BIENVENIDO A TIJUANA

Don't come to Tijuana on a full stomach. The busiest border crossing in the western hemisphere has also become a launching point for some amazing food tourism. Taco tours and craft brewery tours are all the rage. Our group meets Derrik Chinn of

Turista Libre in San Ysidro. We cross into Mexico, board a decommissioned school bus, and begin our Mexican Market Hop. A stone's throw away, and we're in another world. We visit Mercado

de Artesanias to shop for artwork and ceramics. Outside the market the aroma of

carnitas beckons. Who knew that a place that looks like an auto body shop would also be making the most delicious fresh tacos? Next up, Sobre

ruedas la villa, where each taco is more scrumptious

than the last. I pair them with

Tejuino, a sweet and salty corn juice served with a scoop of lime slushy. Last stop,

Mercado Miguel Hidalgo, a farmer's market where we sample wonderfully balanced coffees, meander through a world of peppers, vegetables, mole and spices that reflect the terroir of Mexico. Here I delight in savoury duck tacos with hoisin drizzle. Despite the genuine fun, one can't help notice the omnipresence of the border, and that Mexican development pushes right up to it. Viewing the difference on either side is profound, but the value of this tour is the inadvertent but inevitable understanding and appreciation we gain with just a taste of the industriousness and the flavours at the heart of a striving community.