Official visits to Romania, Austria and the Holy See

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'I bow to your knowledge': Prince Charles gushes about his wife Camilla's fine taste in wine as the pair toast to the end of their tour of Europe
Prince Charles and Camilla hear Holocaust survivor stories | Daily Mail Online
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Prince Charles tells Holocaust survivors how his 'amazing' grandmother hid Jewish family during war
Prince Charles tells Holocaust survivors how his 'amazing' grandmother hid Jewish family during war

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Camilla treated to special performance by Vienna's celebrated Spanish Riding School
Duchess of Cornwall: Camilla enjoys Spanish Riding School performance in Vienna | Royal | News | Express.co.uk
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'My wife is a great red wine enthusiast!' Charles jokes at Austrian vineyard with Camilla
Prince Charles jokes Camilla is a 'great red wine enthusiast' on Austria visit | Royal | News | Express.co.uk
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Charles and Camilla meet holocaust survivors in Vienna as Euro tour comes to an end
Charles and Camilla meet holocaust survivors in Vienna | Royal | News | Express.co.uk
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A sugar lump, Camilla? How sweet of you: Duchess feeds stallion during visit to Vienna's Spanish Riding School
Camilla feeds stallion during Vienna riding school visit | Daily Mail Online

[Jennifer]

Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall meet the Pope

Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall visited the Vatican as they neared the end of their nine-day European tour. Their visit included an audience with Pope Francis, as well as a visit to the Vatican archives where they were able to inspect documents written by and relating to Prince Charles' ancestors amongst others. The couple exchanged gifts with the Pontiff, giving him a hamper of produce from the Highgrove Estates; amongst the gifts given in return were copies of his writings on climate change bound in red leather.

Climate change is clearly one area that Prince Charles and the Pontiff are in accord on. The audience, which was held in a study within the Pope Paul VI Audience Hall building and lasted between 20 and 30 minutes. The meeting was extremely cordial and perhaps more relaxed, it is not the first time the Royal couple have met a Pope – they also met Pope Benedict XVI in 2009. The Pope is currently Head of the Roman Catholic Church and the Prince heir to Head of the Commonwealth. It perhaps fits then, that the Pope should encourage Prince Charles by saying "Wherever you go, may you be a man of peace" to which Prince Charles replied, "I will certainly try".

The relationship between the Papacy and the English throne has not always been so amicable, and Prince Charles and Camilla saw historical examples of this when they visited the Vatican's Secret Archives earlier in the day. The rare manuscripts, not open to the public, are kept in Sala Sistina of the Vatican Library. On arrival at the archives, they were met by Archbishop Jean-Louis Bruguès, Segretario Generale, Archivist of the Vatican Secret Archives and Librarian of the Holy Roman Church.

Read more:
Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall meet the Pope – Royal Central

Charles and Camilla begin #RoyalVisitAustria

On Wednesday, the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall started the last leg of their nine-day European royal tour; they left Rome for Vienna, Austria's capital. This royal tour has been considered a charm offensive pre-Brexit. In Vienna, the red carpet was rolled out for them as dignitaries, a guard of honour consisting of soldiers from the Primo Rataglione Granatieri di Sardegna, played a fanfare greeted their arrival at the International Airport

In the Holy See, they met His Holiness Pope Francis and then President Sergio Mattarella at the presidential palace. Before Rome, they spent time in Florence. You can read about the Duchess' visit to a former mafia boss' villa last weekend.

After landing in Austria, the royals paid a visit to the famous pastry and chocolaterie Cafe Demel. They observed a cake-making display and the Duchess watched a wedding cake being made. Later during their visit, they will tour the Wiener Musikverein and sit in on a rehearsal by the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. They will also view original manuscripts by composers including Mozart and Brahms.

Read more:
Charles and Camilla begin #RoyalVisitAustria – Royal Central

[sandy]

I wonder if Charles was being sarcastic.  I think he's the wine expert in the family

[Jennifer]

Charles and Camilla conclude European tour in Austria

Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall concluded their European tour with a visit to Austria, and in a series of visits both individually and as a pair, Prince Charles let slip at least one area where Camilla is better than him at doing something!

Their day started at the Jewish Museum, where the couple met Holocaust survivors and listened to their stories of camps, their families and rebuilding their lives after the war. In turn, Prince Charles told of his paternal grandmother, Princess Alice of Battenberg. She married Prince Andrew of Greece, and Prince Philip was their son. She was also the sister of Earl Mountbatten, Prince Charles' favourite uncle. During World War II, she stayed in Athens and sheltered Jewish refugees. Though deaf, she could lip-read both English and German, thanks to this work she is recognised as "Righteous Among the Nations" by Israel's Holocaust memorial institution, Yad Vashem.

Following their visit there, the Royal couple dropped in on a rehearsal of the Vienna Philharmonic at the Musikverein. Earlier this year, Gustavo Dudamel became the youngest conductor to conduct the famous New Year's Day concert. They then continued to a nearby family vineyard, where Prince Charles confessed to not being able to grasp what wine connoisseurs meant when they talked about various elements of a wine's taste. However, according to the Prince, the Duchess is well versed in the lingua vinum – a "great red wine enthusiast!"

Read more:
Charles and Camilla conclude European tour in Austria – Royal Central
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Duchess of Cornwall enjoys an equestrian performance at a riding school in Vienna

On the last day of the nine-day royal tour of Europe, the Duchess of Cornwall spent some time at a prestigious Spanish riding school, the Winter Riding School in central Vienna. She was shown around the school and stables by its director, Elisabeth Gurtler. Camilla has long been a fan of equestrian sports. After her tour, she was treated to a special performance done in her honour.

The performance was done in the classic 'equitation in the Renaissance tradition of the Haute Ecole,' according to the Daily Express. Winter Riding School is listed on UNESCO's list of intangible cultural heritage of humanity.

After the performance, Her Royal Highness, with sugar lumps in hand, greeted and fed the horses. Of the entertainment, she told the Daily Express: "It was wonderful."

Read more:
Duchess of Cornwall enjoys an equestrian performance at a riding school in Vienna – Royal Central