With apologies to anthropologist Margaret Mead and as a reassurance to the last remaining primitive cultures on the planet (rainforest people, you are not alone), but really just for fun, we bring you glimpses of a unique manifestation of Euro-cultural rituals and body adornment in the twenty-first century.





Chantilly, France may be better known for Crème Chantilly, a rich, creamy confection invented in the mid-seventeenth century by the chef at the chateau. In the twenty-first century, Chantilly's annual horse races for the Prix de Diane bring out richness of another sort. The Prix is for three-year-old fillies, and there's a race with all-female jockeys. According to French logic, that means "bring on feminine elegance."
Translation: Hats and horses.



Of course, there's this...





...and this.







Otherwise, it's pretty much like this:



and this...




...and all of these...










...and still more.







Meanwhile, there's a race going on.


PHOTO CREDIT = Wikipedia Commons





Cooling down after--Even stable hands are suited up...




...as well as the uniformed staff.







Escorting the winners.


This is the escort for all the winners returning to the circle.The side saddle is likely reminiscent of the 1834 origins of the event.





Libations are as prevalent as horses.







And what would Margaret Mead have concluded?

Have hat. Will travel?
In so far as we know, she never attended a horse race (but we could be wrong. We believe she would have loved it). What is more, you don't have to go to Chantilly either to show off your body adornments. Hats are welcome at races all over the world, among them: the Royal Ascot and other races in the UK, the Dubai World Cup, the Melbourne Cup in Australia, and Kentucky Derby, Preakness, Belmont, Del Mar and Saratoga Springs races in the United States.



– as published in Romar Traveler online magazine


 
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