Personal Experience Traveling to Mexico: Solo Women... Don't Do It!

A woman traveling to Mexico needs to be careful, especially alone. This is my personal experience. Follow these tips and it won't be your experience.

My desire was to travel to Mexico alone. My boyfriend would not allow that and he went with me. It was Thanksgiving Day, 2008. Thank god I did not attempt to travel to Mexico, a woman, alone.

Traveling to the city of Nuevo Laredo, Mexico was easy enough. If you are on I-35 follow this until you see "International Bridge" or Bridge 2, as it's known to locals, and follow those interstate signs. Once you reach the border, you will recognize it because there is a walk across bridge and drive across bridge. There are signs posted everywhere, you can not miss it.

We choose to walk across. There is a parking lot adjacent to the walk across bridge and we parked there. Parking for the day is $5.

We entered the country of Mexico with no problem at all. I had my USA issued driver's license, my passport and a little cash on me. I was wearing black capris, a pink t-shirt and black ball cap. This was my first mistake! I thought I looked like a tourist and my fears were soon faced.

As we walked across the border, I experienced am eerie feeling. A feeling that I've never had before (even crossing into Canada) and I, quite frankly, was very uncomfortable.

We were immediately approached by "salesman" pushing prescription drugs. I did inquire about medicine there and the restrictions. I'm glad I did not purchase meds there. Customs laws mandate a doctor's prescription for prescribed drugs coming back into the USA.

Our next stop was shopping! I was excited and feeling a little more comfortable.

We visited several shops in Nuevo Laredo, MX. Most of the items I found were made in China and the biggest resources were for prescription drugs. Fancy that.

Along our way we decided to stop in to a small "open door" bar. We ordered a couple of margaritas and struck up a conversation with a young guy hiding behind a hoodie that appeared to be American. He said, "You guys from the U.S.?"

It took me a minute, but I responded, "Yes, of course. Why do you ask?"

"You look like tourist. If you see them closing the doors and windows, you better run."

We drank our margaritas, paid the tab and left!

I never asked the young man what he meant or any other frivolous information. I didn't care at that point. I wanted back on U.S. soil and the quicker, the better.

As we walked back across the bridge I was snapping pictures of the Rio Grande and buildings on the Mexico and U.S. side. I found it interesting and thought it would make an interesting blog post.

We made our way to the crossing gate, approached it and found a man being taken away in handcuffs.

I was next in line.

As I approached the border crossing agent, he said, "Were you taking photos?"

"Yes."

"I need to see them and you need to delete them."

"OK."

At this point, I gladly produced my camera, showed the border patrol the pictures and showed him the pictures had been deleted.

After approximately 10 minutes, he let me pass through. As I was walking away he announced on his walkie-talkie that the "Pictures have been deleted."

I was a nervous wreck at this point.

He did explain to me, in his broken spanglish, that it was a matter of bridge security. He was, I guess, an American citizen working on our side.

I have reentered this country from the Bahamas, Canada and Mexico and never have I experienced the feeling that the Mexican border patrol caused. For some reason I tend to lose "where I am" and "who I am" when coming back into this country and being questioned by someone who does not speak our native language well. It's psychological, I'm sure, but it works on your brain.

I have talked to several other U.S. citizens that cross the border routinely and this is our collective advice for women traveling to Mexico:

1) Don't look like a tourist. Try to mingle with the crowd. Don't draw attention to yourself like I did. Dress down.

2) Don't travel outside major cities. If you are going to Cancun, stay in Cancun at the resort, on the resort property.

3) Pack only what is absolutely necessary. Leave the "bling" at home. You are asking for trouble if you flash yourself or your bling.

4) Check out the passport information and customs information for reentering the USA. Cpb.gov is a good place to start. It will advise you on other travel alerts and what is and is not allowed by customs.

5) Usps.gov/passport will provide you with the necessary tools to obtain your passport.

6) Be prepared for the unexpected. Face reality if you are traveling away from a resort. If you look American, you will be targeted. Trucks are stopped, cars are stopped and buses are stopped daily. Some are simply robbed of possessions. Others are robbed of things they will never recover.

If you are staying overnight in Mexico I would continue to follow these simple rules and ask friends and relatives of where to stay.

Take pictures of only the resort you staying in, don't carry bling with you, and don't look like a tourist. Do not draw attention to yourself. Look at your surroundings and dress accordingly.

For me personally, my one trip to Mexico was enough. I will not be going back. I felt like a target the entire time I was there and a stranger trying to reenter my country.