I want to wish all of our Spanish friends (hokiemas, gern, etc.) a safe and enjoyable

[hokiemas]

But do the Mexico Mexicans celebrate it? We U.S. Americans are happy to celebrate anything

I'm in Cuernavaca. This is my fifth year here. They have another word for Cinco de Mayo here... Saturday. Govt. workers and schools get the day off, but I work in a school and since it's on Saturday, I get no day off. There will be no parades here, no going out and getting hammered. I remember my first year here, I went home all excited after work and asked my father-in-law "what are we going to do". He said, "eat". I said, "no, what what are we going to do for the big day". He said, "what are you talking about?"I said, "it's cinco de mayo." He said, "that's right, it's May 5th, so?" My smart arse little brother-in-law chimed in since he was studying Mexican history in school and said, "He's talking about the battle of Puebla". My father-in-law said, "If you want to celebrate it, go to Puebla" (about 3 hours to the east of here). So in short, it's a reason to drink Mexican beer in the states. That's about it. Sorry to disappoint everyone.

Cinco de Mayo commemorates a victory over the French, and as anyone will tell you, that's not that big of a deal. If Mexicans celebrated 5 de mayo, it would be like us rushing the field after beating Western Kentucky. Who cares?

Real Mexican independence day though is a blast. They sell big sombreros, fake revolutionary mustaches, fake bullet belts to strap across your chest, red, green, and white everything. It's pretty sweet.