Things To Do in Juarez

Browsing the outdoor markets and specialty stores in Juárez is a favorite pastime of the city's visitors.

Prices are rock bottom for the usual Mexican knickknacks -- tapestries, sculptures, and souvenirs -- and a bit less than their U.S. counterparts for liquor and food. Bargaining is part of the game at almost every shop in Juárez -- it's not bad form to haggle at all. The markets are open daily from morning to evening, but exact hours are up to individual shopkeepers.

Geared toward tourists, the Juárez City Market, at Agustin Melgar Street and Avenida 16th de Septiembre, is a fun -- although not particularly upscale -- shopping spot. The two-story building is loaded with an endless array of velvet paintings, plaster of Paris statues, jewelry, and other standard-issue Mexican souvenirs. If your tastes tend toward posh, try Decor, at the intersection of Avenida Ignacio Mejia and Avenida Lincoln, a three-story retail standout chock-full of furniture, glass, ceramics, and jewelry. Other popular shopping spots include the duty-free stores at Av. Juárez #378 and Av. 16th de Septiembre #531 for liquor, porcelain, crystal, and perfumes; and Avenida Juárez, just south of the Santa Fe Street Bridge, lined with street merchants, souvenir shops, and pharmacies, culminating in the local's market, Cuauhtemoc Market, on the south side of the main plaza.

Juárez is a popular after-dark destination for El Pasoans, and there are numerous bars geared toward tourists on Avenida Juárez downtown and, to the east, Avenida Lincoln. Many of the bars are actually strip clubs, although there are sports bars and nightclubs as well. The can't-miss nightspot is the Kentucky Club, 629 Av. Juárez, swank in a Juárez sort of way. You can't do any better if you're looking to spend an afternoon over margaritas -- legend has it that the drink was invented here in 1946 by a longtime bartender, the late Lorenzo Garcia. And Hollywood types once frequented this bar: Marilyn Monroe bought the bar a round after a quickie divorce from Arthur Miller.