Duchess Meghan and Prince Harry have completed their first royal walkabout during their Australian tour, and it certainly wasn’t short on the sweet moments!
After boarding the Admiral Hudson boat to make their way over to the Opera House, chances of motion sickness replaced any potential morning sickness for the Duchess of Sussex, who it was confirmed yesterday is pregnant with her first child.
But when they got there, little did they know a very special guest would be waiting outside to meet them.
The couple first watched the Bangarra Dance Theatre Company rehearse inside the Opera House, then they made their way out to the forecourt underneath the iconic sails to meet the public.
Cheers of “We love you Harry and Meghan” and whoops of “Congratulations” filled the air as the royal couple shook hundreds of hands amid the many thousands who lined the Sydney Harbour foreshore.
Many handed the Duke and Duchess flowers, posters and stuffed animals – the koala was the most popular choice. One man even brought Meghan a box of Lucky Charms cereal, an apparent nod to her American roots.
The couple knelt down to speak with children in the crowd.
And some of the royal fans, who had started lining up outside the Opera House at 8am, were rewarded.
This included none other than 98-year-old Daphne Dunn, who asked Harry to introduce her to his new wife. Daphne has met Prince Harry many times over the past few years and always gets a hug.
“Oh my goodness, is this Daphne?” Meghan asked.
“She said she’s heard all about me, she’s so beautiful,” Daphne said afterwards.
“I wished them well with the baby on the way and said this is what Harry has been waiting for for so long.
“I got a cuddle too.”
Another royal fan, Tara Keogh, 15, was in tears after meeting the couple.
“She was so lovely I can’t believe it,” she explained.
“I said to call the baby Tara, after me, and Meghan said she’d consider it!”
Her friend Emma Yee, also 15, got told off from Harry for skipping school for the event.
“He told me not to do it again,” she said.
The couple left to return to Admiralty House for a reception to meet specially invited Australians working in charity fields.