One morning, you are in Minneapolis. The next morning you wake up in Tijuana. One day you are surrounded by lakes and trees, squirrels, and more insects than you remembered existed (fatass bees). The next you wake up to your usual river of shit running down your street.
Oh, but we got delicious tacos in TJ. They have better chicken wings and better sandwiches. I still vote for tacos and seafood.
What a journey.
It’s the last week of August, but whatever I write won’t be published until later. I have so much fucking work. I hope it’s worth it.
I don’t like being back. It’s hot. It’s confusing. I want to go away again. But life can’t be an eternal vacation. Or could it? Travel vlogging or blogging is still the dream.
I’m going to go get my Mexican ID in a couple of hours. After years of neglecting it. I’m finally getting it done. New chapters. Weird chapters. Weirder life.
… not only 30 minutes later… I failed at getting my Mexican ID. I needed witnesses. I thought it could be two randos from the street. Nope. It has to be a neighbor or a family member. That’s not that easy.
I already booked 3 tours for September, and I need more. There is so much social media work to do. But here’s my Minneapolis adventure how it went down.
Minnesota Day 1 – Tuesday (intro).
I took the red-eye to Minneapolis with a connection in Chicago. I got to my friend Szavio’s place at around 9 am without any sleep. I can’t sleep on planes, yet I like red-eye flights.
He set up an improv bed for me in his basement jam room. Comfortable and private enough. It’s good to have friends in a lot of places. First cup of coffee was at Just Steve’s Bean Factory (JS). Coffee is the same price, or even cheaper, than in Tijuana… and much better.
Tijuana has gotten better, but it got saturated with a ton of bad coffee shops. Like desperate people following a gold rush. They see that coffee shops are a trend, and they open a million of them. More than half can’t make coffee. A rat race for survival. Rinse and repeat with the next trend.
JS Bean Factory had over a dozen varieties of beans from all over the world. You can buy them raw if you want to roast them yourself. From Kenya to Costa Rica, to Mexico and Hawaii, Colombia, and you get the idea… The world. First cup was bliss. We went back a different day, and it wasn’t as great. Perhaps I just really needed it then. But the variety of beans and the price were much better than in Tijuana. A pound for $14.95 plus tax or something similar. Tijuana is charging above $20 (no tax). I had an expensive small sandwich that was delicious. But overpriced. And went back to Szavio’s.
That night we hung out with an older gentleman who just beat lung cancer, yet he was smoking cigarettes with us. He had cool, interesting stories to tell and a lot of discontent with how things are now. We went to Nicollet Island, coincidentally, where the wedding was going to take place. I walked an old wooden bridge for trains and got vertigo halfway through. It wasn’t as easy as it looked.
That was followed by Bunkers, an old establishment with a divey feel but expensive beers. At least free popcorn. It had reggae night for a $10 cover. But no cover charge for us because Szavio’s brother was playing keyboards (Chili!). It was a bar for multiracial couples. And by multiracial, I mean black and white. No other races were there. It’s not something that I care to notice, but when you are in Minneapolis, you do.
Ice Out! Signs are everywhere. It’s not like any other state.
We called it an early night and went back to jam.
Minnesota Day 2 – Wednesday (perfect hump day).
I started my day alone. Woke up late and grabbed brunch at A-Side Public House with endless coffee and a Merguez sandwich. It was messy, but fucking delicious. I love a good lamb sausage. Coffee was passable for endless. The waitress was lovely. And halfway through the meal, a friend from college joined me. He stayed with me in Tijuana before. I haven’t seen him in years.
We went to play disc golf at Three Rivers Parks. The other college roommate from senior year joined. I haven’t seen him in 18 years. They both look great. I’d be lying if I didn’t say one used to look better. But life throws you through patches, and I hope he overcomes because he is a good guy and I’ve seen him much better.
I fucking sucked at disc golf. But I enjoyed the fuck out of it. I missed it. It’s a dumb thing to do while catching up with friends. Formalized in California, yet not that many people play, or there are no good parks. This was a tough park. I only got two pars and mainly double and triple bogeys. I still have my discs. Perhaps I should get a basket.
Little Tijuana.
