YEE-HAH!!!, next weekend (Feb15-18) is Presidents 3- Day weekend!  The day that you never got outta school when YOU WERE KIDS, but NOW YOU CAN MAKE UP FOR IT!  And why shouldn’t you??? Its a tribute to  two more of the  greatest DEAD Presidents, AND right on the tail of cupid! 

BUT there’s something that threatens to scare US tourist from the typical resorts and hang-outs…AND DO YOU KNOW WHAT IT IS????

Hillary, Mac, Obama, Mitt, Ronnie, and Huck!!! The wannabee presidents and their 24/7 press coverage GUARANTEE a holiday downer…like the Eveready Bunnie….they drone on and on and on… 

ALAS  … B-4 you give up….Bajabrent has the answer…COME TO B-4 FOR A “WANNABEE Free” weekend!!!   Bajabrent,  Little Flipper and other guests are already booked. There are 2 guest rooms, The Casita and Frenchy's still available....

We will have a super flying weekend for La Salina Ridge, including Paragliding, PPG, triking and perhaps some hang-gliding!  Flying is now full on! As Bajabrent has averaged 90+ minute flights during his last 4 times airborne. His Groundhog's Day flight was over 2 hours beginning at La Salina and ended with 300 foot spiral dive over La Fonda...so its time for the tandems to go down!!!! (well hopefully UP first)  AND if thats not enuf....

La Salina KARAOKE WILL GO ROCK Saturday night  , 8:00PM,  at the La Salina Cantina KM 73 toll road Baja, MX.  YOU are cordially invited to return to B-4 and La Salina Cantina. Come one and come all!  Bring your voices, bring your discs, bring your dancing shoes and bring your friends!  The place will be packed!!!

Expected attendees: David Bowie, The Cars, Annie Lennox, Tom Petty, Muse, Little Flipper, Nancy Sinatra, Greenday, Billy Joel, Liz the Whiz, Jose Cuervo, Three Doors Down, Looking Glass, Pat Benatar,  Michelle and Mary, Pink,  U-2, Mana, The Moondoggie (see www.THEMOONDOGGIE.com), Ricky Martin, Sugar Ray, Secret Agent Man, The Great Gustavo, MLKs Ghost, Gloria Gaynor, Elton John, Sting,  Ed-as-Elvis, Rod Stewart, Three Dog Night w/ Blackie,  plus many more, as we sing and swing into the wee hours, &  then return to B-4.

On Sunday night we will celebrate Abe's and Jorge's birthday! After all Monday is a HOLIDAY, for many and a good reason for EVERYONE to B.O.W. BUSTER BBQ (i.e. Blow Off Work, Buster (Monday) it’s a BBQ).. So BE THERE… DOG-ON-IT!!! (Yep Blackie aka—“Mr. Moochie”-- will be there to mooch BBQ handouts—so be prepared!!!)

& WHAT ABOUT FLIPPER??? Of course, Lil Flipper will be co-hosting, singing, flying, sun-bathing and attempting to win at shuffleboard!!!  So COME HELP HER…she needs YOUR shuffleboard help NOW!!!

To book or more info: reply to this email, call 760-203-2658, email bajabrent@msn.com; OR after 6:00PM Thurs. call Bajabrent 01152-1-044-646-126-9089 or see website: www.BAJABRENT.com,
PS: NO PASSPORTS ARE NEEDED AT THIS TIME!!!

In Celebration of the honorable Dr. Martin Luther King’s Birthday, Bajabrent wishes to share his fondest memory of MLK: his 2ND  most memorable speech. Sure we all know MLK’s “I have a dream speech”…given at the Lincoln Memorial in August of 1963.  But, according to Bajabrent there was another historic speech.

Indeed, 3 days later, Bajabrent attended  another  MLK,  rally,   (along w/ Forrest Gump), at the Lamplighter Karaoke Club in San Diego.  Bajabrent recalls Dr King declaring:  “I have a DREAM!!!!..---TO SING---BYE BYE MISS AMERICAN  PIE….”  The speech/song lasted 9.5 minutes….and the crowd went MLKrazy!!!!! And Bajabrent finally
“GOT MLK” !!! and wants YOU to get some TOO!

Bajabrent’s  “GOT MLK”, (MARTIN LUTHER KARAOKE) …this Saturday night, 8:00PM,  at the La Salina Cantina KM 73 toll road Baja, MX.  YOU are cordially invited to return to B-4 and La Salina Cantina. Come one and come all!  Bring your voices, bring your discs, bring your dancing shoes and bring your friends!  The place will be packed!!!

Expected attendees: David Bowie, The Cars, Annie Lennox, Tom Petty, Muse, Little Flipper, Nancy Sinatra, Greenday, Billy Joel, Liz the Whiz, Jose Cuervo, Three Doors Down, Looking Glass, Pat Benatar,  Michelle and Mary, Pink,  U-2, Mana, The Moondoggie (see www.THEMOONDOGGIE.com), Ricky Martin, Sugar Ray, Secret Agent Man, The Great Gustavo, MLKs Ghost, Gloria Gaynor, Elton John, Sting,  Ed-as-Elvis, Rod Stewart, Three Dog Night w/ Blackie,  plus many more, as we sing and swing into the wee hours, &  then return to B-4.

