Off to South Africa

Still glowing from their recent wedding, Their Serene Highnesses Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene of Monaco are now in Durban, South Africa. Staying in the Presidential suite of the hotel The Oyster Box in Umhlanga with sweeping views of the Indian Ocean which has hosted royal guests in the past. The Princely couple are in South Africa for a meeting of the International Olympic Committee but, at their hotel on Thursday will host another wedding reception for their Olympic friends who were, perhaps, unable to attend the wedding in Monaco because of scheduling conflicts. The date of the wedding, readers will remember, was rescheduled so that the many friends of the Princely couple (both of whom are former Olympians) would not have to choose between attending the ceremony and attending the meeting. It was unfortunate that the ugly rumors spread around just hours before the wedding were given so much ‘air time’ in South Africa (Princess Charlene was understandably distressed by that) and after all that unpleasantness it is not surprising that the hotel was closed to the press and security kept onlookers at a distance. On hand to meet the Sovereign Prince and the first South African Princess of Monaco was President Jacob Zuma who will also host a special lunch for the couple on Wednesday. Once this little trip is complete, then, the newlyweds can focus on their honeymoon.