Royals Harry and Meghan go barefoot on Bondi
SYDNEY: British royals Harry and Meghan kicked off their shoes and donned tropical garlands when they hit Sydney’s famed Bondi beach, one of their stops on their Australian tour.
Expectant Meghan put on a summer dress and set aside her high heels, while Harry ditched his usual suit for chinos as the couple lapped up cheers from Australian fans and enjoyed Bondi’s surf.
Despite morning fog, the pair met local surfers enjoying winter swells and sat down on the sand for a long chat with leaders of the OneWave group, which focuses on helping people improve mental health by getting outdoors. Signs screaming “G’day Harry and Meghan” greeted the royal couple, who have received a warm welcome from fans throughout the start of their 16-day pacific tour.
“You hear people that met the Queen when she came here (in 1954)” said 26-year-old fan Christopher Cundle, “and they are still talking about it now.
“I can easily see that that is one of the things I will be talking to my grandkids and future generations about. It was awesome.”
While half of Australians oppose having British monarchs as head of state, and the vast majority of citizens have carried on with business as usual during the visit, there has been sizable support for the celebrity couple at every stop. News that the Duchess of Sussex is pregnant has only made the crowds swell. Later on Friday the prince strapped on a harness and scaled the Sydney Harbour Bridge to hoist a flag of the Invictus Games, a sports championship for wounded military personnel.
Today, the pair will go to Queensland’s Fraser Island, the world’s largest sand island, before jetting off to Fiji, Tonga and New Zealand.