King Charles III's Commonwealth visit to Samoa will highlight climate change ... and dance

LONDON -- LONDON (AP) — King Charles III should beryllium prepared to creation erstwhile he visits Samoa this week.

Freddie Tuilagi made judge of that erstwhile he visited St. James' Palace precocious wearing thing but a bark cloth wrap and a necklace historically worn by orator chiefs. Charles, successful a bluish suit and cautiously knotted tie, grinned while gamely trying to travel on arsenic Samoa’s honorary consul to nan U.K. moved done nan steps of a accepted dance.

“He loves it. He said he wants to study nan dance,” Tuilagi said afterward, showing disconnected his moves erstwhile again.

Tuilagi, who moved to Britain to play master rugby, said nan 75-year-old king tin expect much of nan aforesaid erstwhile he arrives successful nan South Pacific land federation connected Wednesday. Villagers passim nan state of 220,000 group person taken steps to decorate and show really overmuch they admit Charles’ visit, he said.

Charles, nan symbolic caput of nan Commonwealth, is walking to Samoa for a gathering of apical authorities officials from each of nan 56 independent nations that dress up nan organization. At nan apical of nan schedule is nan conflict against ambiance change, an rumor Charles has championed for decades.

The king tin count connected Samoans to beryllium receptive. Its islands are astatine nan forefront of nan ambiance emergency, facing expanding threats from rising oversea levels, warming water temperatures and much aggravated storms.

The royal sojourn is attracting world media attention. Many Samoans dream that images of nan king and Queen Camilla strolling connected nan islands’ breathtaking beaches will thief pull European visitors and boost nan economy.

“It’s an opportunity to showcase our culture, showcase our practice and really ... proud (of) that we are arsenic a country,’’ Tuilagi told The Associated Press. "To big nan king and nan leaders of nan Pacific, you know, nan Commonwealth coming to Samoa is thing typical for us.’’

Before his Samoa trip, Charles visited Australia, wherever not everyone welcomed him. On Monday, Sen. Lidia Thorpe, shouted "you are not my king,'' astatine a parliamentary reception for nan king to protestation nan erstwhile British Empire's curen of Indigenous peoples and to telephone connected Australia to sever ties pinch nan monarchy.

But Samoa has a different narration pinch nan monarchy. Unlike Australia, Samoa is not 1 of nan 14 independent countries extracurricular nan United Kingdom wherever nan British monarch remains nan caput of state.

Tuilagi said he hopes his objection of Samoan creation and opus will thief nan king erstwhile he arrives. He peculiarly hoped that he would make an belief since he wore nationalist dress, which includes leaving nan garment astatine home.

Think joy. That's Tuilagi's point.

“It’s not each time nan king will spot a main from Samoa topless ... astatine nan palace,’’ he said, chuckling.