SHE may not have undergone the pea test but Crown Princess Mary is quickly proving her royal mettle, her biggest fan said yesterday.
The fairytale analogies flowed at the Sydney Opera House as Denmarks Crown Prince Frederik and his Australian-born Princess helped celebrate the bicentenary of the birth of Danish childrens author Hans Christian Andersen.
At a ceremony in the Jorn Utzon Room, named in honour of the Opera Houses Danish architect, Prince Frederik appointed his wife an honorary Hans Christian Andersen ambassador.
“Right here in Sydney is where our fairy tale began,” he told invited guests.
Referring to Andersens story The Princess and the Pea, Prince Frederik said: “The Crown Princess has often been asked if she was subjected to the pea test.”
In the famous tale, the queen hides a pea under a mountain of mattresses to test the royal credentials of her prospective daughter-in-law.
The pea disturbs the princesss sleep and she is deemed fit to marry the handsome prince because only a real princess could be sensitive enough to feel it.
“Literally speaking, and Ive spoken with my mother in this regard, there has been no pea,” Prince Frederik said, prompting laughter from the audience.
“But if there was a pea, it certainly wasnt big enough to prevent the Crown Princess from meeting and succeeding in the challenges she has faced in our journey together so far.”
Prince Frederik said when Princess Mary arrived in Denmark she knew only three Danes “Andersen, Utzon and my humble self”.
“So it seems only natural that today, here in the Utzon Room, I have the great pleasure of appointing Crown Princess Mary as honorary Hans Christian Andersen ambassador to Australia,” he said.
For the occasion, Princess Mary chose a figure-hugging dress with a dark brown bodice and bronze-coloured skirt, topped with a matching broad-brimmed hat.
She received a kiss on each cheek from her husband but Australias other Hans Christian Andersen ambassadors were content with a smile and a handshake.
Prince Frederik praised television host Andrew Denton, childrens author Mem Fox, Oscar-winning actor Geoffrey Rush and author Bryce Courtenay as “story- tellers in their own right”.
They join soprano Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, who was named ambassador for New Zealand, in promoting the celebration of Andersens life and work.
Hundreds of well-wishers packed the Opera House steps and forecourt to greet the royal couple.
They later unveiled a bust of Andersen at Sydneys Observatory Hill, not far from The Slip Inn hotel where they met during the 2000 Olympics.
Tuesday, March 8, 2005 : After being greeted by Governor-General Michael Jeffery, the royal couple will visit the Australian National University for the signing of agreements between ANU and the University of Copenhagen.
They will also lay wreathes at the Australian War Memorial, have afternoon tea with Prime Minister John Howard and attend a state dinner at Government House hosted by the Governor-General.
Wednesday, March 9, 2005: The couple will tour the Parliament House, visit the National Museum of Australia, see the kangaroos living in the grounds of Government House and attend a reception at the Parliament House.
Thursday, March 10, 2005: The couple will depart for Melbourne where they will stay for a half-a-day after which they will leave for Mary's hometown, Hobart and stay there there till the end of the visit.
Hundreds greet Danish royals in Canberra
15:35 AEDT Tue Mar 8 2005
Hundreds of people have turned out to welcome Denmark's Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary to the nation's capital.
A crowd of about 100 people cheered as the royal couple flew into Canberra and were greeted by Governor-General Michael Jeffery and Deputy Prime Minister John Anderson.
Princess Mary was elegant in a black and white spotted skirt, black top, knee-length white coat and broad brimmed black and white striped hat while her husband wore a beige linen suit with a blue and white chequered shirt and red tie.
First stop for the royal couple was the Australian National University (ANU), where they witnessed the signing of agreements with two of Denmark's leading universities.
About 300 people lined up outside the university's Great Hall cheered and clapped as the royal couple arrived and stopped to talk to several children and their parents.
Princess Mary collected colourful bouquets before heading inside to oversee the signing of ANU's agreements with the University of Copenhagen and the University of Aarhus, Prince Frederik's alma mata.
Etsuko Mason and her daughters Mya, 3, and Emma, 1, were thrilled to talk to the princess after she noticed them waving a home-made paper Danish flag.
"She was so kind and she shook hands with Mya," Mrs Mason said.
"She said hello but I was too shy to say anything and just trying to make sure Mya shook her hand.
"Mya wanted to see her. She'd been talking about the princess all the time and thought she was coming to our house."
Inside the ANU's Great Hall, the royal couple were welcomed by the university's vice chancellor Ian Chubb, who said the agreements between the three universities would help establish closer ties on research projects and exchange programs.
"But perhaps and probably most importantly this arrangement will provide a chance for young Danes and young Australians to meet and when they do we can see what happens sometimes," he said, referring to the royal couple beside him.
"And when they do they can change the world."
The royal couple will spend Tuesday and Wednesday in Canberra, the second leg of their Australian tour, before flying to Melbourne on Thursday and Tasmania on Friday.
Later on Tuesday, they will visit the Australian War Memorial and attend a state dinner at Government House hosted by the governor-general.
The prince and princess will also visit Parliament House on Wednesday, but not all MPs will join the welcome party.
Australian Greens leader Bob Brown told reporters Australia's newest royal shouldn't expect any curtsies or bows from him.
And Democrats leader Lyn Allison admitted she had to polish up her royal wave.
"I have to practice," Senator Allison told journalists when asked to demonstrate her best royal wave.
Senator Brown refused to attempt a royal wrist-flick, saying he's "not getting caught up in royal fever".
"And I don't know how to curtsy," he said.
However, Senator Brown believes the best of their Australian sojourn is yet to come.
"They're going to Tasmania shortly so the best part of their trip is ahead of them," he said.
Mary has proved herself to be an incredibly worthy Princess through this tour. She has looked glamorous at every official engagement. It has often looked like a greatest 'heels' tour!
Mary is wearing a wonderful dress at the Government House dinner. Its beautiful, so "princessly" and flirtatious, yet elegant at the same time. This is my favorite dress from this trip. The red dress she wore before, closing on number 2.
the work outfit she wore today was a really good combination. i would say i have practically never seen mary so well dressed and combined in colours and shapes.
that coat also reminds me of the one mette marit used in thailand and the cutted one of letizia in madrid, days before of the wedding. i would be inclined to say it is by chanel...
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the work outfit she wore today was a really good combination. i would say i have practically never seen mary so well dressed and combined in colours and shapes.
that coat also reminds me of the one mette marit used in thailand and the cutted one of letizia in madrid, days before of the wedding. i would be inclined to say it is by chanel...
I also think it is from Chanel, the stirped fabrick is very similar to the one MM wore in Thailand. I find the skirt a terrible combination though, and I want even comment on the zebra hat because it makes me dizzy. I like the dress for the dinner, but prefer the red one.
I really likd Mary's black and white partially striped hat upon her arrival. Very dramatic with those stripes and that broad brim but her face is still visible.
Strange though that Mary has such a vast wardrobe and she would choose to wear the black and white print skirt from Sunday's church occasion only two days later. I know she's mixed it up with a completely different top, added a long jacket (the black and white polka dot trim reminds me of 101 Dalmations) and a hat, but it's still so obviously the same skirt.
And I'm not sure about the different motifs she's going on in this outfit though: stripes on her hat, polka dots on her jacket and a floral print(?) on her skirt. I know it's all black and white but a bit too much; like the different prints are fighting with each other.
it may seem like she is spening a lot of money on new clouth but i do belive many of these clouth we will se her wear on other royal events
during the rest of the year and also maybe even a few years forward
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