Melbourne, Australia, Australia

Today was my first experience with Formula 1 Grand Prix. It started out with a very early rise to catch the tram over to Albert Park for gates opening at 8am. Lisa had ordered the tickets for us and we have GP Advantage tickets which meant we were able to go in earlier than everyone else and have breakfast and take a walk down the pit lane. It was very cool to see the different teams putting the cars together for the first practice session, which will be tomorrow at noon.

Since I know nothing about F1 at all, it was a real learning experience. I bought a program for $15 which I was hoping to get autographed, so I’ll have to read up on the drivers to know what’s going on. We got in line for the autograph session at 12pm hoping that we would time it right to get up to the table for the Red Bull team (Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber) or the Vodafone McLaren team (Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button). We stood in line for two full hours, in the rain, and saw all of the autograph-worthy drivers come and go. We were about twenty people from the front of the queue when Lewis Hamilton walked off the stage. I was not happy!

So now soaking wet and autographless, we went to grab a bite to eat. Of course, being at a sporting even, everything was outrageously expensive, so I spent $14 on a burger and chips. There wasn’t much else on at the track today, so we walked around looking at some classic cars for a while and had a couple drinks in the Qantas Hub with David, a guy we met in the autograph queue.

We headed back into town after the drinks. There wasn’t much more happening that night and I’m sure we will get our fill of racing in the next few days. Plus, I’m exhausted after having to get up so early. I’m just not used to that anymore!