Bula! Fijian Warriors Welcome Queen Elizabeth To Exhibition

As she arrived to view the new exhibition of Fijian pieces at the University of East Anglia on Friday, Queen Elizabeth was greeted on the red carpet by two Fijian warriors dressed in traditional attire. The Queen’s wide-eye expression quickly turned to a small smile as she made her way past the two warriors and into the building.

The Fijian High Commissioner, Jitoko Tikolevu, showed Her Majesty around the exhibition – ‘Fiji: Art & Life in the Pacific’ – alongside Professor David Richardson, the Vice Chancellor of the University. Mr Tikolevu gave the Queen a traditional bula welcoming, kneeling and clapping his hands three times – “a sign of respect for the Royal Family only” he said (you might remember the Fijian men’s rugby team doing the same thing for Princess Anne at the Rio Olympics).

Inside the exhibition that is hosted at the University’s Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts, the Queen – wearing a hot pink coat and matching hat – saw a number of pieces that represent Fiji’s history and culture. She also saw footage of her 1953 Coronation Tour visit to Fiji, a country she has visited six times, as well as watched a Fijian choir performance.

Filed under The United Kingdom
Tagged Culture, Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, Exhibition, Fiji.

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