Cinco De Mayo Celebration

It is a common misconception that Cinco de Mayo is Mexican Independence Day. Many of us who do not have Mexican roots tend to misunderstand as the commercialism in the US screws our sense of the holiday. Cinco de Mayo is a celebration of 4000 Mexican soldiers winning against the French army that was trying to invade Mexico City on May 5th 1862. The battle was actually in Puebla and is known as the Battle of Puebla in Mexico. In the last fifteen years Cinco de Mayo has become an important part of the US as well as Mexico and is now considered one of the bigger holidays to celebrate.

If you are looking for a little fun, come May 5th we have some great party ideas for you. Cinco de Mayo is about saving Mexico so it is generally celebrated with spring flowers, green, white, and red colors, and plenty of Fiestas. For a small family celebration of Cinco de Mayo you may have some Mexican folk music, salsa or mariachi music and of course plenty of food. There are many traditional recipes you can discover for Cinco de Mayo.

The day usually begins with a Parade before the Fiestas begin. Depending on where you live and whether the city allows for it the parade can be a huge celebration followed by many traditions. In the parade there are generally floats and traditional costumes for the day. In some cases there may even be a re-enactment of the battle.

These Cinco de Mayo celebrations usually include stories from the past. These stories are not always related to Cinco de Mayo, but the culture as a whole. The traditional songs of Mexico help you to learn what their culture is about while also having a lot of fun. The Mexican hat dance, Pinatas, and dancing to the traditional music has long been a part of the Cinco de Mayo celebration. The day is often filled with colorful artwork with designs from history. Flowers, Aztec, Mayan and other symbols are generally apart of the celebration to help make the day's celebration enjoyable for all.