bajalera - 9-18-2006 at 10:13 AM
I recently found an interesting bilingual booklet on the Internet--"Proceedings from t he First International Conference on the Relationship Between
Tourism and the Environment of the Baja California Peninsula."
The three-day conference--held at Ensenada in October of 1973, shortly after the completion of the paved road--had 150 participants, about equally
divided between Mexicans and Americans, plus 30 student guests from the School of Tourism, Autonomous University of Baja California [Norte].
Besides tourism and travel people, the group included architects, scientists, journalists, and officials from government agencies--several from
Washington State. [The only Gringo name I recognized was Walt Wheelock.]
In his opening remarks, the governor of Baja California said he had noticed that at meetings held in the U.S., speakers usually open with a joke. His
joke was that Norteamericanos who frequently visit the peninsula had told him they objected to the paving of the road because this would being more
tourists from the U.S.
Conference members reached a consensus on the following:
"At the point of entry on the new Transpeninsular Highway, all drivers should be given a brochure advising them of the character of the road, hazards
that might be encountered, and applicable regulations and requirements.
"It would be advisable to have each driver complete and file at the point of entry a Travel Plan, listing destination, names of passengers, estimated
date of return, vehicle information, and purpose of the trip . . .
"Consideration should be given to charging reasonable fees for information and service to all road users. These fees should be become mandatory if
this can be done lawfully. The services should include search and rescue, radio and telephone communications, visual identification of registration,
such as a distinctive plaque or decal to serve as a status symbol of having made the trip on the new Baja California highway.
"All regulations should apply uniformly to nationals of all contries, including Mexico."
I'd like the decal, but the rest of this plan would have slowed down the border crossing considerably.