Royal tour: Harry and Meghan's overseas trip so far
- Published
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are finishing their first overseas tour with engagements in New Zealand - the last country they're visiting.
The royal couple's 16-day trip started in Australia, before moving on to Fiji and Tonga. They returned to Australia before flying to Wellington.
New Zealand
On the final day of their tour Meghan and Harry donned traditional Maori cloaks and exchanged "hongi" greetings with well-wishers - pressing their nose and forehead together - at a welcome ceremony in Rotorua.
Prince Harry gave a speech partially in Maori, praising the "creative, gifted and caring Te Arawa Rangatahi [young people]" who use their talents to promote the language and support mental wellbeing.
The couple then spent more than their allotted 30 minutes meeting the crowds who had gathered outside for their last walkabout.
On Monday the focus was on mental health, with a visit to a Wellington cafe.
Speaking at the beachside Maranui Cafe, where they met mental health workers, the duchess said people's sense of self-worth could become "really skewed" by social media.
Speaking to staff who work on a programme for millennials, she said: "You see photos on social media and you don't know whether she's born with it or maybe it's a filter.
"Your judgment of your sense of self-worth becomes really skewed when it's all based on likes."
They met schoolchildren outside the cafe - with Meghan later running back inside to ask that the leftover cakes be taken out for the children.
One of them, five-year-old Joe Young, found events a bit overwhelming and was comforted by the duke and duchess, with Harry tickling his stomach.
Next up was a meeting with musicians and artists - including a man dressed as an orc soldier.
They were at Courtenay Creative, which runs programmes for young people looking to get into film, and posed for pictures with actors dressed as monsters.
Earlier in the day, they had been to New Zealand's smallest national park, where they went on a trail walk and spent time on the beach - despite the rainy weather, with Harry sheltering his wife with an umbrella.
In a speech, he said "myself and my wife and our little bump" were grateful for the way conservationists "look after this beautiful place".
Meghan and Harry had landed in New Zealand on Sunday, flying in from Sydney with members of the New Zealand Invictus Games squad.
They were given a traditional Maori welcome - including a performance of the haka.
Their first engagement was at the Pukeahu National War Memorial Park, where they laid a wreath.
Meghan later gave a speech to mark the 125th anniversary of women being given the vote in New Zealand.
She said: "In the words of your suffragette Kate Sheppard, 'all that separates, whether race, class, creed, or sex, is inhuman, and must be overcome'."
Australia
Harry and Meghan travelled to Australia for the second time for the end of the Invictus Games. On Friday, they were among the crowds watching the wheelchair basketball finals on the last day of the competition.
At the closing ceremony on Saturday, the Duke of Sussex said the competitors' performances had been humbling.
"They are men and women who have confronted a challenge and overcome it," he said. "They are ordinary people doing extraordinary things."
His wife thanked the Invictus organisation for welcoming her into the family, saying she had witnessed "amazing support networks" between the 500 competitors.
Tonga
On Friday, Harry and Meghan visited Tupou College for the unveiling of The Queen's Commonwealth Canopy, an initiative that aims to conserve indigenous forests for future generations.
They first arrived in Tonga on Thursday.
School children were given the day off to welcome the couple and lined the route to Nuku'alofa, where the royals had a private audience with King Tupou VI and Queen Nanasipau'u.
Fiji
The couple's last engagement in Fiji took place at Nadi airport before their flight to Tonga. Harry unveiled a memorial to British-Fijian SAS soldier Sgt Talaiasi Labalaba, who died after single-handedly holding off 250 insurgents during an operation in Oman in 1972.
The Duchess of Sussex had to cut short a visit to a market in the capital, Suva, on Wednesday morning because of security concerns caused by large crowds. Meghan left about six minutes into a scheduled 15 minute visit to the site.
Meghan also addressed students at the University of the South Pacific - her first speech of the royal tour.
She said that for women and girls in developing countries education was "key" to economic and social development and could help them "create incredible futures".
On Tuesday, Harry and Meghan attended a ceremony where the prince tried kava, a traditional non-alcoholic drink.
Crowds cheered as he sipped the drink, which is used to treat anxiety and stress in some countries.
The couple were then met by huge crowds of people at the Grand Pacific Hotel in Suva, where they waved from a balcony.
The duke and duchess met President Jioji Konrote and First Lady Sarote Faga Konrote, who presented Meghan with a pearl necklace.
Australia
The royal couple's trip began on 16 October in Sydney, as news of Meghan's pregnancy made headlines across the globe.
Needless to say, everyone was looking out for a first glimpse of the royal baby bump.
Australia's Governor-General Sir Peter Cosgrove and his wife Lynne presented Harry and Meghan with a toy kangaroo and a little pair of Ugg boots for their baby, which is due in the spring.
The couple went barefoot on Bondi Beach, as they met surfing community group OneWave, which encourages the discussion of mental health issues.
The duke and duchess also went out on the water in Sydney, where Harry took up the challenge of scaling the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
Together with three Invictus Games athletes and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, the duke's team took 13 minutes to complete their ascent of the bridge.
The couple also attended the opening ceremony of the Invictus Games. However, after it overran by nearly two hours, it was decided that Meghan would take some time out of her schedule and spend the following morning resting.
Throughout the tour the prince's beard appeared to draw attention from fans of all ages, from 98-year-old Daphne Dunne at the Sydney Opera House...
...to five-year-old Luke at Dubbo Airport.
However, at Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Ruby the koala seemed somewhat less impressed.
Photographs subject to copyright.
- Published20 October 2018
- Published21 October 2018
