Mexicali

Mexicali (Spanish: [mexiˈkali]) is the capital and second-largest city, after Tijuana, of the state of Baja California, Mexico, with a population of 689,775 as of the 2010 census. The city's name is a made-up word of México and California (compare Calexico). It is located in the northern part of the state, on the border with the U.S. state of California not far from the city of San Diego. The city is the administrative seat of the Municipio Mexicali and the seat of the Diocese of Mexicali.

Description

The city lives mainly from the processing of cotton grown in the surrounding area. Other job opportunities are offered by numerous US and international companies, e.g. Kenworth trucks, Sony, Pepsi Cola Company (with Frito-Lay/Sabritas; production of potato chips and other snacks), which have settled in Mexicali. Advantages for these companies are cheap Mexican labor and close proximity to the U.S. border and thus the San Diego metropolitan area. The distances to San Francisco and Los Angeles are also not great.

Similar to the Mexican city of Tijuana, Mexicali is a stepping stone for many Mexicans who want to enter the US illegally in search of the "American Dream". This is facilitated by the fact that the city is located directly on the border. Many of the immigrants fail to cross the border illegally and are stranded permanently in the city.

Mexicali has an international airport served by Aeroméxico and Volaris.

Mexicali is the sister city of Calexico on the US side, which also has a name that combines California and Mexico.

On April 4, 2010, the city was hit by a 7.2 magnitude earthquake in Baja California.

Population

Population development of the city

Population development of the metropolitan region