There’s a fucking Little Tijuana in Minneapolis. That’s where we went next. Szavio joined and said it didn’t look much like Tijuana. But what does Tijuana look like? It’s everything, and it’s nothing at the same time. I can easily see an establishment like that in Tijuana, especially post 2020s. The logo looks like a sun being a little whore, that’s appropriate. The bartender is a friend and visited me in Tijuana before. He slung us a couple of Modelo and mezcales on the house and gave me a free shirt. I need to send them Tijuana Adventure shirts.
I was going to stay for the food… but decided that while traveling, it’s best to not spend so much time in one place.
And Minneapolis got better.
We went to Litt Arcade Bar. Or barcade. A million times better than Pixeland. Over 30 pinball machines, many modern ones. And a delicious Reuben sandwich I shared with Szavio. Chicken wings were okay, but much better than anything I can get in all of Mexico. The X-Men pinball was my favorite. The whole fucking thing shakes insane when you get Sentinel going. I kicked Szavio and Manny’s ass on it. Big Lebowski and LoTR pinball where also great. Beers were going for $6-8 USD, which is TJ prices. Pinball was four quarters on average. Again, same price or even cheaper than TJ…
And it got better.
We went to Up Down, another Barcade. This was two stories tall with a ton of games, new and old. Right at the entrance, they were having an N64 Smash Bros tournament. A bar with over 30 beers on tap and THC drinks. THC drinks are sold everywhere in Minneapolis. And their liquor shops also sell cannabis. What is this weird place?! We mainly played the basketball arcade because it seemed to have a bug, so it was free, and I love that machine. I dominated. Another machine behind us was also free: two wizards that have to shoot each other. That was also great though I wasn’t that good at it. This place had a variety of people: black, white, asian, trans, furries, lesbian, fat, old, young, but almost no latinos (at simple view). It was one my favorite place of all the places I visited (Litt was more cozy). And it was next to Caffrey’s, what my nostalgia tells me is that it’s one of the best sandwiches I’ve had in my life. I didn’t get a sandwich when I had the chance. It’s my only regret.
Back in St. Paul, we biked to The White Squirrel. I fell from the bike due to a combination of being drunk and the bike’s seat being a bit too tall for me. The band was finishing up when we arrived, and we sat on the back patio. Finally some latinos, their accent sounded Honduran. Or so I want to say. A couple of more beers and biked back with no incident.
Perfect night 2.
Minneapolis Day 3 – Thursday (pre-wedding).
I woke up hungover as fuck. Like bad. I didn’t even drink that much. I’m not sure what happened. I didn’t hydrate enough, obviously. But I felt like shit. Almost puking like shit. My worst morning after my best night. Szavio took me to a latino coffee shop where I paid for an expensive large cup of coffee. I desecrated their bathroom and drank water and the rest of my coffee. I was still dying while Szavio worked on his computer. I went outside and edited my first video hungover as f.
The day before the wedding. I wasn’t fully recovered, but the groom was having a pre-party gathering at Surly, Minneapolis biggest brewery. My other friend from college picked me up, and we went to have food and drinks. The last time I was here, I wasn’t a fan of their beer. This time, I changed my mind. The food was also of good quality, though I didn’t eat the tacos, just by looking at them, I knew they were not good. Great Italian pilsner, good smoky Helles (I wanted more smoke), standard hazy IPAs and IPAs, and a very good DDH IPA. Surly is on my good side now. And it’s FUCKING MASSIVE.
After that we went to two dive spots in St. Paul near Szavio’s place. Skarda’s, which was virtually empty, and Bay Street Burger Dive in St. Paul. Skarda’s is your basic Scandinavian dive. What makes it Scandinavian? The name. Besides that, your basic Midwest bar. It had a game named Bonus Hole, and this was our entertainment while I drank basic IPAs for $6.50. We lost $15 on quarters. Made it back. And lost it again.
I wasn’t particularly hungry, but Szavio ordered chicken wings and perogies at Bay Street Burger Dive. I should have gotten a burger since it’s in its fucking name, but I was tired and not paying attention. What I did notice is that during their Wednesday happy hour, they have a burger, fries, and a beer for $10. I would be there every Wednesday if I lived nearby. Wings were great. Any spot in the USA can make better wings than any place in Mexico (again). Conversely, any place in Mexico can make better tacos than any spot in the USA. Perogies weren’t very good but passable. The night concluded with a basement jam.
