The Royal Enclosure at Ascot

Walking into Ascot via 'The Royal Enclosure' entrance you immediately get a feeling that you're in a place where you better mind your P and Q's... as well as your ABC's.

While fake tans seem to get in wherever you go (there is no way of escaping that slightly off yellow/orange glow), it's definitely not a place you'd be allowed to wear a short skirt, strapless top, fascinator and thongs while sipping on a cold stubbie of beer. The posh birds would almost faint in horror if they succumbed to such a horrid sight. Oh dear!

When we received our tickets in the mail, it was accompanied by a booklet carefully explaining a strict dress code. Now for those of you who know me well you'd have thought I'd just ignore the damn rules and do what I liked or possibly not bother with it at all. However, how can you pass up an experience in the posh part of Ascot with an opportunity to see a Royal or two?

So what were the dress standards? For women there's a full page of criteria including things such as no straps less than one inch in width, no fascinators and hats have to be at least 10 centimeters in diameter. For men it's easy, tails and a top hat.

Enjoying the view from The Royal Enclosure

And what was the fashion like on the day? 

I have to admit it was nice to see everyone really dressed up. For men, grey top hats appeared to be a trend (although it could be like that year on year). 

The Top Hats out on display!

For women the day really was all about the hat. The more creative, big, fluffy, twirly, stripy, spotty it was the better. The dresses were a mix. I don't think wearing a fluoro orange and green dress is particularly flattering by the way.   

I did hear stories on the news that a celebrity got escorted out for having too short a skirt but then on the same news page an Australian was photographed in the same area wearing the same length skirt and she was allowed in.  As for hats, well I definitely saw a few that would not have been anywhere near the minimum 10 centimeters in width, so I don't think the dress standards were strictly adhered to or policed by the local fashion police (yes that is a job at Ascot). 

One of the rather big hats ... inside the Royal Enclosure

The Royal Enclosure itself is a lot larger than we expected. Spread around the parade ring and an area trackside, it leads up 4 floors to various restaurants, bars, cafes and of course betting areas.

We had already investigated restaurants online and with some offering lunches at just £800 per person (yes a bargain I know!), we decided to opt for a cheaper version.

Our delight of the day was a good bottle of bubbles.

The Royal Procession, a tradition that started back in the 1820's, was the official start of the race day. The Queen and the Royal party paraded along the track in front of the crowds in horse drawn carriages.  So yes we got to see the Queen, just a bit further away than what we had expected. 

Bet's are always placed on what colour the Queen wears each day. And if you're interested she was in a lovely shade of pale blue on Saturday. 

The Royal Processions... yes that's the Queen way down there!

After enjoying our bubbles, watching a few races and having a few bets (and yes we did have a bit of a win), we lined up with the thousands of others shuffling (some stumbling) down to the train station for the long ride back to London. 

A fun and successful day out to add to my Blighty experiences!

Bye for now.

One night in London

Sitting here on a Sunday afternoon, it's time to relax. 

I've had my daily coffee fix courtesy of my favourite local cafe in Kingston and I've finished decorating the Donna Hay lemon cupcakes I made last night. 

I've vibered Mum and Dad and caught up on the local gossip and skyped one of my brothers. The wonders of modern technology to stay in touch with family on the other side of the world!

My husband is in the bedroom finally putting up the Laura Ashley blinds we bought a couple of months ago. He had tried to tell me the electric drill had gone missing and so he wasn't able to do it, however after raising my eyebrows and giving him the 'I so don't believe you' look he conceded defeat and suddenly found it. Funny about that. 

Looking out the window our plants are blooming and all that is missing is some beautiful blue skies and sunshine. Oh well perhaps another day. 

So I'm pondering the week ahead and psyching myself up for what will be a very busy day tomorrow. I'm excited though because it will be a short week for us as my husband and I are taking Thursday and Friday off. It's been a trying few weeks with a close relative in hospital so time to take some R&R.

On Wednesday night we have my cousin from Australia over with his French girlfriend. While my husband is excited he gets to practice his French, I'm researching places to go in central London, a good Blighty old school pub perhaps and then somewhere nice along the Thames for dinner.

So where do you go if you only have one night in London?

A boat ride along the Thames?
Ride on the London eye?
Theatre perhaps?
Jack the Ripper walk....

