Mexican tourists seeking a break from drug violence

A respite from an ongoing sad situation is what Mexican nationals are calling their Semana Santa trip to South Padre Island.

Despite numerous reports of firefights inside towns and on main highways between rival drug cartels and occasionally the military, Mexican tourists are taking to the roads in an effort to get away from it all — if only for a short while.

"It’s really getting bad over there," said Monterrey tourist Alejandra Garza. "The roads have been bad, the city is bad; we really just needed a break."

Traveling by day, without stops and in a caravan with friends, Garza’s family took the three-and-a-half-hour road trip from Monterrey to Reynosa before crossing into the United States.

"They say the roads are bad, but the city is bad too," Garza said. "We took a chance and it paid off. Now we have eight days to forget all about it."

For the past several weeks, the states of Tamaulipas and Nuevo Leon have experienced sporadic bouts of intense fighting as two former allies, the Zetas criminal organization and the Gulf Cartel, fight for control of the area.

According to Mexican law enforcement documents, the fighting has taken place in various cities in the state of Tamaulipas including Matamoros, Reynosa, Miguel Aleman, Camargo, Victoria, Ciudad Mante and others. Fighting has also taken place in Monterrey, Cerralvo, Linares and other cities in the state of Nuevo Leon.

Those recent firefights not only have Mexican citizens on edge, but for a while American businesses were worried that their Semana Santa shoppers would stay behind.

"I was very concerned about it," said Dainty Lewis, owner of Isla and Rica stores. "When we had a four-day holiday about three weeks ago, the people from Monterrey were going to come, but there were a lot of incidents over there and they did not come."

On Sunday, Lewis began seeing some of her Mexican customers. Her apprehensions began to ease even more when she started getting emails and calls from her regulars, who told her they would be arriving later this week.

"When they come here, they can let their kids run on the beach, feel safe and forget about everything," the businesswoman said.

As she browsed through the aisles of Isla, Reynosa tourist Doris Madrigal said Semana Santa is a vacation her family was looking forward to.

Despite several drug-related confrontations throughout the city, Madrigal and her family have been spared from experiencing any of it first hand.

"It still is something that worries you because you hear about it," she said. "We are just looking for some days to get away from it all."