The Queen has arrived in a sunny Australia for an 11-day tour of the country.
At 85 years old, the 22-hour flight can’t have been easy on the Queen – or the 90-year-old Prince Philip for that matter.
It is the monarch’s first visit to the country in five years, and many speculate it will be her last in light of her advancing years and the length of the flight.
However, it is said the Queen “was all smiles” and looked “relaxed” as she disembarked from the Boeing 777 at a military airfield near Canberra and waved to the waiting crowds.
The royal couple are in the southern hemisphere to open a meeting of Commonwealth leaders in Perth next week.
They will spend 11 days in Australia, based largely in Canberra but travelling to Melbourne and Brisbane, too. Among other activities, the Queen and Prince Philip will be thrown a giant Aussie barbecue and take a boat ride up the Brisbane river.
The pair are also scheduled to meet firefighters, paramedics, police and local communities that dealt with the Brisbane floods earlier this year, and the Queen will open the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne.
Last week, a reception for Australians was hosted by the Queen at Buckingham Palace. Stars in attendance included Elle Macpherson and Hugh Jackman.
Jackman apparently said that there was “great respect and love for the Queen” in Australia, even among republicans.
