Royal couple: Prince Charles and Camilla visit New Zealand for 12-day tour

The ties between the British royals and the people of the Turangawaewae marae, or meeting place, on the banks of the Waikato, date back more than a century.

More than 17,000 kilometres and 60 years on from where it all began, Prince Charles was reunited with the woman who cared for him as a baby at Clarence House.

“We’re not going to go away and we’re proud to be Maori in New Zealand”, she said.

“He remembered me, didn’t he?”

Key said the 89-year-old Queen was unlikely to ever make the grueling trip from the United Kingdom to New Zealand again, commenting: “In reality it’s a very long haul for her”.

Later in the day, the royal couple visited Auckland where a crowd of fans and curious tourists turned out to welcome them.

PRINCE Charles has praised Australia and New Zealand for giving everyone in the United Kingdom “so much sporting prowess and excitement” in the Rugby World Cup.

She said she was pleased Charles remembered the event and told her he knew it happened in about 1980.

Prince Charles took time to meet and chat with students at Tawa College, after being greeted by head boy Joshua Nightingale and head girl Briana Boele Van Hensbroeke.

During his visit to the exercise’s headquarters Charles climbed into the cockpit seat of a Royal New Zealand Airforce NH90 helicopter used for a number of roles, from supporting troops on the battlefield to carrying out search and rescue duties.

At a state reception at Government House featuring leading New Zealanders Charles gave a short speech and jokingly admitted he was thankful the All Blacks had beaten Australia.

“Kingi Tuheitia is looking forward to welcoming Prince Charles back to Turangawaewae on behalf of the Kingitanga and to renewing the connections between their two families”.

In Australia, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, a staunch republican, has said he believes the country will revisit the issue of becoming a republic when the Queen dies.

Highlights include a trip on the Taieri Gorge Railway, a visit to the Orokonui Ecosanctuary near Dunedin and a day taking in the sights of New Plymouth.

The chance encounter, and Camilla’s reaction, were both captured on video by local New Zealand media outlet Otago Daily Times and uploaded to their Facebook page.

England hosted the recent Rugby World Cup where New Zealand’s famous All Blacks team beat Australia in the final – the first nation to defend the Webb Ellis trophy.