Highlights of 2013 - Part 2 - Henley Royal Regatta

Henley Royal Regatta - the perfect excuse to get dressed up and spend the day drinking Pimms in the sunshine.

It was the hottest day of the year so far, and we started off on the river banks with a few bottles of fizz. The banks were packed with people cooling off and dipping their legs into the water. With little space or shade out there, we were pretty pleased that we were lucky enough to have badges for Stewards enclosure this year, all thanks to my lovely friend Sarah who organised them for us. This meant we had access to the stands to watch the rowing, and also to the large array of champagne, Pimms and seafood bars. So once we'd had been checked that we were all appropriately covered up in the right places, we headed in and hit the champagne bar.

It really was so hot, once we had a cool glass in hand, I don't think any of us even thought about rowing for the next hour at least!

Once cooled off, we made our way over to the stands to watch some rowing. I can't really claim to know much about rowing, but it was still exciting none the less, and who doesn't enjoy cheering on very fit men in lyrca?

Oh hi beaut!

Oh, and another!

Oh and a few more. Aren't my friends looking dapper?

Phew, that was hot work - time for another Pimms or tw. At this point our group of 12 had become a three, so we hedged our bets and headed to the Mahiki tent to find our pals. It wasn't long before we found them sipping on their Pina Coladas and settled down with the rest of the tent to watch Andy Murray win the title at Wimbledon.

And what better way to end such a good day? A party in the car on the way home. (I do have videos, but I've decided to be kind and keep these to myself - I'm not sure I'd be forgiven for sharing!)

And one final drink at our local. I think I might get this dressed up for a trip to the pub more often! :)

Henley Royal Regatta is on from the 2nd - 6th July 2014. Tickets to Stewards were great fun, but not essential if you can't get them - just plan to get there early so you can get a good spot on the river bank and set up camp. More info here.