Mexicali, BC

Mexicali is the capital of the state of Baja California, Mexico as well as the capital of the municipality of Mexicali. Situated along the state's northern border with the U.S state of California, Mexicali is the northernmost city in Latin America, located at 32°40′0″N, 115°28′0″W. It has a population of approximately 856,000 inhabitants and is constantly growing due to the number of Maquiladoras in the area and migrational aspects. It is the 13th largest city in Mexico as of the Census 2005.

Founded on March 14, 1903, Mexicali is adjacent to the city of Calexico, California, which lies directly across the US border. The link is emphasized by the way each city's name combines the words "California" and "Mexico."

Mexicali is bordered to the north with the United States (Imperial County, California), to the east with the states of Arizona (US) and Sonora (Mexico), to the west with the municipality of Tecate, and to the south with the municipality of Ensenada.

Mexicali has grown to be an important city in Mexico. Many immigrants from all over the country come to Mexicali in search of the American Dream and cross the border illegally, but many don't succeed and end up staying in Mexicali. Mexicali is also the only capital city which lies directly on the border with the United States.

The residents of Mexicali are from diverse backgrounds, and it is among the most racially diverse cities in Mexico, with people from various European, Arab and African origins. For example, many of the residents of Mexicali are of Asian descent, especially Chinese. In fact, Mexicali is home to the largest number of overseas Chinese in Mexico. Consequently, Mexicali has a large Chinatown, called La Chinesca. The city is noted for having one of the finest Chinese food cuisines on the entire North American continent, rivaling cities such as San Francisco, California. These Restaurants can be found all over the city, not just in Chinatown, but also in the main boulevards, such as Justo Sierra and Lazaro Cardenas Blvds. One can also explore the Chinese Pagoda in Plaza de la Amistad, along the border crossing, as well as the modern Civic Center, which is the administrative heart of the municipality.

Although not as popular among tourists as Tijuana, located a couple hours to the west, Mexicali has many sites where people from all over the country visit, as well as visitors from United States and Canada, such as the bullfighting arena, Plaza Calafia, where many bullfights ("corridas") are organized along the year. Mexicali has also a professional 18 hole Golf Course "Club Campestre" where both national and international championships take place regularly.

Still Mexicali, the city, is mainly a business place, with big manufacturing and agricultural industries, and a busy rail line into California. The strong cultural ties with the United States is well visible, as Mexicali got its urban planning from American other than traditional Mexican architecture and a high proportion of Mexicalense are fluent in the English language. The Mexican American majority of Imperial County, California make regular travels to the border town, sometimes to visit family and friends, and Americans of virtually all nationalities go to Mexicali to conduct business errands.

The citizens could say that one of main characteristics of this place, perhaps the most prominent, is its weather. Since the city was founded in the middle of the desert, mainly to avoid the dangers of the Colorado river spills, the area has very extreme weather, reaching very low temperatures in winter and extremely high temperatures in the summer. Visitors to Mexicali could witness the thermometer easily reaching levels of 40 degrees Celsius (104 on the Fahrenheit scale) in the shade, and even hitting 50°C (122°F) on the hottest days. However, the citizens are used to this, and some people take a very special pride in enduring such weather conditions — this is even the subject of recurring jokes amongst the population.