The Wedding Photographer.
The reason I went to Minneapolis. To the wedding of my best friend from college. He and his wife visited me in Tijuana before. My core memory is of her dancing to Michael Jackson’s Beat It in La Mezcalera. She did that dance during the wedding. They are both great dancers.
I took my camera with the 105mm/2.8f lens. I love this lens, but it is not made for action or low light. I just finished the edit, well, part 1. There are some great shots in there, but I’m not fully content with the edit. I tried turning down the green hues, but I think that just made it more noticeable. I’m going to edit part 2 soon and give part 1 a different look. I don’t like wedding photography, but if it’s a friend’s… I do. I enjoy the edit. I enjoy going through the photos and grinning like an idiot at the stupid stories.
Good that they hired another photographer. Mike of Twin Birch Studios in Minneapolis. I misjudged him at first. I thought he was a venue photographer using a kit lens. Then we talked, and he was chill. Then he took out the big boys. Yeah. The 70-200mm/2.8f and on a Nikon ZF. I want the Nikon ZF. I let him take the main angles, and I ping-ponged wherever I could. He handled the main photography and did the boring group photos. He handled the party photos. And finally, he handled a setup photoshoot with a strobe overlooking the city. Perfect setup. I just did the fun part and enjoyed the wedding without stressing about pictures.
I asked for a picture by myself. This was the result:
Thanks, Mike of Twin Birch Studios!
(I swear I ironed my pants)
Minneapolis Day 4 – Friday (The Wedding).
I woke up to get ready for the wedding. By 1 pm, I was ready, though it didn’t start until 4:30 pm. My outfit was between brown pants and a blazer or my tuxedo. I ended up taking the blazer. I bought that blazer at Salvation Army in Houston in 2007. It’s missing a button. It still fits. I bought the pants for my brother’s wedding in 2012. They still fit. At some point, they didn’t. Now they fit again. The shirt is the tuxedo shirt. I inherited this.
My other friend from college picked me up and served me an excellent espresso at his house while he and his wife got ready. Lovely house. Lovely espresso machine. I wanted another, but it was time for the wedding.
We were some of the first to arrive at the venue on the island. And little by little, people trickled in. Familiar people. Unfamiliar people. People from college that I haven’t seen in fucking years. They all look the same for the most part. Albeit older, but the same. Not like forty-year-olds. But we all are fucking 40.
Fucking Millennials getting married at 40. Are we going to live until 120? Will cancer bring me down like it did to my grandfathers?
It’s the time that we were given. Let’s make the best of it.
It was a lovely reception with funny speeches. Almost no hiccups. Simple. And the best part. After the exchange of vows, to close it all out. Tequila shots for the bride and groom. What a way to sign a wedding. Somewhat Mexican for being super white. And the kiss.
Once inside the venue, my camera was mainly useless. I still tried to take some pics. The newlyweds did a coordinated dance to Journey’s Every You Want It and other song medley. Again, great dancers.
After that, more speeches. Then the food was alright. For dessert, some cupcakes, and those were the best thing. And finally some coffee. Open dance floor and also an open bar. But by 9:00 pm the wedding dwindled. Most of the adults with kids left, only the adults who don’t really “adult” were left to keep on drinking the night away. The bar closed by 11:00 pm, but the DJ played a handful more songs after he was supposed to leave.
I was supposed to leave with my friend at 9ish pm. But that’s when the Medellin guy said: “dude, stay there’s gonna be an after party.” I obliged. And I don’t regret it.
The irresponsible adults went to Whitey’s in downtown Minneapolis. I got hazy beers and random shots of I have no idea what. A cute short Mexican-looking girl came up to me and said they had an extra shot. I followed. Then we talked. She was short, but stared at me with puppy eyes, looking up at me while also biting her lip in a way that I could go down that road if I wanted. I was drunk. So was she. But I was at a wedding party, and I’m old. We exchanged information, and I went back to the party.
She wasn’t the only girl that hit on me. I felt like I got hit on a couple times. I’m not sure if it was my old suit. Or the long hair. But getting attention at 40… well. That’s something nice.
