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Shantytowns as a New Suburban Ideal

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By NICOLAI OUROUSSOFF
Published: March 12, 2006

TIJUANA, Mexico — Teddy Cruz has been shuttling between suburban San Diego and the shantytowns of Tijuana for more than a decade now. From anthropologists to urban planners eager for an insider's view, visitors pepper him endlessly with requests for tours.

"It's become part of my weekly routine," said Mr. Cruz, a 43-year-old architect, as we raced along a fenced freeway toward the Mexican border. "Most people here haven't even seen the border wall. I want to show people that it's not so ugly."