Race Day

Going to the races was fun. We got dressed up, drank a bit too much champagne, and generally enjoyed the spectacle. The ladies in particular got very dressed up, and I saw lots of fancy frocks. Women also wear little frothy, feathery things in their hair, called fascinators. These are carefully selected to match the dress, but the most frightening part is that there were women who were wearing more on their heads than they were on their bodies! (Ok, slight exaggeration, but only slight - ladies here like very short dresses.) I was hoping to find a bit of the history behind the fashion, but all I got from Wikipedia was this.

The interesting thing to me was the number of bachelorette (hen) and bachelor parties there were at the races yesterday. Perhaps the brides and grooms to be are considered particularly lucky? Regardless, the crazy tiaras and veils that the brides-to-be often are made to wear didn't stand out nearly as much as they normally do.

Probably the funniest thing was stopping by the Royal (my local pub in Randwick) later that evening, and seeing the groups that had migrated there to continue drinking after the races. By nine pm, most of the fascinators had been transfered to the guys' heads, who were drunk enough not to mind.

Anyway, the focus of the day was clearly on the human spectacle, and not so much on the horses. This disappointed several of the women I was with, who have had good success in the past betting on the prettiest horses. Instead, most of us went with the horse's name for our picks, regardless of the odds. Which is why you see such a stash of unsuccessful bid slips in that cup. Anyway, hats (or rather fascinators) off to Casey, who tackeld the challenge of trying to teach us all how to bet. He's a very brave man.





After the races, we all walked back to Randwick Junction and devoured some Thai food. Overall, a very good Saturday. It's now Sunday, as I post this, and I'm going to get my butt out of school, where I came to use the internet, and off to the beach. Hugs to you all!