King Charles joked about the “sands of time” and expressed his delight at being back in Australia as he addressed politicians.
The monarch presented an hourglass – a “speech timer”, he called it – to the New South Wales parliament to mark the bicentenary of the upper house.
“With the sands of time fostering brevity,” the King he joked, “it only remains to say what a great joy it is to come to Australia for the first time as a sovereign, and to renew my love for this country and its people, which I have so long cherished.”
It seems that he could not resist moving the fine sand of the hourglass while presenting the watch to Parliament.
“Democratic systems must evolve, of course, to remain fit for purpose, but they are nevertheless fundamentally sound systems, as I said in this building 50 years ago,” he said in a speech.
“When underpinned by wisdom and good faith, democracy has, I believe, an extraordinary capacity for innovation, compromise and adaptability, as well as stability.”
The presentation came after the King and Queen met members of the public as they began the first full day of their tour of Australia by attending a church service in Sydney’s northern suburbs.
A young girl wearing a toy crown among those hoping to catch a glimpse of the king. Photo: PA
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Before the service at St Thomas’ Anglican Church, its rector Michael Mantle got the crowd laughing by telling them: “Jesus said you will not know the day nor the hour when the king will come”.
When the couple first arrived, they met several children at the door of the church as a group of protesters could be heard shouting “not my king” but were drowned out by shouts of “hip hip hooray”.
The chancellor’s wife Ellie Mantle brought a rugby ball, cricket ball and stuffed koala, gifts for royal grandchildren Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.
“We are very honored as this is the first opportunity for the public to see the King and Queen,” she said.
King Charles examines a packet of Tunnock’s Teacakes. Photo: PA
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The King and Queen then spent some time shaking hands with well-wishers outside and the monarch even spotted an old friend among the faces – his former polo teacher Sinclair Hill, described as Australia’s greatest player in the sport.
He was joined by his wife Wendy Hill, who was kissed on both cheeks by Charles and said afterwards: “He’s a lovely man and the fact that he wasn’t well and still came… The effort he makes to talk to all these people thought it looked great.”
About 100 meters away, a small group of people, all supporters of First Nations resistance to colonization, held up a large banner with the word “Decolonize”.
Wayne Wharton said: “We respectfully request that King Charles begin the process of decolonization, join the Australian government and negotiate with Aboriginal people for reparations for the illegal settlement and colonization of so-called Australia.”