Mmmmm so many options

Where and what would you do if you only had one night in London? I would love to hear your tips and suggestions.

Trying to avoid sniffing armpits and other peak hour adventures

You can't have truly experienced a life in London unless you've travelled peak hour on the train.

A very empty Kingston Station at 7.55am!

The 7.55am from Kingston to Clapham Junction is the relatively painless part. We're one of the first stops, so it's easy to get a seat. By the time it gets past Wimbledon the carriages are full, and when I get to my stop, Clapham Junction I find myself almost doing acrobatics as I navigate my way between passengers, dogs, kids, bikes and bags to get out the door. 

It's then a mad dash from platform 11 to platform 1 but thankfully I wear my comfortable flatties. The connection isn't an easy one, not just the distance you have to close in a short period of time, but avoiding people meandering while reading their phones and trying not to miss the only connection every 15 minutes to Shepherds Bush.

Guessing where the doors will stop is the name of the game on platform 1 as that gets you first through the door and onto a seat. Of course if you don't, then you shuffle on with all the other sheep on the train, find a spot to hang on and try and immerse yourself in either a book, music or the latest news on twitter. Anything to avoid the overwhelming sense of claustrophobia.

So while the trip into work can be a little challenging, it's the trip home on a warm summers day that I really dread. No it's not the fact that sometimes the platform is so crowed at Shepherds Bush that I just stand back and wait for the next train; it's just not worth the stress.  The fact is, it's just not very pleasant when hundreds of people are squeezed together in a small train carriage and all you can smell are body odours as armpits glare down at you (yes I'm short so can't escape them). I always carry a scarf with me to bury my nose in and thankfully it has the remnants of my perfume to tide me over before I can escape into the fresh air.

It is no wonder that by the time I arrive back to the place I started that morning, it's almost a sigh of utter relief that the travel for today is over and I can disappear back home, throw my bag down, kick off the shoes, rip the work clothes off and change into some comfy trackies and then plonk myself down on the couch for a few brief but welcomed breathes in utter peace.

Serenity now....

ps.. if anyone reads my posts feel free to share your train experiences!

The state of UK hospitals

I can't say visiting a hospital is the top of my list of things to do whilst in Blighty, however it's somewhere I've spent quite a lot of time at over the last few weeks. 

Now that it's a friday and I've had my glass of wine, it's time for me to write this post and vent. 

So let me share with you the state of the UK public health system and in particular Charing Cross Hospital.

I have to admit Australia probably has some bad hospitals and examples of health service, however what I've seen here chills me to the bone.

Firstly, I have to thank the 'good' nurses and doctors, as there are some. They're the ones that show compassion and respect. They take time to provide the care you'd expect in such a place. They answer your questions when you need an explanation, they don't talk down at you or use big words to show their superiority. They were born to do what they do.

However they're not all like that. We've witnessed first hand nurses yelling at patients and grabbing them in anger. They don't care that these people are alone in there, recovering from an illness, in pain, confused and angry.

We've seen the dirt and rubbish strewn amongst the hospital hallways and in the wards. Whenever it was last cleaned, whenever there was some pride in a workplace it was lost and gone a long long time ago. 

You almost need to sterilize yourself after being in there.

We've seen the lack of food provided that is meant to support the recovery of the patient. Some don't even receive anything and unfortunately if they don't have family there checking on them they hardly ever get fed. Budget cuts have meant they only get a sandwich for tea and a cup of soup. It doesn't matter if you have dietary concerns, you get what you're given. If you have trouble swallowing due to illness, to bad.

We've seen patients not get bathed for over 3 weeks. When you're that sick surely it's the small things that matter and can make a person feel like the days a bit brighter.

To say then that patients lie in their own waste for hours, have catheters fixed to them for weeks with no change should not be a surprise. Once again it's up to the family to fight for them and ask and ask again for the most basic of care.

How does a patient that goes into hospital for a basic simple operation end up staying in for weeks .... the state of the public health system.

You continually fight for answers. You continually fight for a patient to get basic care. 

The sad thing is the demand for this health system is growing and the budget is reducing. 

Unless this country has some balls to make real change, it will just get worse.

If I ever need to go to hospital, I'd rather get operated on out in the back paddock amongst green grass, trees and blue skies with a pair of old shearing clippers and a needle and thread - much less likely to catch something there!