William and Kate spent most of Monday afternoon at Dalvay by the Sea, which is on the Island’s North Shore. Both Anne of Green Gables and Road to Avonlea fans will recognize Dalvay as the beautiful White Sands Hotel featured in each series.
But before they relaxed at the hotel, William and Kate took part in some exciting activities. In the morning, they visited Province House, which is said to be the birthplace of Confederation, and William gave a speech thanking the people of Prince Edward Island for their generosity.
Kate Middleton greets fans lined up along Great George St., in Charlottetown.
He said, “We have both so looked forward to this day, and discovering more about your beautiful island”. William and Kate were then taken by horse-drawn royal landau to Confederation Landing, where they enjoyed some musical performances.
Afterwards, William demonstrated a “water bird” emergency landing exercise while piloting a Canadian Forces Sea King helicopter. Kate took pictures of William from below as he landed the helicopter on Dalvay Lake.
The Associated Press reported, “William was excited at the prospect, said the CBC's Heather Hiscox, who spoke with him Sunday night at a reception for journalists covering the royal tour. William told her not to be nervous, she said, if it looks as if things are going wrong, because the water landing is an emergency scenario, and that's what it's supposed to look like.
The water-bird procedure was developed by Canadians and the prince will return to his colleagues in Wales to share his co-pilot training experience.”
Then, the newlyweds competed against each other in an exciting Dragon Boat Race, along with the province’s premier, Robert Ghiz, and his wife. They were helped by some of the island’s professional athletes and racers. William’s team ultimately won and, according to media reports, the newlyweds would have taken the match very seriously.
The CBC reported, “During a Sunday night media reception, Kate told the CBC's Heather Hiscox that she and William are so competitive that they can't finish a tennis match against each other.”
Although the weather wasn’t ideal, the Duke and Duchess still completed a walkabout and sampled local foods, such as oysters, lobster and chocolate-covered potato crisps, during a beach luncheon. The clam bake and lobster boil was put on by Holland College's Culinary Institute of Canada, while music was provided by both Celtic and Acadian musical groups.
The Duchess tries a local oyster.
Another highlight was when they both participated in a native Mi'kmaq 'smudging' ceremony, in which they were brushed with burning herbs, such as cedar and herbs, by the First Nation Chief of Lennox Island. This is meant to cleanse people of negative energy.
Before flying out of Summerside, William also took part in a volleyball game while Kate took a look at some royal-themed sand sculptures created by Maurice Bernard.
To read about Kate’s encounter with the actress who is playing Anne Shirley in Charlottetown's musical production of Anne of Green Gables, click here!
