Melbourne Cup Day

Tuesday 1st November

Breakfast at Lucky Luke’s near Southern Cross Station,  cheese and ham toastie and coffee $6.50. Realise that it’s Melbourne Cup day and a public holiday in Victoria. If I had realised earlier I would have looked into going along. Everyone is off to the races, the men wearing suits and ties, the women wearing what I assume to be fashionable dresses, mostly in bright colours  and hats, some of which look either exuberant or silly depending on your point of view.  Many of the younger women dressed as if they were heading to a warm and sultry nightclub rather than a race track despite the weather being distinctly chilly. 

But even more surreal was the sight of a large group of almost naked young men, wearing only underpants and socks queuing and later sitting at a “pop-up” store, “Boldly Arrive”, on the station forecourt. I asked someone what it was about and he told me that some of the men had been queuing since 6 am since if they turned up in their "Jocks" the first twenty of them could get a complete outfit to go to the races for free. Still, considering the temperature, I admire their fortitude.

Braving the cold to get Suited Up

Walked down Flinders Street and along some of the river to Flinders Street Station and Federation Square. All as I remember it from ten years ago but better weather, cool, cloudy with occasional breaks of sunshine as distinct from wet and windy.

Downtown Melbourne and the Yarra River

Federation Square

Flinders Street Station 

Train Indicators at Flinders Street Station 

Had a coffee and Danish in the cafe of the film centre in Federation Square before finding a free deck chair and sitting down to watch the Melbourne Cup on the big screen. The whole race was over and done in just a few minutes so it does seem quite amazing that it is the focus of a whole day and probably much more if you include the time the women spend on their  outfits.

Watching the Melbourne cup at Federation Square

After wandering around more of the Federation Square area and the nearby riverfront, took the free City Circle Tram, back along Flinders Street and round part of the Docklands area before returning to Spencer Street.  

Unusual Business

City Circle Tram

One of the More Colourful Buildings in Docklands

Bicycles riding up the Wall on the site of
Melbourne's First Public Power Station

Coming back towards Southern Cross station I could see returning race goers, many of the women having given up on their fashionable high heels and walking bare foot on what I imagine were cold pavements.  Are young Aussies particularly hardy souls?

Looking on the internet for somewhere for dinner saw that the 1903 restaurant attached to the Great Southern Hotel got quite good reviews so ate there. Not haute cuisine but very filling and quite reasonable at $27.50 for a chicken schnitzel and beer.