Border City

Tijuana's rocky rebirth

Border City

Show Notes

Artists, chefs and ordinary citizens point the way to a revitalized Tijuana, even as the city faces new challenges. Sandra faces challenges too. Two deaths in her own family.

More from Border City

Oct 21, 2026

We know what’s good for us. We still do the opposite. How do we close that gap?

May 24, 2022

A random accident forces Sandra to slow down and embrace her life on the border. New waves of migrants arrive in Tijuana, pushed by violence, poverty, and political upheaval and fueled by dreams of reaching the United States.

May 10, 2022

Doctors in their white coats protest the violence, while some young musicians refuse to stay home, and an arts promoter opens a new gallery. Sandra feels caught between two worlds as she flies back and forth to Washington to care for her ailing mother.

May 3, 2022

The Arellano cartel grows weaker as its top leaders fall, but the violence continues. Threats strike new fears in the highest echelons of law enforcement. The Tijuana opera hosts an inaugural performance. Sandra’s mother flies in from Washington, D.C. and meets Sandra’s friend Angela.

Apr 26, 2022

Sandra covers the assassination of another police chief and the arrest of a powerful drug suspect. She also sings with the Tijuana opera and invites friends from both sides of the border to a concert on a hillside looking out toward San Diego.

See all episodes →