Meeting Meghan HAPPY TO HONGI!
The duchess holds court
The day after enjoying a game of netball with Prince Harry in Leicestershire, the Duchess of Sussex ditched her husband for her first-ever solo engagement at the Royal Academy of Arts in London, opening Oceania, an exhibition featuring art from New Zealand and the Pacific.
Just four months into her stint as a royal, the outing was significant as it comes just three weeks before Meghan, 37, is due to set off on her tour of Aotearoa, Australia, Fiji and Tonga. “It’s a great introduction to the sights and sounds of that part of the world,” says the duchess, who looked stunning in a $5000 Givenchy dress with Aquazzura Deneuve heels, a Givenchy clutch and $18,000 diamond earrings.
After a headline-grabbing hongi, Meghan met with Kiwi artists, along with Carmel Sepuloni – our Associate Minister of Pacific Peoples, and Arts, Culture and Heritage – who tells Woman’sDay, “Meghan was absolutely lovely and very gracious. She said she was blown away by what she was seeing and took time to talk to everyone, despite the fact there were so many people.
“Jacinda Ardern asked me to tell Meghan that she’s looking forward to welcoming her and Harry to New Zealand. Meghan said she loves New Zealand, that she’d been once before and that she can’t wait to come again. She’s from outside the UK, so perhaps there’s more of a sense of connection to the rest of the world, which is so important.”