Joseph Linck Calls for Renewal of the "Two Nation Vacation"

Joseph Linck, Jr.

From the editor:  In a letter published in Sunday's Brownsville Herald, Joseph Linck, Jr. claims it's time to reincorporate Matamoros into the overall appeal of Brownsville, SPI.  Have the drug cartels left town?

Anyway.  Please read Linck's article, published below and give us your thoughts:

Donald Trump, Enrique Pena and our border economy.  There's a new mayor in Matamoros and a new Tamaulipas governor.  Both have promised a new day for Heroic Matamoros and Tamaulipas and have taken strong actions to crack down on crime and judicial reform.  Matamoros has been quite peaceful lately, and both deserve our thanks.

Now new Matamoros mayor Jesus De La Garza is making a pitch to try and restore the city's single most important industry, tourism.  I hope the mayor can bring back some of the jobs in that labor-intensive industry.

No industry puts cash in the hands of poor people so directly as tourism.  Waiters, dish washers, etc., spend what they make, so that cash starts circulating immediately at all levels of an economy, including Brownsville's.

South Padre Island and Brownsville tourism bureaus should consider lending a hand to our twin city.  Remember the two nation vacation?  It's still Cameron County's greatest economic development asset, with even more job-creating potential than our seaport.

Sadly, Winter Texan numbers are dropping off, with fewer arriving every year even though millions of baby boomers have retired now. Weren't they projected to inundate us by now with their RV's?

And Spring Break is but a distant memory. Remember when a million kids from Canada, New York City, even Europe would come and visit us, injecting millions into our economy?  SPI hotels would quickly fill, as would Brownsville's.  Those college-educated kids came here for the exotic appeal of a two-nation vacation.

Florida has nice sunny beaches, as do a lot of places.  But we are different.  Smart local bartenders would whisper to the kids that a visit to SPI without a trip to exotic, romantic Old Mexico is like a kiss without a hug.

Many a romance was sparked here between these college-educated kids.  Then, a few years later, many would return with their kids in tow, to relive good memories made here.  And with a good job and more money in their pockets, they would spend even more.

What have we lost?  

Marketing the two-nation vacation has the potential to supercharge our economy and inject cash into the hands of those who need it the most, in both cities.

Working together, our sister cities can bring tourism dollars back to many unemployed folks on both sides of the river.

Did anyone notice that the Wall Street Journal just name Brownsville as the USA's poorest city?

Something needs to be done.  The millions we spent over the years on industrial development isn't working.

Don't bother to drive to Matamoros.  Park in our beautiful new high-rise city garage, walk across, and ask for that famous mariachi singing taxi driver, el Guero Viejo, at the Gateway Bridge taxi stand.  His English isn't great, but his songs are. For five bucks he'll take you anywhere in town--and bring you back safely for another five.  As Matamoros' oldest taxi driver he is well known, loved and respected by everybody.

Nortenos restaurant still has the best fajitas anywhere on the North American continent, or the world, and world-class waiters offer impeccable service.  With the peso down to 20 to 1 U.S. dollar, perhaps the cheapest as well.  Baby goat lovers tell me Nortenos has the best-tasting cabrito anywhere.

A shoe shine on Matamoros' lovely Zocalo downtown park costs only a quarter.  From there, it's a shor walk to Mary's(very modest) hair salon on Matamoros street, just down from Nortenos.  Lovely Mary will give you a great haircut for only $1.

Casa Mata Museum is continuously improving. Winter Texans, make sure to call ahead to reserve one of the English-speaking tour guides.  These cute volunteers will translate the exhibits for you.  Their patriotism for their city and gracious, youthful enthusiasm is inspiring.  This museaum holds many secrets still unknown to world historians about our twin cities' fascinating and incredible past.

In 1835 Matamoros was larger than any city in Texas.  You will want to rewrite your high school history textbooks after a visit to Casa Mata.

In these uncertain times with failed diplomacy between our two federal governments, might our twin cities show both national governments the way to understanding, cooperation and mutual respect between our two great cultures?  They both could use some help.

The continuing discord between our federal governments will not be good for our two countries and certainly not for our twin cities.  

Best of luck to new Mayor Jesus De La Garza and new Gov. Francisco Garcia Cabeza de Vaca.  Their success will be our success.  The hotel and restaurant workers in Cameron County certainly hope they succeed.

And please, Cameron County tourism officials, help our historic twin city Matamoros bring back the good old days for both Brownsville and Matamoros, and the romantic, worldwide appeal of the two-nation vacation.

Joseph Linck, Jr.
Brownsville