Royal Ascot Races - June 2016

As some may know, I have returned to the lively city that is my second home - London.

Even before I had arranged to come back on my second visa (thankyou British grandparents!) my London friends were sending me links and invitations to some great events happening in the UK this Summer.

The main event we booked was the Grand Finale Day of the Royal Ascot Races on June 18th.

We secured tickets through the tour company Fanatics which got us tickets into the Windsor Enclosure, travel to and from the race track and a bottle of bubbly to share on the way!

We had a group of 6 girls and as we had departed so early for the racetrack we arrived early enough to secure a table under a marquee. Unfortunately, the weather was a bit hit and miss, but at least it didn't rain!

Me, Tanita, Cara, Georgina, Becca and Hanna.

We got to see a couple of familiar faces, one right in our marquee and the other trotting past us in a fancy carriage.

Her Maj racing down the track

A Bride-to-Be brought this handsome devil along

While we may have been more concerned with the drinking, eating and men in suits, we did manage to put a few bets on. Cara, with help from Uncle George up in Scotland, was in charge of placing our collective bets -  GBP2 each way.

We did pretty well, coming in with 40 quid on the 3rd race - enough to get us a jug of Pimms and secure our next bet. The last 2 races had no return, but we had our Pimms so we were pretty pleased.

We finished the day off returning to London with a sing along on the bus.

The Details

Royal Ascot Races

Started in 1611 by Queen Anne, the Royal Ascot Races run over 5 days and are a major event on the British social calendar.

Ticket prices start from £27, depending on the day and enclosure you choose.

This year we paid around £60pp for our ticket through Fanatics.

Cambridge

My London home is filled with many people (high teens we're talking about here) so there is always something and someone to do stuff with. 

Mid January saw a bunch of us head to Kings Cross for a train journey to Cambridge. 

One of the main attractions of the university town (besides the university) is punting on the River Cam. Punting is just a fancy word for some bloke pushing you up and down the river in a boat - like the gondolas in Venice. 

our boat driver and some housemates

Pro tip for punting: do NOT bring sandwiches on board. The ducks on the river are vicious and will try and eat out of your hand!

invasion of ducks

Many of the colleges of Cambridge back up on to the River Cam and have wonderful rich histories (they've been around long enough - 1209). 

And a few famous students, including Stephen Hawking and Alan Turing as well as comedians like John Cleese, Simon Bird and Stephen Fry. 

King's College Chapel

Cambridge is a lovely medieval town with amazing architecture and something for everyone, from markets to pubs. 







*Punting for 10 people cost us £10 per person.