.

While we didn't get to travel to all of these countries and taste all the culinary delights they had to offer, Tucson Meet Yourself provided an opportunity for us to travel to many countries in a brisk 60 minutes.

--Photos by Danielle Rideau.

A South Tucson Gem, Mi Nidito

I love to eat. Most of each day is generally spent eating or thinking about and visualizing my next meal. It's a close tie between Mexican and Italian food. But being in the Southwest border region, I thought it was fitting to start a search to find the best Mexican restaurant in Tucson. So when I came up with the idea, a good part of my day was spent reading over the online version of the menu and planning exactly what I was going to order.

After an extensive Google search, I determined that Mi Nidito, 1813 S. 4th Ave., was the most popular and famous Mexican restaurant in Tucson. I'd heard about this place before, but until this day I thought it was called "Mini Dito," because of how everyone had pronounced it in the past.

The nationally known and a definite tourist hot spot, Mi Nidito means "my little nest," and that's exactly what it is. A cute little restaurant that, according to its Web site, has been around from 1952. From the outside looks like a standard run dow Mexican restaurant that you can find on any corner in Tucson. But Mi Nidito is different. when you walk in, the walls are lined with pictures of famous people that have visited. Among them are President Bill Clinton, Enrique and Julio Iglesias, and Madeline Albright.

As soon as you walk into the dining area, you are instantly transported back to Mexico. It's so charming and quaint; decorated with Mexican flags, bright colors and lights.

They start you off with chips and salsa, but only the first servings of chips are free. Any chips that you want after that are going to cost you 75 cents.

The menu, which has traditional Sonoran dishes is packed full of delicious options like cheese crisps with various different toppings (a dish I wanted to order with guacamole, but my friend Rachel said I had to try something new because I eat quesadillas on a fairly regular basis), burros and chimichangas. In the spirit of trying something different, I went with three shredded beef tacos, even though that's a dish I order when I'm not ordering quesadillas with guacamole, or cheese enchiladas. My more daring dinner companion ordered a combination plate with a beef taco, a cheese enchilada, a beef tamale, and beans.

Both of our meals were delicious and took approximately 8 minutes to eat. I'm not one to take time to savor and enjoy my food, so when a meal is good, it takes only a few minutes to devour and it's usually completely silent, because I don't have time to talk. I asked my friend if her food was good and she said yes, and responded by saying to me that "I'd ask how yours is, but judging by all the food on your face I can tell it's good!" And it was.

As we went up to pay, the guy behind the register said "that's was fast," and said we needed to practice eating slower to enjoy our food and so we don't feel bloated and full afterwards. I agree, but if you've ever seen me eat, you know that all powers of self control are way out the window even before the meal begins.

Mi Nidito is definitely one of the best Mexican restaurants that I've been to in a long time, and deserves a repeat trip in the near future. I can see why visitors to the Old Pueblo have made Mi Nidito a must visit.

--Photos by Danielle Rideau