What NOVA event have you attended: Battle of Bull Run, Pres Washington's Birthday, Cinco de Mayo?

[VATechMURP]

Originally Posted by Caladium

Hey, I'm up for starting something like this. Let's do it! All we have to do is come up with the drink.

July 21 tends to be a hot time of year, so something light like the tea drink sounds good to me. Or maybe a drink with the word "bull" in it, so you can take bull shots to celebrate? Is there any liquor with the word bull in it? We also need something "Bull Run" ish to do or say when we take out bull shots. Was there a catchy saying connected to the event?

Do you realize what you guys have opened up? Since Stonewall Jackson was a tea-toatler, you could have a sweet Stonewall Tea, but then the vodka drink would be Bee Tea since Bernard Bee was from South Carolina. There's Running Bull, which could be made out of Red Bull and Virginia Gentleman whisky, because VG used to be based in Reston. Red Bull is a frequent sponsor of events. You'd have to have a mint julep because of its great cooling effect. There's already a General Sherman Making Light: Mixed drinks

You could watch what historians, etc. were coming up of for the commemeration and our event off it off by inviting them to speak that night. Buy them off with dinner and a drink that night. Speakers love to cool their heels around admirers.

[brooklynborndad]

BTW, cinco de Mayo IS about virginia - specifically about civil war Virginia.

While the victory at Puebla happened in 1862, while US forces were still busy at Manassas (in Prince William County) the eventual defeat of Maximillian in 1867 was influenced, according to most historians (IIUC) by pressure from the victorious United States, and its support of Juarez. There is a more or less straight line from Appomattox to Santiago de Queretaro.

As an aside, There was an attempt to found a colony of Ex-confeds New Virginia Colony - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia supported by Maximillian. Commodore Maury (after whom a school in Alexandria is named) was a personal friend of Maximillian.

The fall of Maximillian, and the reestablishment of Mexico as a Republic, was followed by the dissolution of the New Virginia Colony.

[VATechMURP]

It's interesting how so many of the major participants in the Civil War were on the same side in the War with Mexico. One interesting story is how NOVA native Robert E. Lee gave us Los Angeles. While not much of a city at the time, the Mexican government falsified a map during treaty negotiations to keep the area with them. Lee went to the library in Mexico City and discovered that a large chunk of land was going to be given to Mexico due to the misrepresentation. This discovery gave us Los Angeles.