After a wonderful 3-day weekend celebrating Victor Applequist’s birthday at the beautiful Villa D’Este on Lake Como, I headed to London. We traveled to London for the Royal Ascot horse races, and of course the wonderful parties that accompany the event. The Royal Ascot is a famous English racecourse, located in the small town of Ascot, Berkshire, where thoroughbred horses race. As the name of the race suggests, the course is closely associated with the British royal family, being located approximately six miles from Windsor Castle (the Queen’s favorite weekend home).
The races began on Thursday, as people arrived to watch the Royal carriages bring the Queen to the races. The Royal enclosure is the most prestigious of the three enclosures at the course. The dress code is quite strict: for women, only a day dress with a hat is acceptable, with rules applying to the length and style of the dress. For men, black or grey morning dress with top hat is required.
The celebrations do not finish after the race has been won – they continue through the night! Meruert Berkalieva gave a dinner Sunday night, Michelle Herbert gave dinner Monday night at the George Club, Ella Krasner gave a dinner party Tuesday night at Harry’s Bar, and Terence and Niki Cole took over the private Annabel’s club for their annual Ascot party on Wednesday night. (This was the tenth year that the Coles hosted their Ascot party at Annabel’s.) Among the guests were Christina Juffali, Rena Sindi, Robbie and Lisa Tchenguiz, Claudia van Leer, Francine Lefrak, Ivana Trump and Andrea Dibelius.