FRIDAY NIGHT UPDATE:  Bajabrent received a call from his cousin, ALEX DEPUE (www.THEFIDDLER.org ) who just had flown into TJ after a 10 day tour with MIGUEL DE HOYA, in Monterrey Mexico. As we all know, Alex is the most awesome fiddle player  known in these parts (#1 viewed video on YOUTUBE March 25,2007) and of course Miguel is legendary as a guitarist.   The tour was a huge success and now Miguel and Alex will be performing on MLK weekend (only) at JOSE'S PALAPA, before heading out to Cabo San Lucas for a 2 month gig.  Bajabrent plans to catch their show Friday night and perhaps Sunday night after the BBQ.  BE THERE!!!  YouTube link http://youtube.com/watch?v=NHC_Qyov2Xc

On Sunday night we will celebrate MLKs Birthday! After all Monday is a HOLIDAY, for many and a good reason for EVERYONE to B.O.W. BUSTER BBQ (i.e. Blow Off Work, Buster (Monday) it’s a BBQ).. So BE THERE… DOG-ON-IT!!! (Yep Blackie aka—“Mr. Moochie”-- will be there to mooch BBQ handouts—so be prepared!!!)

& WHAT ABOUT FLIPPER??? Of course, Lil Flipper will be co-hosting, singing, flying, sun-bathing and attempting to win at shuffleboard!!!  So COME HELP HER…she needs YOUR shuffleboard help NOW!!!

To book or more info: reply to this email, call 760-203-2658, email bajabrent@msn.com; OR after 6:00PM Thurs. call Bajabrent 01152-1-044-646-126-9089 or see website: www.BAJABRENT.com,
PS: NO PASSPORTS ARE NEEDED AT THIS TIME!!!

Admittedly there may have been a couple incidents where bad-guys dressed like cops robbed/assaulted some tourist-somewhere on the  Baja peninsula. But other than the anomaly of the attire, this doesn’t constitute a crime wave. Crimes happen to people all the time-everywhere. (these incidents remind me of the CHP officer who was sexually assaulting young girls during traffic stops many years ago in southern CA).

Try hanging out in Rio, Baghdad, LA or Philadelphia; the latter of which, 3 months ago, my cousin, a concert violinist, walking home from a performance with Philly-Orchestra  was forced to his knees with a gun to his head by a hip-hop youth. He was robbed and assaulted. Many years ago,  I was robbed at gunpoint, as the cashier of our family pizza restaurant, in Delaware, Ohio.  Thus, its not a matter of “where”, its just a numbers game:  if/when your number is “up” its “up”.
 
When it comes to the Baja, interestingly, these alleged incidents seem to happen to US tourist as opposed to any other foreign tourists. Admittedly there are a lot more US tourists, but when the score is always 100-0, then there's something else afoot.
 
I believe its behavior. Some  US tourists come to Mexico to party, get drunk,"do" drugs, and engage in behavior they’d never dream of north of the border. They become  belligerent, nasty  and down right disrespectful to others including  the natives.  Sometimes the natives don’t respond kindly to  these “Gringos” (the term itself means “go home to US”). Other times, its because the Gringos are trying to “score” contraband by fraternizing with seedy characters they’d never consider in the USA.

These situations jeopardize the Gringos who are then so inebriated they don’t grasp their peril or so arrogant that they refuse to recognize their predicament. In either event, they set themselves up. Now you have either an angry insulted native or a seedy opportunist, or BOTH.

Sometimes the bad-guys target the victims at night when the cheap gringos are soooooo cheap they choose not stay in secure campgrounds or hotels or B & Bs because they wanna save $20 a night!  It is my opinion that this was the  case of the surfer and his girlfriend, camping on remote beach because of their "budget" mentality.
 
I'm not saying that these people necessarily "deserve" what happened to them, but COME ON....why would anyone camp on a secluded  beach in a 3rd world country with a fancy RV full of expensive electronics? I doubt this surfer will repeat this behavior in Costa Rica (his next planned destination). 
 
I believe that Baja is as safe as any other 3rd world tourist destination. Interestingly Baja does not have madmen running around sniping people (Malvo-DC-18 sniped); blowing up court houses (OK city 100 dead),  high schools(Columbine among many), or  college campuses (33 died last year at Virginia Tech).  And there are no jet liners crashing into condos or skyscrapers in Mexico.   But you don’t see the US press bashing tourism in Washington DC, NYC, Virginia Beach etc. 
 
In the end, I know of no incidents that have happened here (locally-La Salina) in the last 12-18 months. I have not had a guest hassled other than the occasional traffic stop/money grab,  which in many  cases has valid grounds or if not is a minor mordida that you can fight if you know how. 

Moral of the story: when traveling/partying in Baja, treat the natives with respect.  Stay at secure facilities (like my place), and don’t flash loads of cash or  bring a bling-bling girlfriends who  freak out every time they see a Mexican with dirt under his nails or scold a Mexican for the condition of his dog!  Likewise don’t go overboard the other direction and try to fraternize and befriend everyone you meet, especially while under the influence.  Use the same judgment you’d use-sober- in the USA.

Its very important to remember that 99% of Baja-Mexicans are friendly and accomodating people.  They are proud hard-working simple folk who have no interest in tormenting or harming American tourists.  You may come to Baja for the adventure or the beauty, but you will stay because you will find its people gracious, hospitable, and friendly. 

Unfortunately for Baja , these "crime" stories continue to be replayed like Seinfeld reruns. And yes tourism is being adversly affected,  but YOU will be safer if you follow these suggestions, and hang out with known locals like BAJABRENT---He’ll Hook You Up!!!

 

 Viva Baja-Viva Mexico, fly high and fly safe, cheers, Bajabrent