Fantastic four! Kate Middleton and Prince William met King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck and Queen Jetsun Pema of Bhutan during their trip to the Himalayan nation on Thursday, April 14.
When their plane touched down in the country’s capital of Thimphu, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were welcomed to the city by Jigme, 36, and Jetsun, 25, known as the Dragon King and Queen, in a colorful ceremony at Thimphu Dzong, a 400-year-old fortress that now serves as a civic center.
The parents of Prince George, 2, and Princess Charlotte, 11 months, had the honor of taking part in a Chipdrel, a traditional welcome procession, complete with music and ceremonial dress. Inside the Dzong, William and Kate had a private audience with the King and Queen, bowing and curtsying to their royal hosts.
Following their introductions to Jigme and Jetsun, the Duke, 33, and Duchess, 34, tried their hand at Bhutan’s national sport: archery. The prince was the first to take a stab at the activity. However, firing from about 50 yards away, William overshot the target, sending his arrows toward the road behind a grassy bank at Changlimithang National Archery Ground.
“Did that clear the bank? Because it looked like it did. I don’t want to cause a crash,” William said after his first effort. His second proved no more successful. “I hope I haven’t killed a driver or that man on the bridge,” he added.
Next, Middleton channeled her inner Katniss Everdeen and had her go with the bow. Before she launched her arrow, a supportive William told her: “You’ll be fine. You should try to shoot up in the air.”
Her shot only went about 20 yards, falling near but not dangerously close to the royal press pack. “Sorry,” she said with a giggle.
Prior to their Bhutanese trip, the British royals toured India, where they hung out with Bollywood stars, paid their respects to the country’s late pacifist leader Mahatma Gandhi, celebrated Queen Elizabeth II’s 90th birthday and met with locals in impoverished neighborhoods.
The pair will return to India on April 16 and stop at the famed Taj Mahal, which William’s late mother, Princess Diana, visited in 1992.