Melbourne Cup

Cal, Caroline and me on Melbourne Cup day!

It's the race that stops the nation! Melbourne Cup is the biggest horse race in Australia, and practically a national holiday since nearly everything stops for the afternoon to watch the glorified race.
Let me start by saying that when I first arrived here in Australia, I thought the Melbourne Cup was another name for the AFL Rugby Final (my coworkers got a good laugh outta that one. It's like mixing up Mardi Gras and the Superbowl.)
As is tradition, we closed up shop here at BU at 12:30 and headed to this fancy-schmancy Spanish tapas, Postales, right in the heart of the CBD. The ladies typically wear fancy hats made by milliners, or fascinators (like a fancy headband). Here is a photo from last year's Melbourne Cup of the models outside our venue at Martin Place. 

Mr. Best Dressed

Melbourne Cup is always the first Tuesday of November, which happened to be Nov 1st this year and the day after Halloween. We all stopped at the TAB betting shops to place our bets on which horse we thought would win. Cal set up a sweeps for our staff to take part in (when you place a $2 bet and randomly draw a horse), and I placed a $5 bet (first one!) on horse named Americain. 
Melbourne Cup, I realized, is not so much about the race but about all the event surrounding the race: fancy hats, fancy 3-course lunches, betting on a horse, winning prizes, fun venues and a general excuse just to drink. At our fancy schmancy venue, there were models showing off fancy hats, gift bags with oodles of certificates and coupons to fancy places I could never afford, and lots and lots of champagne!

The closest race in its history!

Cal won "Best Dressed Male" third year in a row and subsequently, a magnum of Veuve-Clicquot champagne. 
The race started at 3pm, and was so exciting! I don't think I've ever properly watched a horse race, but when you've actually got a bet on a horse to win, then it's so much more exciting! 
The thumping of the horses' hooves gets your heartbeat racing, and the excitement builds as the horses charge for the finish line and all bets are off. This year, a French horse Dunaden came out of nowhere to win the race. They say it was the closest race in the Cup's 150 year history, with Dunaden coming in by less than a hair. It took officials three or four agonizing minutes to decide who won the race!