Sources Update:

In Search of Enhancement
in Tijuana, Mexico

I’ll never forget the first time that Rich Currier and I ordered smart drugs in Tijuana. It was November, 1991, and we walked into the Medicine Man Farmacia in Tijuana, armed with our new copy of Smart Drugs & Nutrients. We told them what we wanted and they didn’t understand. We showed them the book with the names of the drugs, and they still didn’t understand. After 30 minutes of this, we were ready to leave when one of the clerks pulled out Ross Pelton’s Mind Food & Smart Pills. We knew we had made our connection!

We’ve been doing business with Medicine Man ever since. Several of the clerks speak very good English and a couple of them are very savvy about the drugs, even to the point of giving us advice. I can even call them during the week, put in an order, and have it waiting for me by the time I arrive on the weekend. This can be very useful. During the weekend, the smart-drug inventory tends to disappear off the shelves. Individuals are not required to have a prescription to buy these drugs, or to take them back into the U.S. I am continually surprised at the number of people who don’t know this. That is my reason for writing this article. Having had bad luck ordering drugs from overseas, I would like to make people aware of the sources for drugs in Mexico. When we schedule our trip to Tijuana, we let our friends know. Several of them will forward their smart drug orders to us. We ask for the cost of the drugs, plus gas/parking money. This works out nicely for us and we’ll make a day of it in San Diego and Tijuana.

The best direct route to Tijuana is Interstate 5 South through San Diego, getting off at the last off-ramp (Camino de la Plaza—Last U.S. Exit—Parking) before the border. From this point, I’m 5 minutes walking distance from the border. Arriving at the border between 9 and 10 AM improves my chances of getting a choice (free!) parking spot along the streets bordering the factory-outlet stores. If you’re feeling sneaky, you can park in the factory-outlet parking lot and browse the stores before starting your walk to the border. Although I’ve never seen it happen, a sign warns that the parking lot is for customers only, and illegally parked cars will be towed. If money is not a concern, you can pay $5 to $10 to park in a parking lot next to the border. Walking at a determined pace, I can get from my parking spot to the Mexican pharmacy and back in about half an hour.

I highly recommend walking across the border rather than driving for the following reasons: 1) American car insurance is not valid on Mexican soil (you can purchase Mexican car insurance in San Diego for about $15/day), 2) In the event of a car accident in which both parties cannot agree who is at fault, then both parties will be taken to the police station until an agreement about fault can be reached (Americans almost always lose in this situation), 3) the car lines coming back into the U.S. will take you 30 minutes to four hours on a typical weekend, 4) Most people walk anyway, and you can follow the foot traffic as they walk past the best pharmacies on their way to the most popular tourist street in Tijuana — Avenida Revolucion [Revolution Avenue].

Walking, we enter the Mexican border by passing through 2 sets of metal revolving gates that continually belch out an irritating metal clang as people make their way through to Tijuana. Taxi drivers and street vendors eagerly await your entry. Your walk will expose you to the typical and atypical assortment of tourist goods and native Mexican foods and drink (for the squeamish, traditional American restaurants can be found on Ave. Revolucion). Tijuana invites the tourist to explore and sample all it has to offer, it’s a festive atmosphere....so enjoy.

Rich and I casually check each pharmacy on the way for inventory and pricing of smart drugs. Every pharmacy may not offer all the same types of smart drugs, but we usually find the staples: Hydergine and piracetam. Prices can also fluctuate. A store may want to clear their inventory for the purposes of refreshing their stock. Sometimes, bargains can be found. Even if I don’t buy the bargain product, I will use the bargain-priced item to negotiate a better price at a competing pharmacy. A savings of 10-30% can be achieved this way. I can also negotiate the price down by buying in quantity. Even if Rich is standing right next to me, we will buy as one person to give the impression of a large order. I will take advantage of any reason I can think of to justify the lowering of the prices. It doesn’t always work, but you’d be surprised at what has worked in the past. Negotiating a price, whether it be for goods or services, is an art that requires practice and diplomacy — be willing to walk away, but also be willing to return. Our negotiating has put us on a personal basis with most of the pharmacies and we have definitely found this to be a point in our favor.

I advise people to keep a personal three-month smart-drug inventory — there have been times when I was not able to find a particular drug for periods of up to a month and a half. Having an inventory allows me to survive these lean times. When I do find bargains, I stock up. Going back to the U.S. requires a little bit of thinking and planning (as Rich mentioned in his last article). Splitting up the drug purchases so that we can justify the three-month limit is important. Do not give Customs agents any reason to single you out!! We even split up into different walk-in re-entry lines into the U.S. so that if one of us is stopped and questioned, the other will get through quickly. My contacts within Customs tell me that their policy of servicing the public has changed. More demands are being put on them to justify their existence. As a result, they are questioning and scrutinizing everyone more closely. Anyone out of the ordinary will be asked to go to a separate area for closer inspection. In my case, they brought out a notebook with the names of drugs that are not allowed. Smart drugs are not on that list and I have never been hassled, but I have many friends who have been verbally warned and harassed by Customs agents. So far, none has been denied his smart drugs.

After determining the drugs are legal, the agents will ask you three more questions: 1) “Are these drugs for your personal use?” (answer “yes”), 2) “Does the drug quantity fall within the 90-day usage?” (also answer “yes”), and 3) “What do you use these drugs for?” (answer, “improve blood circulation” or some similar simplistic response. We have noticed that “cognitive enhancement” tends to anger the Customs agents).

Editor’s note:

The buying of smart drugs for friends and relatives is problematic. Because federal authorities could construe the passing of drugs from one person to another to be an economic transaction taking place within US borders (believe it or not, there is legal precedent for this interpretation), they could accuse you of violating Food Drug and Cosmetic Act regulations. In other words, if you are not buying the drugs for your personal use but are buying them for another person, the act of handing them to the other person might legally be considered to be the “selling” of an unapproved drug. Bottom line: be careful! There are several strategies you can employ to minimize your risks. First, don’t offer to buy drugs for somebody you don’t know well (keep it to close friends and family members). Second, always accept the money for the purchase in advance. That way you can assert that you were only acting as their agent, and money does not change hands with the delivery of the drugs. Third, do not accept money from that person for anything but the drugs themselves. If you accept money for gas, parking, automotive wear-and-tear, hotel accommodations, etc. you could be considered to be engaging in a profit-making enterprise, even if you don’t make a profit. If you cover all of the ancillary expenses, it would be hard for a prosecutor to convince a jury that you were doing it for reasons of avarice. Fourth, if possible, establish a good reason why the other person can’t go to get the drugs personally. No prosecutor in their right mind would try to prosecute you for buying drugs for your “sick grandmother“ or “father with Alzheimer’s disease.” Remember, the FDA has openly permitted AIDS activists to buy and import drugs for their sick friends for the last ten years.