2017-11-07          Today is Melbourne Cup day!

At 3pm Melbourne time this afternoon, the whole of Australia and people in many other parts of the world will stop for several minutes to follow one of the world's great horse races: the AUD$6 million Melbourne Cup.

This year 25% of the jockeys are Hong Kong-based, including Joao Moreira and Zac Purton. Hong Kong punters will be cheering the jockeys more than the horses!

On this day in Australia every group of people, in offices, schools and factories, participate in a "sweep"... not with a broom, but by taking part in a competition which allocates the names of horses in the cup, hoping to obtain the winner or other place-getters.

The cup is shown live on Hong Kong TV. Today at noon Hong Kong time, if you try to contact the Australian Consulate-General or other Australian centers, you might have a little bit of trouble finding people!