Prince Frederik and Princess Mary's Official Visit to Australia: November 19-26, 2011

[lancchick]

Originally Posted by Roskilde

It seems to be a wonderful weather in Australia, I am not jealous at all

But thanks for the link - Mary really shines. A little sad that the visit already ends tomorrow.

Mary speaks (a little) at the Broken Hill event. A glimpse of royalty - YouTube

[MARG]

Originally Posted by dazzling

Mary looks lovely in the red dress but useless to have worn a necklace IMO.

I loved the dress but, without the necklace it would have seemed to have too deep a plunge in the front. The necklace balances it up nicely.

[Madame Royale]

Originally Posted by Tarlita

An interesting gold necklace with what looks like diamonds on the circles and a matching bracelet.

I'm sure Mary wore the matching earrings to the Scandinavian gala event in the US last month.

[Lady Rosie]

A wrap up of the tour so far:


ABC Crown Princess Mary tour wrap up - YouTube


M & F at an Alannah and Madeline Foundation function
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/crowds-gather-to-greet-danish-royal-couple/story-e6frf7jo-1226206843087

[dazzling]

Visiting the Alannah and Madeline Foundation

skynews.com.au video

A nice video of Mary and the crowd

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1O67y1JV2Dg

[Muhler]

Thanks for the pics and clips.

A nice little story about Frederik for a change: Billed-Bladet - Mød kronprinsens nye australske ven

He was visiting the Frederik McArthur Windmill Park, where the DK company Vesta is erecting 140 wind mills. (*)
Here he was presented with a number of drawings by local school children and one of them, Tom, apparantly clicked with Frederik. Because Frederik sat down for several minuttes and they talked in details about the drawings.
Afterwards Tom said: "...that he'll probably never forget Frederik".

(*) You may recall the off shore windmill park Frederik visited a couple of years ago. That alone cover 5% of the entire energy consumption in DK.
Windmills are noicy, expensive, inefficient, ruin the scenery and it's very difficult to store the energy. - Today.
Today the windmill technology is comparable to cars from the 1930's. In 30 years from now?
One of the arguments against windmills is that they pose a danger to birds. Well, don't know about birds elsewhere, but here in DK they've learned fly around them. In fact according to ornithologist the birds use windmill farms as landmarks - just as they use bridges as flight corridors when crossing water.
As for off-shore windmills; the foundations are a haven for shellfish, which again attract fish, who are safe there because fishing boats are not allowed near windmills.
For humans; wind is free. In rural areas private windmills are now more and more common. I.e. small windmills that cover the energy of one or two households. They cost around 200.000 DKK at present or the same as a family car. When the wind is blowing (it's doing that a lot here in DK!) the owners turn off the connection from the electricity company. In fact some sell surplus energy to the electricity companies. The main problem so far is that storing surplus energy is still a problem - for the time being.
We live in the outskirts of a village, so we can't have our own windmill, otherwise it would be something we would seriously consider. For the price of a car we would be able to cut the electricity bill by 75-80 %, using a cautious estimate. Year after year.

-----------------------

http://www.theage.com.au/lifestyle/c...126-1o066.html
Can our Australian members educate us about eSmart and other initiatives in regards to bullying?
What are your own experiences in regards to the anti-bullying campaign that has been running for years in Australia?

--------------------------

http://video.au.msn.com/watch/video/...e-ball/xawws4y

A news clip, where Mary is heard giving a speech.
I gotta hear your comments on that.
I realise there must be a lot of regional accents in Australia and I can't tell the difference, but when I listen to Mary speaking English and the news reporters, there is litterally a world's difference.

[dazzling]

'Inspired' Princess Mary wows the crowds in Broadmeadows via theage.com.au

another article found here and here
All articles with pictures

[JessRulz]

First pic from the Starry Starry Night gala.

It was a crappy day today in Melbourne - rained nonstop for most of the day, barring one oe two hours.

ETA: Full length image; pic 3 - 4 - 5

[Lady74]

Originally Posted by Muhler

Thanks for the pics and clips.

