Australia tour King marks passage of time with gift of hourglass

King Charles did not linger long at the luncheon put on in his honour, at the second scheduled event of his short Australian visit. And his gift to the gathering was a reminder of the fleeting passage of time.

- Tory Shepherd and Caitlin Cassidy

There was a menu fit for a king, which was very Sydney: chargrilled asparagus and olive dust; marinated octopus and squid ink wafer; barramundi and duck confit. But the sovereign was gone before the first course. He addressed the gathering at New South Wales Parliament House, offered an hourglass as a gift, told lawmakers the "sands of time" would encourage "brevity", and left within 10 minutes, not to be seen again in public until today.

Charles and Queen Camilla began their day at St Thomas' Anglican church in North Sydney. It was technically the third day of their six-day tour of Australia - but apart from some handshakes on landing on Friday night, it was the public's first chance to see the couple after a rest day on Saturday. The schedule has been designed not to overly tire the king, who is being treated for cancer.

In the church the bishop of North Sydney, Christopher Edwards, asked for world peace while protesters outside held banners saying "Empire built on genocide" and "Decolonise". Hundreds of others lined the street and waved Australian flags.

In an unplanned moment, the king and queen went to greet the crowds, with police scrambling to ensure they were protected. Well-wishers thrust bunches of flowers into the queen's hands, with the blooms then swiftly whisked away by aides. A supporter tootled on a flute, while chants of "Always was, always will be, Aboriginal land" floated on the spring breeze.