I am curious what El Paso is like. not for vacations but more as a city. I know the city is like 700k, but isnt the city in mexico like 3 million?? is there alot of industry?? what big companies. anyone have ariel photos?? is it easy to go to mexico for a few hours and return, or vise a versa. looking at a map is looks very in congruitus us that the cass? it looks like an overgrown town, is that a fair assessment, or is it a city. do more people work in the down town in the US, or in MEX are they really seperate cities, or just legally seperated? is it growing fast? is the mexican city growing? is it a prosperous area? just a curious New Yorker
I would also like to know, as I'm about to go there for a few weeks of training... I'd imagine it's extremely hot there about this time of year? Drink lotsa water, I guess... The runs are gonna be a bit*h. I'm about to get deployed for a year. Next week, actually... My first stop is in El Paso.
Pretty good salsa...Pace is better, though... So, VOR, you seem to want to know a lot about El Paso all of a sudden...hmmmm...You're also interested in it's proximity to Mexico. Asking a lot of questions, aren't we? Planning a little drug smuggling operation? AHA! Don't deny it! I got you right where I want you, pal! Yeah, you thought you could play it cool..."just a curious New Yorker"...Yeah, you know what curiosity did to the cat, right? You better watch out, because I'm keeping an eye on you (unless you cut me in, that is). There's really only one interesting thing I know about El Paso. It's the largest city in the United States without an NFL, MLB, NBA, or NHL team
Austin has a professional sports team? http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0763098.html El Paso is second, Ft. Worth is third.
El Paso used to be one of the prettiest cities in the United States...when my parents grew up there. The air was clean, the desert was beautiful, the Mexican food was good, and the people were great. Then only thing left that is good is the Mexican food. You won't get the runs from the water...your not in Mexico, your in Texas. The last I heard the poplulation was up to about 800k, but your correct that Juarez, across the border, has a few million. El Paso sits in a valley...and that valley fills with smog and pollution from the Mexican side of the border...because the Mexicans don't have the same clean air and pollution acts as we do, and they have several refineries in the area. It is hot...almost 113 degrees the other day. Buy one of those cardboard thingies for your windshield on you car that you put on when you park to block the sun. Have a good car alarm and a Club for your steering wheel because it is the worst city in America for stolen cars...their stolen and driven into Mexico. Lots of industry....tons of shipping, several textile companies, big refineries, and lots of oil pipelines. Shell has a big presence there, as well as Tyco. Very easy to go check out Mexico for a few hours and get back...a couple of good bars on the Mexico side, just be careful when crossing the border, don't joke with the border patrol guys, don't have a gun or bullets in the car, don't get pulled over in Mexico. It is a city...not an overgrown town... More people work in El Paso, in fact, most of the time, Mexicans come into El Paso to work and then go home, hardly ever vice versa. There are really seperate cities between Juarez and El Paso. El Paso is actually more connected with Las Cruces, New Mexico, than anything. El Paso is kind of stretched along I-10 and is much longer than it is wide. Both cities, Juarez and El Paso are fast growing...but the economy has been slow to catch up over the years and is just now hitting its stride. When driving, watch out for the 18-wheelers on I-10...shipping out of Mexico is a major industry with NAFTA...and also watch out for drivers with Mexican plates. I'm sorry to say, but the people coming over the border just aren't that great of drivers...and most do NOT have insurance, so if they hit you, your hosed. Carry good insurance on your car that has full coverage. So in overview: El Paso is a smelly, dirty city because of the Mexican side industry and the fact that its in a valley. Its dangerous to drive because of the big trucks and the foriegn drivers without insurance. It also has a population that largely does not speak English and get mad at you when you try to speak it to them. 77% of the population in Hispanic, and 40% of the population does not speak any English...can be hard to communicate sometimes. The West side of town, by Sunland Park is the best part of town. They have the nicest stores and the best mall. Around town there are a couple of Mexican food places you should try to find, and they should be pretty easy to get to from the base. Leo's is the best Mexican food in town. I forget where it is, but with the internet and a phone book it should be easy to find. There is more than one Leo's and they are owned by the same people, so doesn't matter which you go to. Avila's is also owned by the Leo's people, and would if Leo's is #1, Avila's is #1A. Order the #2 or the Tri-Color plate. It will probably be the closest to base. Cattle Baron is a good steak place and has a good salad bar... Chico's Tacos are different from what your used to, but pretty good. On the west side they have a Char-Burg...a grilled burger drive through place...check it out. Around the UTEP campus is where your going to find the best bars and clubs in El Paso. There is a gay bar over there that has a "straight nite." All the students go there on that night, I think its Thursday....its popular for some reason. See if you can find out about it. There is a street that goes up on one of the mountains and I forget the name of it, but it gives a cool view of the valley at night...ask around, people that live there will know the name. I'm usually pretty hard on El Paso, because my Dad said that 30 years ago there wasn't a prettier place in the U.S. and that it has fallen from grace in that department, but it can have its good points, you just have to know where to look. It still can be pretty, especially after they get a good rain and it washes away some of the pollution. There are some really pretty places to go check out in New Mexico, and your only a few hours away from Carlsbad...you can check out the caverns...worth a weekend trip. I'll stop ranting, hopefully this helped, if anything else comes to mind, I'll post it.
El Paso is known for dirt - a pitstop in the armpit of Texas. I'm sure others can add to my qualified description. Ok, so they're known for Pace Picante Sauce, too...
Before the 2000 census info came out, El Paso was the biggest without a sports team, Austin has since passed El Paso by. El paso still is bigger with as many as 300,000 illegals in the city at any one time.
I had some friends that lived in El Paso and Juarez and have went to visit a couple of times. Supermac34 summed it up pretty well. One thing about going across the border is that getting into Mexico is a very easy process, coming back across takes a while though since 9/11. If it's during the day you can expect at least an hour wait, maybe more. And driving across the bridge is an adventure because of the bad drivers, be prepared. My friend from Juarez was telling me about how when she was young it was a very pretty town and very clean, then as the Mexican economy went down a lot of people started moving there so they could work across the border and the city started going downhill. Overall I liked both sides, but it helped that I knew people that could show me around while I was there.
I read the little blurb about El Paso in an issue of Sports Illustrated recently...I think it was last year. Oh well, if it's in SI, it MUST be true...
El Paso has the best and biggest comedy club in Texas, 'The Comic Strip' www.laff2nite.com check out the pics on the website to get a look at some of the fine citizens of El Paso.
I've only been to El Paso once when I was on my way to Los Angeles and I noticed that there were a ton of strip clubs along the interstate...If thats your thing and all...
