Sponsored Listings:
| Celebrating San Antonio’s history and culture. Main Plaza. San Antonio Saga light and sound show. Photo courtesy Visit San Antonio. |
Just in time for this year’s 5 de Mayo Fiestas, Air Canada just started flying directly from Toronto to San Antonio this week. Americans celebrate 5 de Mayo almost as a national holiday. 5 de Mayo in the United States has become a traditional party day to have fun and “celebrate” all things Mexican, although I get the impression that for many this just means nachos, and tequila (or Corona, XX or Pacífico beer). I don’t really know about it today because I haven’t lived there in over 28 years, but growing up in Mexico, 5 de Mayo was not that big a deal at all. There was usually a parade in the city of Puebla, but in general the day went by just like any other. It must have been a marketer or restaurateur in the US who probably had the brilliant idea of celebrating 5 de mayo at his or her restaurant and maybe that’s how the tradition started. Others have followed since. San Antonio’s Fleming’s Steak houses are offering a $100 (that’s 100 American dollars) Margarita. I always tell my daughter that if she’s going to drink, to drink high quality spirits. This margarita qualifies, although she most definitely cannot afford it, haha.
In any case, if you are interested in getting a taste of Mexican/Spanish history and heritage, perhaps you’ll like San Antonio. It’s on my list now.
 |
| Just a few days before 5 de Mayo, The River Parade in San Antonio comes to life 7-9pm on the last Monday of Fiesta each year in April. Al Rendon courtesy Visit San Antonio |
FYI, in case you did not know,
5 de Mayo is not Mexico’s Independence Day. It is not. 5 de Mayo celebrates a battle. In said battle, Mexican armed forces defeated the invading French army on May 5th, 1862. According to the Universidad de Guadalajara, between December 1861 and January 1862, Spanish, English and French armed forces arrived in Veracruz to put pressure on the then broke Mexican government to pay back debt owing to those European countries. The Spanish and the English came to an agreement with then Secretary of Foreign Affairs Manuel Doblado. The French however were not amenable. Napoleon III still wanted to establish a “monarchy” in Mexico. Thus France waged war against Mexico and on May 5th, French troops advanced towards Puebla. Mexican General Ignacio Zaragoza was waiting with an excellent defense strategy covering the hills in the area. The French army was not able to take Puebla nor advance any further so they retreated. Ironically and unfortunately General Zaragoza died of typhus in September of that year and just about 1 year later on May 17, 1863 Puebla did fall to the French. Preparations began to install a “monarch,” Ferdinand Maximilian.
I won’t recommend a specific hotel or hotels in San Antonio because I have not visited yet, but TripAdvisor is always a good place to start. Air Canada has very good fares to San Antonio right now (I did a search for a weekend towards the end of September).
Salud!
Happy Travels and Travel Happy
Source: canadianandworldtourism.com