LAHORE, 3 November 2006 — Prince Charles and his wife Camilla visited Lahore yesterday — and avoided the mistake of the late Princess Diana, whose short skirt outraged conservatives at a historic mosque.
The heir to the British throne and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, spent quite some time in the city visiting the Badshahi Mosque, a Sikh temple and an Anglican church as well.
They removed their shoes in keeping with custom at the giant 17th-century mosque, where they were received by the prayer leader. The prince put on soft black foot covers while Camilla went barefoot.
Camilla kept her legs hidden underneath a gray and ivory shalwar kameez. She also wore a blue headscarf.
Charles wore a gray suit and tie.
Diana caused controversy in 1991, during her first solo visit to Pakistan, when she donned an above-the-knee dress to see the same mosque, one of the world’s largest.
Charles and Camilla’s time in Lahore kept up the theme of “interfaith harmony” that has dominated their tour of Pakistan.
The first stop was the mausoleum of legendary Pakistani poet Allama Iqbal, whose work Charles referred to in a speech on religion in Rawalpindi on Tuesday.
After visiting the Badshahi Mosque, the prince donned a cap to enter a historic gurdwara.
They then visited Lahore’s 150-year-old Anglican Cathedral Church of the Resurrection, where they were received by Bishop Alexander John Malik and crowds of children waving Pakistani and British flags.
Charles chatted to some of the youngsters about this country’s favorite topic, cricket.
“Do you play cricket? How are the Pakistani team playing?” he asked of high school students Ali Hasan and Hamza Naveed.
“Pakistan did not play well recently, but they played well during their (summer 2006) tour to England,” replied Hasan.
Meanwhile, the Pakistani Foreign Office announced yesterday that British Prime Minister Tony Blair would be traveling to Pakistan later this month for talks with President Pervez Musharraf. “Mr. Blair is expected here later this month and the dates for the summit meeting will be announced after mutual consultations,” Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Tasnim Aslam told reporters.
