King Charles named paramount chief of Samoa as royal tour continues

King Charles III and Queen Camilla continued their royal tour with a trip to Samoa.

The couple arrived in the island country on Thursday, October 24, and were welcomed at the National University of Samoa. Both Charles, 75, and Camilla, 77, ditched their typical royal attire for something more casual upon their arrival. The king opted for a white Royal Navy jacket with blue and white details designed by the Samoan School of Arts. Camilla matched her husband with an all-white look.

Charles received a new honor when visiting the country, being nicknamed the High Chief of Samoa. During the ceremony for the monarchs, Charles drank a traditional ‘ava drink, which is created by pounding ‘ava root into a fine powder and mixing it with water. He spilled some on the floor before taking a sip of the drink taken from a halved coconut shell. Buckingham Palace shared in a press release that the drink is a “symbol of community and connection.”

Charles and Camilla also wore large ceremonial garlands decorated with various leaves as they posed for photos under umbrellas. The king’s lei was made from the dried fruit of the pandanus tree, while Camilla’s was mainly floral.

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Additional commitments on Thursday included a trip to Vila Moata’a and O Le Pupu-Pue National Park, among others.

The monarchs began their trip to Australia and Samoa earlier this month. During the first leg of the journey, Charles met with cancer researchers from the Melanoma Institute Australia to learn more about their work treating melanoma.

It was later reported that Charles’ cancer was not discussed during the trip.

In February, the palace announced that the king had been diagnosed with an undisclosed type of cancer after undergoing a routine prostate procedure. He took a brief step back from actual customer service duties to undergo treatment, but has since resumed work.

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Ahead of his royal tour of Australia and Samoa, royal expert Rebecca English reported that Charles put his treatment on “pause” for the trip and that doctors were “happy” to briefly agree. Your treatment will get back on track after your trip abroad.

Charles’s schedule in Australia and Samoa was designed to be “careful” about his health, according to the Daily Mail. He and Camilla were supposed to have “10 appointments a day between them,” the outlet added. The royal couple also chose to forgo a visit to New Zealand during their trip.