A nice little story about Frederik for a change: Billed-Bladet - Mød kronprinsens nye australske ven

He was visiting the Frederik McArthur Windmill Park, where the DK company Vesta is erecting 140 wind mills. (*)
Here he was presented with a number of drawings by local school children and one of them, Tom, apparantly clicked with Frederik. Because Frederik sat down for several minuttes and they talked in details about the drawings.
Afterwards Tom said: "...that he'll probably never forget Frederik".

(*) You may recall the off shore windmill park Frederik visited a couple of years ago. That alone cover 5% of the entire energy consumption in DK.
Windmills are noicy, expensive, inefficient, ruin the scenery and it's very difficult to store the energy. - Today.
Today the windmill technology is comparable to cars from the 1930's. In 30 years from now?
One of the arguments against windmills is that they pose a danger to birds. Well, don't know about birds elsewhere, but here in DK they've learned fly around them. In fact according to ornithologist the birds use windmill farms as landmarks - just as they use bridges as flight corridors when crossing water.
As for off-shore windmills; the foundations are a haven for shellfish, which again attract fish, who are safe there because fishing boats are not allowed near windmills.
For humans; wind is free. In rural areas private windmills are now more and more common. I.e. small windmills that cover the energy of one or two households. They cost around 200.000 DKK at present or the same as a family car. When the wind is blowing (it's doing that a lot here in DK!) the owners turn off the connection from the electricity company. In fact some sell surplus energy to the electricity companies. The main problem so far is that storing surplus energy is still a problem - for the time being.
We live in the outskirts of a village, so we can't have our own windmill, otherwise it would be something we would seriously consider. For the price of a car we would be able to cut the electricity bill by 75-80 %, using a cautious estimate. Year after year.

-----------------------

http://www.theage.com.au/lifestyle/c...126-1o066.html
Can our Australian members educate us about eSmart and other initiatives in regards to bullying?
What are your own experiences in regards to the anti-bullying campaign that has been running for years in Australia?

--------------------------

http://video.au.msn.com/watch/video/...e-ball/xawws4y

A news clip, where Mary is heard giving a speech.
I gotta hear your comments on that.
I realise there must be a lot of regional accents in Australia and I can't tell the difference, but when I listen to Mary speaking English and the news reporters, there is litterally a world's difference.

As an Aussie she sounds Australian to me.

I'm a bit over this " she doesn't sound Australia "that keeps coming up here.

A lot of people from other countries can't even tell the difference between Australian and New Zealand accents !!!

[American Dane]

Originally Posted by Lady74

As an Aussie she sounds Australian to me.

I'm a bit over this " she doesn't sound Australia "that keeps coming up here.

A lot of people from other countries can't even tell the difference between Australian and New Zealand accents !!!

Just to add to Lady74, I think news anchors in every country always never sound like their fellow countrymen (see General American or RP) so for Mary to sound different to them is not very surprising.

On that note, I also just hear Mary as Australian though with a Danish flavour to it.

From an American-Australian point of view, the eSmart and general Australian anti-bullying campaign is IMO very successful. Yes there is still some bullying but the chances of bullying being reported to a teacher or an adult in Australia is much higher than in America, and thus less of a chance for it to lead to unnecessary lengths of violence or more...

[Duke of Marmalade]

I guess the DRF set on Mary's star/celebrity quality for survival. Will it work out? Is it good or bad? Who knows. Other royal houses try the survival strategy of the CPs as business couple but at some point people will find out that royals are powerless and only do or read speeches of what the government tells them.

I guess the celebrity strategy is not more or less risky than others, sad but true. I think that Mary did very well considering people dont seem to mind Mr Donaldson (the Danish CP that is) tagging along.

[Roskilde]

A lovely gallery of tonigt: Princess Mary and Prince FrederikPrincess Mary and Prince Frederik | Royal couple at Starry Starry night | Herald Sun

[Muhler]

Originally Posted by Lady74

As an Aussie she sounds Australian to me.

I'm a bit over this " she doesn't sound Australia "that keeps coming up here.

A lot of people from other countries can't even tell the difference between Australian and New Zealand accents !!!

