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| It was so fun to see all of the horses! Some of the handlers would even let you pet them. |
Sean and I were not super organized about booking our trip to Australia. We just figured out how long we could afford to be there, glanced at the calendar to see when my sister was flying into New Zealand and checked to see if we could be in the north for the solar eclipse. When we arrived in Melbourne we quickly realized why some hostels had been completely booked and unusually expensive - we were going to be in the city for one of the biggest events in Australia - a horse race called the Melbourne Cup.
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| There's the Cup! |
The Melbourne Cup is a very, very big deal in Australia (and also in New Zealand). In Oz it is a public holiday and everything shuts down completely. It is known as "The race that stops a nation" which is pretty apt because everything came to a standstill in the city. On the actual race day there was a parade full of horses that were past winners, jockeys and stable owners. The city showed a live broadcast of the race on a giant TV in the center plaza and bars and restaurants all over hosted extravagant parties.
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| I love the mini stuffed horses underfoot of the drummers |
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| Cool fascinators! |
More interesting to watch, however, were the spectators who were dressed in amazing race-day finery. Australians love to go to the races because it's a chance to get dressed up and party outdoors. Being on the subway before the race started was quite entertaining as we got to watch thousands of people in dramatic, crazy and elaborate costumes all push and shove to get on the next train. One of the biggest issues for women is what kind of hat or fascinator to wear. There's even a separate competition for best dressed called "Myers Fashion on the Field." It's safe to say that most women in attendance spend at least hundreds and usually thousands on their outfits. Whoa.
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| Best dressed winners (Google images) |
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| Melbourne Cup aftermath (Google images) |
Since there was absolutely no way that Sean and I could go to the races (though I really wanted to), we watched the race from the TV in the airport. Our flight to Sydney left right after the race ended. In hindsight it makes sense why that particular flight was crazy cheap compared to all the others. Nobody in their right mind would leave the city of Melbourne on Cup Day. Oops.
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