Cinco de Mayo Party Essentials
Tomorrow is Cinco de Mayo! Even though the holiday is only celebrated in a few towns in Mexico, Americans like to celebrate the day to honor Mexican culture — much like we use St. Patrick’s Day to celebrate Irish culture. If you’ve never celebrated Cinco de Mayo it can be a raucous affair. To do it right, there are a few things you should include in your celebration. Here are 5 Cinco de Mayo party essentials to make your party spectacular.
Piñatas The piñata is a favorite Mexican party tradition. It’s a papier-mâiché animal or shape filled with candy and covered in brightly colored crepe paper. The concept is a mesh between western European and Aztec and Mayan traditions that evolved into a religious symbol. Now, it’s mostly used as a game for kids in which a batter is blindfolded and tries to hit the piñata with a stick or bat until it explodes to spill out candy for the kids.
Sombreros The word “sombrero” means “hat” in Spanish, but a Mexican sombrero is unique in that it has a wide brim. It was originally used to shield people from the bright, hot desert sun. Now it’s worn mostly during cultural celebrations and it has been adopted as part of the uniform of mariachi musicians.
Mariachi Music Horns, violins, guitars, and maracas make up the sweet sounds you know as mariachi music. It’s folk music the combines the instruments of the indigenous people of Mexico with the European instruments brought over by the Spanish. It was originally considered rural folk music, but musicians eventually moved to more urban areas where the sound evolved into the music we here at restaurants and plazas now.
Margaritas (or tequila) The margarita is the preferred beverage of Cinco de Mayo, but its roots are as mixed up as the drink itself. A Tijauna restaurant owner claims he mixed up the drink for an actress who was allergic to all alcoholic beverages except tequila — which she didn’t like. The other origin story is that a Texas socialite came up with the mix as a signature cocktail for her Acapulco vacation home. Either way, the Margarita was born in Mexico and it’s used to celebrate Cinco de Mayo every year.
Tacos The Taco is a truly Mexican fare. According to historian Jeffrey M. Pilcher, the taco probably originated among Mexican miners in the 1700s. “Tacos” were little pieces of paper wrapped around gunpowder to stick in rocks to excavate iron ore. Pilcher believes this was the model for the modern taco.
Of course you don’t have to have all of these things to make your Cinco de Mayo party a blast, but they sure do help make things festive!
We love holidays here at LTD Commodities! Whether you’re planning a big Cinco de Mayo bash or you’re getting your barbecue set up for a Memorial Day cookout, let LTD Commodities help you make your party memorable with unique products at unbeatable prices.
