His Majesty The King arrived in Canberra from Sydney on the 12th of October, and met with the Bhutanese community yesterday, and the Prime Minister of Australia this morning. Later, His Majesty viewed a presentation by Canberra City Planning and Development officials of the development of Canberra as a Federal Capital City, and spent the day meeting business leaders and friends of Bhutan.
His Majesty The King was received by the Prime Minister of Australia, Anthony Albanese, at the Parliament House in Canberra this morning.
After meeting the Prime Minister, His Majesty spent the day meeting with City officials, business leaders, and friends of Bhutan.
Yesterday, close to five thousand people gathered in Canberra to meet with His Majesty The King, Her Majesty The Gyaltsuen, and Their Royal Highnesses Gyalsey Jigme Namgyel, Gyalsey Ugyen Wangchuck, and Gyalsem Sonam Yangden Wangchuck.
The events ground in Canberra chosen for the audience looked like it was a venue in Bhutan, decorated with traditional Chadri, as thousands of people dressed in their best ghos and Kira’s poured in.
It was an emotional meeting of the King and his people on foreign soil. The day started with a cake offered by the Canberra community to celebrate the Royal Wedding Anniversary.
His Majesty expressed happiness on seeing familiar faces after years, and meeting children and growing families.
Addressing the people, His Majesty said that it was encouraging to see Bhutanese thrive on foreign soil, and working hard to support their families in Australia and back home.
His Majesty also spoke about the Gelephu Mindfulness City, and initiatives in Bhutan for the long-term security and prosperity of Bhutanese now and into the future.
As in Sydney, a team from GMC presented updates and discussed opportunities for Bhutanese in Australia to be part of building GMC.
Over 300 people volunteered to support the event as servers, drivers, and dancers, while an additional 150 Desuups assembled to help with the preparations and to manage the event and direct attendees.
Their Majesties spent the day interacting with the people, while the Bhutanese community presented various cultural performances.
Their Majesties and Their Royal Highnesses will travel next to Perth, which is home to the largest community of Bhutanese living abroad.
