It was a great parade, but the best was the beginning. As the military vanguard with the Mexican Flag marched forward, the vendors were trapped as the chairs were three deep and the crowd behind formed another wall.

Spent the last three hours watching the Cinco de Mayo Parade. The parade begins with the Mexican Army, Navy, Special Forces, a troop dressed as Revolutionaries. They paraded tanks and Humvees, armored personnel vehicles, rescue vehicles (most said "Dodge Ram" on the side), school bands, military cadets, and high schools with their teachers sweated it out in the vanguard.

Primary schools, younger kids in the band followed suffering and stoical teachers, leading by example. Floats, both Mexican and foreign congratulated Puebla. France was represented and so was Cuba. The unlikely and sole representative of the U.S. was a group from a Wisconsin school.

When I got up, the parade route, Blvd. Cinco de Mayo, the street in front of my Hotel City Express, had magically overnight sprouted walls of metal folding chairs. Blvd. Cinco de Mayo looked like an aqueduct ready for a stream of people.

Vendors were setting up taco stands; straw hats and bright colored umbrellas took over the sidewalk. Vendors sold cotton candy, watermelons, mangos, tacos Arabes, confetti, belts, jicama, aguas (Mexican fruit punch) in a dozen flavors, custard, paper hats for the unprepared, (I bought one, didn't want sunburned ears), French fries, chips, fried pork skins, folding chairs, folding stools, popsicles, snow cones, slushes, lucky charm bracelets, Jello, fresh squeezed orange juice, chalupas, Polaroid pictures, soft drinks, bottled water (I brought my own), carrots, peeled in plastic bags, unshelled peanuts, balloons, sunglasses and more.

Cars had disappeared from the Parade Route. Taxis fled out of a fear of being trapped in the crowd.

Street sweepers, who are up each morning, were steadfast in their job knowing that it would be even harder tomorrow.

The chair lined Blvd. Cinco de Mayo fenced us in and fenced us out. A mini-sized Coke truck could not pass as only pedestrians could wind their way across the Blvd. and the chairs tightened their grip at the intersection.

I paid the fifty pesos (US$4.50) for a front seat and sat next to a family of four, grandparents and their 2 grandchildren.

It was a great parade, but the best was the beginning. As the military vanguard with the Mexican Flag marched forward, the vendors were trapped as the chairs were three deep and the crowd behind formed another wall.

The vendors got to act the part of the French, in panic wheeling their hats, and cotton candy, and watermelon and ...and.... they scampered ahead of the troops reenacting the terror of the French fleeing Mexican troops on Cinco de Mayo.

Dick Davis travels frequently. He has taught in both Mexico and Spain and is happy to share his experiences. A resolute companion in his Mexican travels is his Grand Marquis. He can be contacted at:  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it  . 

This story is from my Forty Days in Mexico.
The previous story in the series is Puebla.
The next story in the series is Some interesting Mexicans are Canadian.