Thanks for your comment - You too, American Dane

You can count me among those who can't tell the difference between New Zealand and Australian accent.
I don't because I don't know what to listen for and I'm not subjected to New Zealand accents often enough to know.

On the other hand there are probably quite a few non-Europeans who can't tell the difference between central German and Austrian German accents.

So, educate me. Is Mary speaking with a Tasmanian accent, a Sydney accent or a kind of BBC-newsreader-Australian?

[Lady74]

Well if I had to label it I'd say a private school accent but really it's just an Australian accent that is heard all the time
Cheers

[iceflower]

Originally Posted by AnnaNotherThing

Thank you iceflower...you never fail to deliver...I know I can count on you (all) to find the pics I NEED :)

That's good to know


The final day and the final getty gallery:



** zimbio/gettyimages gallery: Prince Frederik and Princess Mary Visit Australia - Day 7 **



And a gallery of day 7 from sn.dk!

[Lady74]

Love her evening gown! How beautiful does she look ? Always perfect and with a beautiful smile

[Muhler]

Originally Posted by Lady74

Well if I had to label it I'd say a private school accent but really it's just an Australian accent that is heard all the time
Cheers

That's what I wished to know.

In case anyone is interested. Mary speaks neutral Danish with a clear Copenhagener pronounciation.
The same with Frederik, except that he has a slight Hellerup/northern Zealandic (posh) tone.
QMII has a distinct Northern Zealandic pronounciation and it's very distinct with Princess Benedikte.
Our Marie on the other hand speak an even more neutral Danish than Mary, without the distinct Copenhagener pronounciation. Presumably because she's is subjected to the Southern Jutlandic accent. - Which I've been told a few times is the most easy to understand for foreigners. (But not the dialects, mind you)!

I speak with an eastern Jutlandic pronounciation and that means I sound different from Copenhageners, especially in regards to the vovels E and A and the letter D. And sometimes I add a bit of dialect.
Mrs. Muhler speaks north-eastern Jutlandic and when she switch to dialect, she sounds very different from me and we only grew up about 80 kilometres or so apart.

However, if you didn't know that and listened to us and Mary speaking, you might very well sit there wondering why Mary doesn't sound like the "natives".

And a little clip about Mary and the anti-bullying: http://video.news.com.au/2170982649/...ea=videoindex1

ADDED: And a gallery from Billed Bladet of Mary in her gala-dress: https://picasaweb.google.com/1008659...54/MaryStraler

[grevinnan]

Originally Posted by Duke of Marmalade

I guess the DRF set on Mary's star/celebrity quality for survival. Will it work out? Is it good or bad? Who knows. Other royal houses try the survival strategy of the CPs as business couple but at some point people will find out that royals are powerless and only do or read speeches of what the government tells them.

I guess the celebrity strategy is not more or less risky than others, sad but true. I think that Mary did very well considering people dont seem to mind Mr Donaldson (the Danish CP that is) tagging along.

This trip certainly is taking royals as celebrities to a new level.

[Muhler]

Mary er en steg - Royale - BT.dk
The article isn't something worth writing home about but for those who are interested in downloading two HQ pics of Mary, take a look.

Also, remember to check out the links at the end of the article for more HQ pics, some of which have already been posted here. (The ones with the little red arrows).

Have a nice Saturday.

[Lady Rosie]

Hello everyone,
I have just woken to these beautiful photos of the CPC at the gala. Thank you to all for the wonderful contributions of photos, articles etc this past week.

RE: accent. In my own opinion, Mary still sounds Australian but you can hear the Danish lilt. Her accent is like that of someone who has been given diction/ speech classes. My son has had speech therapy and has a definite crispness and roundness of vowels.
So if I was guessing ( and I am!!) I would say, Mary was probably well spoken anyway but has polished her diction and pronunciation in preparation for her role, as well as the awareness of speech when learning her Danish.
In some clips you would have heard "Aussies" talking about meeting/seeing Mary. We don't all speak like that, but is not unusual in some parts. The ABC newsreaders are probably closer to the more well spoken "Aussie"
I think I rambled too much. Forgive me.
AnnaNotherThing did you go to see Mary in Melbourne?