MAJESTIC! Harry & Meghan’s tour triumph
THE MODERN ROYALS FORGE A SPECIAL CONNECTION WITH KIWIS
They came, they saw, they wowed. Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, may have been in New Zealand for only four days, but in that time they impressed the Kiwis they met with their warmth, their humility, their graciousness and their down-to-earth attitudes.
Royal rules – such as no hugs or selfies – went out the window, and the couple thrilled many people by posing for photos and giving spontaneous hugs.
They become proficient at exchanging hongi, they crouched down to talk to children and to people in wheelchairs − pregnant Meghan balancing on precariously high heels without the slightest wobble – and they seemed genuinely interested in what they were told and shown.
Pippa Struck (13) summed up what many of those lucky enough to interact with the royals felt about meeting them:
“They’re really nice, genuine people,” says the teenager, who talked to the couple about conservation work she helps with at Abel Tasman National Park. “They’re so calm. You see them on TV all the time but when you meet them in real life, you realise they are just normal people. They’re really cool and I’m so lucky to have met them. I am going to be talking about this for the rest of my life.”
But what many people didn’t pick up on when they met Harry and Meghan was that by the time they got to New Zealand, the busy 16-day tour was taking a toll on the pair.
British royal reporter Omid Scobie, who travelled with them to Australia, Fiji and Tonga before coming here for the final leg, says they were running on empty. “Kensington Palace aides say they are quite tired at the moment, but they’re still committed to their engagements and enjoying them.”
He says they welcomed the fact that the schedule here was a little more laid-back than in other countries and the crowds weren’t as intense.
“They started off with such high energy off the back of the baby announcement, and Australia was so excited for their baby news, which made the crowds even bigger and louder,” says Omid, who writes for Harper’s Bazaar and is a royal commentator on TV shows such as Good Morning America.
“In New Zealand, it’s a calmer and more informal end to the tour. As Meghan and Harry are both feeling quite tired, the schedule here suits how they’re feeling. They’re wanting to do things a little more quietly and the crowds are smaller. Both of them seem to be really excited about meeting the locals, beyond anything else.”
They didn’t let wet and cold weather put a dampener on things, ignoring downpours and braving chilly winds to carry out their engagements, although Meghan did admit on a couple of occasions that she was cold.
The tour started with a blustery arrival at Wellington airport and then an official welcome at Government House. Afterwards the couple met with local schoolchildren and
Scouts, with Meghan revealing she had been a
Girl Scout while growing up in Los Angeles.
Jasmyne Harle (13), a student at Kairanga School, near Palmerston North, said Meghan asked how long they’d been waiting in the wind. “She said she was cold too and rubbed my arm. She is really, really pretty and genuine. We thought we were going to be behind a rope so it was brilliant to actually talk to them.”
Next up, the pair attended a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior at Pukeahu National
War Memorial Park, followed by a public walkabout.
Elizabeth Garlick (28), a communications adviser from Lower Hutt, had waited five hours in windy conditions to see Meghan and Harry, and was delighted when she got to hand the duchess some koˉwhai, the flower that featured on Meghan’s wedding veil.
“I told her I appreciate everything she does for mental health,” said Elizabeth. “She was so happy. It was absolutely worth waiting five hours – I’d do it again in a heartbeat.”
The final engagement of the day was a reception hosted by Governor-General Dame Patsy Reddy. Meghan spoke at the event, praising New Zealand for being the first country to give women the vote, even saying a few words in te reo.
The next morning the couple attended a meeting with mental health workers and advocates who are involved with projects that support young people through helplines, social media, websites and schoolbased programmes.
Genevieve Mora, co-founder of the charity Voices of Hope, talked about her experience with mental health. “Harry was very interested, and they both asked a lot of questions,” she said afterwards.
Hannah James (23), the front-of-house manager at Maranui Cafe in Wellington, where the meeting was held, said, “They were super-genuine, really friendly and down to earth. They made an effort to talk to everyone and were happy to have their photos taken.”
