In Tijuana, you don't go looking for drugs, the drugs come looking for you. In almost any dive bar in the downtown area, street vendors will come offer you anything. It ranges from your basic convenient store commodities (cigarettes, bags of chips, chocolates), to full meals (pizza slices, tortas, burritos, sushi and spring rolls), to other random things (flowers, stuffed animals, shoe shining and even electric shocks). But in the midst of all the variety of street vendors, they also sell you any sort of drugs. Two dollars will get you a joint. The street vendor then sits down on the sidewalk not caring about his surroundings and quickly rolls you one. Cops go by, but they pay no attention.

He is not the only street vendor involved in drug selling. Zona Norte in the downtown area works as a hub for all drug trades. Not that many locals venture there and I do not recommend going there with the purpose of purchasing drugs. The cops know what goes on there and though they do not bother the dealers, they constantly patrol the area and stop whoever they believe to be carrying drugs. But street vendors seemed to be free to come and go as they please, so many will help on the drug trade. Most are desperate for some cash, so they are willing to help on the small trade. You'll even get drugs offered out in the open by some establishments. "Free tequila my friend, we got the ladies, free joint if you want my friend," is what you will hear while walking in front of certain establishments on Revolución Avenue.

However, any possession or consumption, trade or trafficking is punishable by law. There is no "minimum" someone can carry and not face problems with the police if detained, who for the most part are highly corrupt and only looking to make some cash. The cops are rarely properly trained and usually have no knowledge of the law, so an individual can be in constant danger of being frisked and detained. Despite never carrying any drugs with me, I've been frisked by Policía Municipal five times in a period of 2 years.

What the law in Mexico says about drug consuming and/or trafficking is blurry, but what is certain is that it is punishable no matter how small the penalty is. I've heard stories of people getting detained by the cops for carrying rolling papers or just a pipe, then corrupted officials will plant more drugs on such charged person to increment the chances of making more money. In a catch-22 scenario, the very own cops are usually the ones responsible of selling the drugs back to the narcos. The individual who uses drugs for his own consumption is not protected by the law.

While Uruguay and two states in America completely legalized marihuana and many other places in the world are moving towards decriminalization, Mexico continues to be completely outdated regarding the legality of drugs and even breaks basic human rights when randomly detaining suspects. Though marihuana is decriminalized and medically legal in California, in Tijuana is punishable equally to other drugs such as cocaine and heroine. In fact, one of the highest offenses is to export or import drugs, no matter what your status is in California. A sign was put up near the border on December 2013 warning people not to take medicinal marihuana through the border. It is located a couple miles before the international border nearby another similar sign that warns people not to bring guns into Mexico.

Tijuana is popular for being lawless, but this is not the case. It is very common for police to detain people misbehaving on the streets and going to jail for not having proper identification or for urinating on a public space. Though drug consumption seems to be at the heart of Tijuana's nightlife, it is a risky habit mainly due to corrupt police officers. TJ properly under your own risk.

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