Prince William and Kate Middleton Set to Embark on Asia Tour
Kate Middleton and Prince William are preparing to take their glamour and goodwill from England to the Far East in an eight-day trip that will mark a series of firsts for the young couple.
After enjoying a mini four-day vacation together at a secluded chateau in the south of France, William and Kate are now on their way to Singapore for a continuation of the Diamond Jubilee World Tour celebrating Queen Elizabeth's 60th year of reign.
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The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, both 30, will travel to four countries in just nine days, traveling from Singapore to Malaysia, the Solomon Islands and, finally, Tuvalu.
Crowds are expected to match the thousands that lined the streets for a glimpse of the couple in their first official overseas tour last June and July in North America.
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"I think there has been such a big response to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge," Roya Nikkhah from UK's The Telegraph told ABC News. "They've become these megastars wherever they are, whether they're here or touring abroad."
One of the first stops for the couple, who celebrated their one-year anniversary in April, will be an orchid-naming ceremony at the Singapore Botanic Gardens where each will have an orchid named in their honor. They'll also be able to view an orchid named after William's late mother, Princess Diana, shortly before her death in 1997 and before she had a chance to view the flower herself.
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On Thursday Kate will make her first official overseas speech when she addresses staff and patients at the Hospis Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur. Fashion watchers can expect Kate to wear one of the more than 30 outfits she's reportedly bringing with her, and also a tiara rumored to be on loan from the queen.
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"People love to make comparisons [of Kate] with Diana," said Nikkhah. "She [Katie] is young. She is attractive. She is very glamorous. I think that gives people an excitement and a glamour to the royal family we haven't had in a long time."
Much of the couple's wide-ranging itinerary was said to have been personally selected by William's grandmother, the queen.
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That itinerary will include William and Kate visiting a rainforest, embarking on a war canoe journey, visiting a local school and university and attending a youth conference, among other things.