The couple met a group of schoolchildren outside afterwards and when one of them, Joe Young (5), suddenly became overwhelmed, Meghan crouched down to comfort him, telling him he was “really cute and really shy.”
Before leaving, she went back to Maranui to ask if food left over from the morning tea could be handed out to the children. It was a gesture that showed how thoughtful she is, says Omid.
“The magic of royal tours is when they go off-script. When Meghan brought the cakes out for the children, that was them showing off their true selves.”
Later that afternoon, when they travelled across Cook Strait to learn about conservation projects at Abel Tasman National Park, Harry gave a touching speech following a poˉwhiri, telling the crowd, “From my wife, myself and our little bump, it’s a blessing to be here. We bring you greetings from my grandmother.”
When local kaumaˉtua
Barney Thomas wished them “kia kaha” with their “peˉpi”, Meghan smiled as his words were translated.
Department of Conservation ranger Andrew Lamason joined the couple for a stroll on Totaranui Beach to talk about DoC initiatives in the area. He said Harry knew a lot about global conservation issues and expressed his concern over the proliferation of fake news about problems the planet was facing.
“They genuinely care about the people and the land,” said Saskia Gray (16), an Abel Tasman Youth Ambassador, who met the couple at a barbecue lunch.
People who joined them that evening at an event at Courtenay Creative, to celebrate the capital’s thriving arts scene, echoed those sentiments.
“They’re wonderful people, very warm and genuinely interested in who we are and what we’re doing,” said actor Jed Brophy, who talked to
Harry about his involvement in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings movies.
Carleen Murphy, who sported a red devil look for the event, said she was waiting for Meghan to mention her acting past.
“But she was gracious and let others shine. She’s even more beautiful than she is on screen – an absolute beauty.”
The third day of their visit saw the royal couple move north to Auckland for a full day of engagements that kicked off with a ceremony on the North Shore to dedicate 20 hectares of native bush to the Queen’s Commonwealth Canopy.
The heavens opened up again, but Meghan seemed more concerned about a group of children from Pinehill School, Browns Bay, singing a waiata in the rain than herself.
Thankfully, the weather cleared for a gumboot-throwing competition, in which the two captained rival teams. Meghan’s group was triumphant, thanks to a huge throw from the duchess.
“I think she was thinking there was no chance she’d win,” said Isabella Iti. “But she did.”
Pinehill School teacher Marg Milne was full of admiration for the couple. “They’re just so engaged with young people and that’s part of their skill.”
Those invited to the event were also impressed to see Meghan wielding a spade to plant a tree.
Ian McAlister (86) said, “The royal family has taken it upon themselves to protect any bit of native bush that can be saved. Harry and Meghan are carrying on a wonderful tradition.”
His wife Lorrimer (78) added, “Meghan is so confident. She can cope with anything.”
The couple’s willingness to do so much in such a short visit was praised by Vivienne Robertson. “I don’t envy them,” she said, adding that Harry seemed to have gone out of his way to show he was a normal person, despite the royal title.
“Hats off to them for taking the aristocrat-ness out of it. They’re not quite so up on a pedestal, not so unattainable. It’ll shut people up who want to get rid of the royals.”
The next stop on the busy royal schedule was Manukau-based charity Pillars, which supports the children of prisoners with mentoring schemes and in-home support.
When the couple asked earlier this year for donations to local charities in lieu of wedding presents, the New Zealand Government gave $5000 to Pillars. Meghan and Harry were keen to know more about the work they did, and the duchess later presented awards to four of the young people helped by Pillars, including leadership awards to siblings Morgan (18) and Orla Angi (15).
Harry told them it had been a pleasure to meet them, adding, “You are outstanding young people.”
Hannah Mortensen, a mentor with Pillars, said the kids were “super excited” to meet real royalty, and felt incredibly lucky that Harry and Meghan chose their organisation to pay extra attention to.
The couple were running slightly late for their next event, a public walkabout at Auckland’s waterfront Wynyard Quarter, but that didn’t seem to bother the crowd who waited patiently – some braving downpours – to see the pair.
