ROYAL VIGNETTES
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge visited Kelowna on Tuesday for a tour of the city that included a visit to a university campus and a chance to sample the province’s culinary scene. Here’s a look at some of the scenes from Tuesday’s events:
Well-wishers line up hoping for a brush with royalty
Brittany Campbell, 26, stood with her nearly two-year-old son Rowen Campbell perched on her shoulders for a glimpse of the royals.
“We’ve been following her since she came into the limelight. She’s such a great role model for women,” said Campbell, who came about 90 minutes before the royal arrival. “I’m very much a believer in fairy tales and she’s like a modern-day fairy tale come true. She’s really inspiring.”
Brittany Forte held her sleeping daughter, Ayla, who is two months old. “As you can see, she can’t contain her excitement,” Forte joked. “They’re these figurative people that you see on TV, you see them in pictures and now to see them in real life is really cool.”
Ray Folland and his 13-year-old daughter Sarah drove from nearby Lumby to see the royal couple. Both said they wanted to see the man who would one day be king.
“Hopefully in my lifetime he will be king and it would be nice to see him before that,” said Folland, 61.
Scorch the mascot gets time with Prince William
On a walk through of the University of British Columbia’s Okanagan campus, the duke and duchess met Scorch, the flame-costumed mascot of the school’s Okanagan Heat.
The royals shook the mascot’s hand and spoke briefly with Amarat Sandhu, who said William asked if it was hot inside the costume. “I told him it was,” said Sandhu. The prince told Sandhu his three-year-old son Prince George would be delighted to meet Scorch.
The royal couple also watched the women’s volleyball team in the gym and received commemorative Okanagan Heat jerseys with “Cambridge” emblazoned on the back, as well as teddy bears for Prince George and Princess Charlotte.
Sophie Wang, an 18-year-old psychology student, said the royal visit was everything she had hoped for, although she didn’t get a coveted photo. “That’s as close as we’re ever going to get to royalty,” she said.
‘What more could you want,’ William says of food festival
Prince William sampled a watermelon salad at a winery overlooking Okanagan Lake as he basked in the good weather in Kelowna on Tuesday.
“Weather, food, wine: what more could you want,” said the Duke of Cambridge, who attended the Taste of British Columbia Festival.
Chef David Hawksworth said William complimented him on the flavours and aromas in the Yuzu Koshu Shuswap Watermelon salad, which included B.C. Dungeness crab and locally grown mint.
Chef Vikram Vij said both William and Kate sampled a lamb dish he made and the prince asked about spices, while Kate complimented him on the dish.