And she gave my selfie with my wedding shit on WhatsApp a like. My Tijuana girlfriend no more girlfriend dopamine addiction love is a drug girl. I still think and talk about her all the time. And in Minneapolis is where I first fell in love for the first time. I thought about her. My first love. And of all the loves past.
But I’m here because my best friend from college got married. That’s a reason to go back to Minneapolis. There are more reasons… but none as convincing as that. It was a great Friday… and Saturday… Ooooeeee.
Minneapolis Day 5 – Saturday (after party).
Phil drove me at 2:30 am back to Szavio’s place. Thanks, Phil.
I woke up Saturday like normal. As if I didn’t have a few shots, beers, and wine the previous night.
Szavio and I went to JS Beans Coffee Shop. This time, it wasn’t as good as before. Then a quick thrift shop random spree and to Szavio’s favorite Italian Caffeteria: Cossetta Alimentari since 1911, almost the same age as Tijuana. And holy fucking shit, this place is amazing. Pizza and sandwiches were very good but not superb, but the place is magical. Three stories of Italian American bliss with a bar, cafe, pizza station, pasta station, sandwich station, and so much more. I didn’t expect it. I wasn’t particularly craving Italian… but what a magical place. I want to go back and spend more hours there.
After Cossetta’s, I joined the groom’s parents for a wine and a chat. The groom’s parents were my adopted parents in Minnesota. So it felt like catching up with family. They are doing great in Arkansas and I’m glad. Sorta want to visit… but Arkansas…
And after that, I went to downtown Minneapolis to rejoin the newlyweds and friends from the wedding at Kieran’s Irish Pub. Friends from the wedding were already drunk as f. I wasn’t going to catch up that fast. The night was young.
I had two beers, a local whisky, and whatever finger food bites were on the table. The beers were decent, but Keeper’s Heart Whiskey was delicious. Sweet and very drinkable. A comfortable whiskey, and I would love to have a bottle. Keeper’s Heart… send me one to Tijuana, please. The food was meh.
From there… we walked around the city wondering where to go next. It seemed like we were going to their local drinking hole but decided perhaps that later, so instead we went to a gay bar with a $10 cover (The Saloon). We were there early. It was boring. They had a shower in the main room where people do a shower contest. Interesting. Progressive as f. They also had the gambling machine, THC drinks, more rooms that didn’t seem that gay, including one with pinball and the shotgun arcade.
We drank Jaggerbombs and beers while playing Big Buck Hunter. I sucked at it. We used to play it in college, we used to Jaggerbomb in college. I also tried Premium Grain Belt for the first time in 20 years. It tasted like piss water. And I had such fond memories of it, especially Halloween 2007. It was never good, but passable. It wasn’t. The shower show never happened, but the bar turned really gay. A handful of ripped and some scrawny guys dancing on poles with nothing but jockstraps. Butthole exposed for anyone who tipped a dollar. Holy fuck, Minneapolis.
We were out of there and to the next insanity.
Grabbed an Uber even though it was just 20 blocks, it was late. And we landed at Ground Zero.
Holy fuck, Minneapolis. Enter the Matrix. What the 90s told us the future would be like. DJ playing a mix of Sandstorm by Darude mixed with some other hyper techno. It felt like Berlin, though I’ve never been. Almost everyone dressed in leather, dancing with no remorse. Semi-naked Go-Go dancers also going at it for dollars. A whipping room in the back for anyone to participate. Get naked and get whipped on stage in what resembles a chapel. And upstairs room with private booths, one booth with half-naked chicks and one chubby dude. What the fuck is this place?! It’s not Tijuana.
In Tijuana, it happens daily. It only happens on Saturdays in this place. But that was a cooler vibe. More original. More open. It was sex. But it wasn’t cheap and nasty. But the more I think about it… It also happens a lot in Tijuana. Just not like that. And I wasn’t expecting it like that in Minneapolis.
The party left around 1:30 a.m. I stayed until the bar closed and drunkenly took an Uber back to St. Paul.
Minneapolis Day 5 – Sunday (the end).
Phil and the guys from the wedding told me they were playing basketball. I’m not sure why I said yes. I didn’t know what else to do with my last day. Szavio and I joined the guys and played three games. The first game was unfair because it was the tallest guys and the guys that make the first basket against the ones who didn’t. Second game was a bit more even but still won by my team. And by the third game I was destroyed. I was already done after the second game but I pushed it. I shouldn’t have (we lost). My whole body crashed after such a long Saturday and then an hour of basketball.