As they started to walk along the barriers, a band played the theme song to Suits, the show that made Meghan famous, and the crowd also sang the national anthem in te reo.
Several groups of teenage girls brandished signs revealing that they’d skipped school to be there.
Jessica Ross from Howick admitted she’d missed a maths class to get to Wynyard Quarter, but said standing in the rain had been worth it because she, her sister Kaitlin and mother Justine had not only chatted to
Harry, but also got a selfie with him.
“We asked him if we could do it and he said yes,” said Justine. “He gave me a double handshake and he was just so nice. They are very gracious and generous with their time.”
Harry then took the time to chat to six-year-old Otia Nante, who had written him a letter. When he learned that Otia’s mum had died, he comforted the youngster, telling him, “Life will always be all right. I made it to 34 and life is great. I have a beautiful wife, a baby on the way – your life is going to be sorted, don’t you worry.”
Meanwhile, Meghan was handed a letter by Hannah Spergel, a fan who travelled from Christchurch hoping to see the actress-turned-duchess. Meghan used to follow
Hannah on Instagram before she deactivated her account. They had chatted online – Meghan had encouraged Hannah to “just be myself” – and Hannah was thrilled to meet her in person.
“She said thank you for getting in touch and then she gave me a hug,” said an emotional Hannah. “It means the world to me.”
Rosie Leishman (15) praised Meghan for being a great role model. “She has got great values and she’s such a confident speaker. I really respect them both.”
She gave Harry a bone carving, a taonga she had made at school that morning. “He was very interested in it and questioned me about it.”
Rosie’s mum Jo Raymond said she couldn’t help thinking about Harry’s mum Princess Diana as she watched the way he interacted so naturally with the crowd. “I think she would be very proud of him.”
His grandmother the Queen, who Harry represented on the tour, would certainly be proud of the speech he gave that evening for a reception hosted by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern at the Auckland War Memorial Museum to celebrate young Pasifika people.
He started off by greeting the attendees in six different languages – te reo, Tongan, Samoan, Fijian, Cook Island and Niuean – and pretty much nailed the pronunciation.
“This is the first time I have spoken most of those languages so I apologise if my accent wasn’t any good, but I had to give it a go,” he joked.
Addressing the young people honoured by the event, he said, “It is incredibly inspiring to see you forging new paths while staying rooted in your language, culture and heritage.
“Meghan and I have enormous respect for you, and I want to close by thanking you for all you are doing. Your
generation is quite literally energising the world – don’t ever stop what you are doing.”
Harry also spoke in te reo – his pronunciation earning him a round of applause – when he gave another speech at a poˉwhiri in Rotorua for their final day of the tour, and even led the waiata Te Aroha in flawless te reo.
The last engagements included lunch at Te Papaiouru Marae, a visit to the National Kiwi Hatchery at Rainbow Springs and a public walkabout, followed by a visit to the Redwoods Treewalk.
For the poˉwhiri onto the marae, the couple donned korowai, or cloaks, with Meghan’s specially made for her by Te Arawa weaver Norma Sturley and which paid homage to her royal status, her mana, her pregnancy and her Californian roots. A stirring haka was performed and during speeches at the marae, Te Arawa spokesperson Sir Toby Curtis said Meghan, who is bi-racial, was a great role model for Maˉori.
“She has shown you can succeed, make a difference and be your own person while also celebrating your heritage. This inspires us all.”
The fickle weather finally played ball, with blue skies and sunshine the perfect way to end the tour Down Under.
International media who followed the couple around New Zealand agreed that Rotorua “stole the show” with its welcome. Sky News cameraman Adam Cole said Te Arawa’s poˉwhiri was spectacular.
“It’s a hell of a way to end the tour. That ceremony was so powerful. What a great last day.”
Tired they may have been, but the couple pulled out all the stops to make people feel special at every engagement.
At the Auckland reception, Harry thanked our prime minister for hosting his and Meghan’s first visit to New Zealand as a couple.
“It’s a place we’ve both visited separately and it has been a joy to return here together to enjoy this stunning country.”