We knew the traffic downtown for the 16 de Septiembre eve Grito celebration would be horrendous, and so we decided to take the metro train.  The ride from the Periferico took about twenty minutes, and the trains were very crowded.  Indeed, traffic was nearly stopped when we exited the underground station, and after the celebrations, it was even worse.

But overall, the atmosphere for the Mexico Independence was one of celebration.  People were smiling and cheering and using their noise makers when their voices turned hoarse.  Many dressed in the Mexico colors of green, white and red, and some even donned fake beards and mustaches and had face paintings.  Mexico flags were everywhere.

September 16th is Mexico's Independence Day, but the big celebration takes place the previous night.  Here in Guadalajara the governor of Jalisco stepped out onto his palace balcony at 11 pm and began the "Grito".  Here are photos of a few of the festivities, and there is a link to a video of the entire Grito.

Security was very tight.  At first we couldn't even figure out how to enter the celebration area for the Grito.  There were two different check points at each of the entryways through which everyone had to enter.  In the first, packages were searched, and at the second, every single person was frisked.  No fancy metal detectors here.  There were also snipers and spotters on all the roofs, as well as riot geared officers scattered through

The Grito itself began at 11:00 pm, followed by the ringing of the bell and then fireworks.  When we attended an Independence Day Grito the previous Sunday at our new church, the bell was rung first, and then the Grito cheer.

The 16 de Septiembre Independence Day fireworks after the Grito started off slowly.  When all we could see were a few pinwheels in the plaza, we were a bit disappointed.  But soon the sky was lit by many colorful displays, and it lasted longer than we expected.  We were very pleased.  This display rivaled any Dave had seen back in California for July 4th, though Andrew had seen bigger for New Zealand holidays.