-mic.com. “It means ‘welcome’ in Chinese,” a man said to me in Spanish, looking up at me from a grey velvet loveseat. He pointed to the wooden sign I was looking at, with large, gold Chinese characters set against a red background.

-pacificsandiego.com. Hidden inside the wood-paneled walls of Oryx Capital Gastro Pub lies a not-so-secret speakeasy called Nortico. Photos of Al Capone and other infamous outlaws hang on the walls of venue, where head bartender and Tijuana native, Fernando Villalobos, seems poised to make history.

-National Geographic. This coastal drive explores relaxed border cities with world-renowned food and wine, quaint towns, and a wide open road that sweeps past surfers and whales dotting the ocean. Weeks could be spent exploring the region, but here’s how to get started.

-Munchies. You might say that it's Cantonese cuisine mixed with Southwestern flavors. There's avocado and chorizo in the fried rice. Mango alongside saucy beef strips. Arrachera (skirt steak) lays on a bed of snap peas covered in Chinese-style bean sauce.

-Los Angeles Times. A foodie road trip to Tijuana? On a recent foray, my husband, Paul, and I ventured beyond the tchotchke shops, discount pharmacies and street-corner “zonkeys,” donkeys painted to look like zebras.

-México Desconocdo. En medio de los inmensos campos de uva del Valle de Guadalupe, Baja California, yace escondido un restaurante que prepara todo lo irresistible de la vida: papada de cerdo, ostiones kumiai, tiradito de jurel o toda una variedad de cortes de res, y mucho más.

-New York Times. Though still rough around the edges, this fast-growing border town is on the rise, with a luxury condo boom and a new $60 million bus rapid transit system.