Melbourne miracle twins greet Queen

Special meaning was added to her words of almost 50 years ago as the Queen opened Melbourne’s new Royal Children’s Hospital on Wednesday.

Performing the same duty at the original hospital in 1963, the Queen declared it “a monument to Victorians’ humanity”.

This time the same message came in the form of miracle twins Trishna and Krishna who greeted Her Majesty with white posies as she began the Victorian leg of her Australian visit.

Trishna and Krishna, now four years old, began their lives as conjoined twins in Bangladesh and were separated by surgeons in a 27-hour operation at the old Royal Children’s in 2009.

Accompanied by their guardian Moira Kelly they laughed and chatted with Her Majesty after the girls greeted her with well-rehearsed curtsies.

“We’ve been practising very hard to do what we’re calling the ballerina curtsey,” Ms Kelly said.

“Her Majesty was very interested in the girls and wanted to know more about them.

“She was very, very genuine, you could really see her gentleness really and her deep concern.

“She was very gentle towards the girls, it was very touching.”

The Queen also offered a warm greeting to centenarian philanthropist Dame Elisabeth Murdoch, who had been present at the 1963 opening of the existing hospital.

The Queen and Prince Philip’s four-hour visit to Melbourne continued with a reception at Federation Square where the thousands who greeted her had begun gathering in the early hours.

In dazzling spring weather the Queen – dressed in a fuchsia pink coat – received more than 150 bouquets from children and adults alike as she and the Duke of Edinburgh strolled through the Square in her only meet and greet session in Melbourne.

As well as flowers, scores of young schoolgirls presented the Queen with a variety of curtsies, many making multiple attempts.

Throughout the red-carpet stroll, the Queen was flanked by security men and a jovial and bemused Prince Philip followed a few paces behind, in his familiar hands clasped behind the back pose.

The Federation Square crowd may have fallen short of the numbers that greeted Tour de France hero Cadel Evans in August, but they made up for it with some heartfelt greetings.

Sisters Cecilia and Shona Thornton greeted their monarch with a sign saying “Australia loves our Queen”.

At the nearby Arts Centre, building workers, who aren’t normally renowned for their support of the monarchy, lined the balconies snapping photos of the Royals.

With the bells of St Paul’s Cathedral chiming in the background, the Queen and the Duke then boarded a Royal tram designated with the route “ER” for a short trip up St Kilda Rd on their way to a reception at Government House.

In the race for seats on the tram, the Duke appeared to win, claiming the forward-facing pew with the Queen facing backwards.

Some 400 diners, made up largely of flood and bushfire victims, shared lunch with the royal party at Government House.

Police said the visit passed smoothly with no sign of Occupy Melbourne protesters who disrupted the city last week.

The only signs of dissent came from a group of anti-carbon tax protesters armed with banners reading “Welcome, Your Majesty, please dissolve parliament” and “carbon tax corruption” and a man carrying a poster claiming Winston Churchill and the Queen’s father King George had abandoned Australia during WWII.

The Queen and Prince Philip flew out of Melbourne soon after 3pm for Perth where she will open CHOGM on Friday.

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