We went to a malt shop. That’s basically an ice cream shop with other stuff. I got a sea caramel blizzard and a chilli dog. I didn’t like the blizzard, but the chilli dog was exactly the garbage I was craving.
After that, we went to the liquor shop and got a bunch of Minnesota beers and THC drinks. Followed by another great place in Minneapolis (or St Paul)… Can Can Wonderland.
A gigantic warehouse with mini golf, tons of pinball, arcades ranging from the earliest to modern, full tap room and kitchen, and much more. Nerdy paradise. My paradise. My nephew(s) would love this place. I loved this place. I would love to spend more hours there. I fucking love pinball too much and there is none in Tijuana. The warehouse also contained a separated brewery. It also looked on point but I was beered out. I couldn’t drink much more plus we grabbed a ton at the liquor shop.
I wanted Caffrey’s sandwiches but we ended up going to Maverick’s. It was good but I was disappointed, I expected much more. Minneapolis is a Friday and Saturday type of city… by Sunday… every thing slows down a lot and things close early. There was no point on going out. The last night was spent around the firepit listening to weird albums with my hosts.
Thanks so much to both Szavio and Ash for hosting me. I don’t know how it could have been any better.
Minnesota Day 6 – Monday (goodbye).
I dreamt of her. The first love of my life. After 21 years I was in the same city as her. I still know her phone number by memory. If I get arrested, I will have no choice but to call her because it’s the only number I know. And I know it’s still her number. I dreamt that we kissed and it was still the same. I thought I saw her. Caught a glimpse. Was it a dream?
Szavio was gone when I woke up.
I walk to a nearby coffee shop in the morning, then packed my stuff, and got ready to leave. Ash made a healthy plate of garbanzo beans and rice. I needed something simple and healthy after the crazy week I had. Moments later, I was at the airport leaving Minneapolis behind. I didn’t want to come back. Minneapolis was perfect. Though I know it was a lie. The weather is not always like that. It’s not always that fun. It’s not always that great… but I loved my week there.
Thank you, Minneapolis and all involved in my adventure.
The flight back was fine. The plane was early to my connection in Chicago… but there was an issue at the gate. We sat in the plane for over an hour… I almost missed my connecting flight to San Diego. But they delayed that plane around thirty minutes for the people that had the connection (that was me and three other people). In that flight, they sat me next to an 18-year-old traveling to San Diego because he joined the army. It was one of his first flights and you could tell. He played Angry Birds and later colored a Hello Kitty screen. Asked if he could buy apple juice with his debit cards from the army. He came from a town of a hundred in the middle of Iowa and was escaping that… but this was a child. I wish him the best.
I made it back to Tijuana past midnight.
Exhausted.
Not wanting to be here… but ready to restart the routine. The mountain of work. And more work to come. To finish the year. Unsure of what I want.
To keep on working for sure.
But I miss her. And I love her. And her.
No time for love.
I didn’t want to go outside my apartment on my first day back, but I got bored and hungry. Once on the mainstrip it didn’t take long for a stranger to approach me and be like “oh wow, you are back from Chicago!” I told him it was Minneapolis… but yes. He said he liked my videos. I’m not sure who that was. But back to that.
Back to more content.
A ton of content.
This is content. Translate this into an Instagram post. And perhaps make money. I need more money so I can travel more and keep doing what I do.
Even if I’m not the best of travel content. I’ll get better. So I can make more money. So I can keep getting better. I should start using the DJI microphone I bought for my videos… I’m still shy about recording in public…
And it’s back to the grind. Toros is on the semifinals and I’m probably going to several games. August is about to be done. I sold three tours so far for September and I know there will be more. It’s the anniversary of one restaurant. And there’s another restaurant planned for October. And I get to make more social media. More content. I want more money.
Back to the grind. September promises to be very busy. October most likely will be the same. Things will calm down by November and truly slow down by December. By then I should have a nice cushion of money to start 2027 with everything. Finish my book. Open a store.
And so much more fucking work.
Thank you for reading.
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Published before September started… but you get the idea.
Matingas 
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