During their first official trip to the South Asian countries, and while they were in India, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William and Catherine, visited the Taj Mahal, Agra, India, on Saturday, April 16, and posed for a photo sitting on the famous “Diana bench”, named after the prince mother, Princess Diana, posed alone in the same spot during her 1992 visit to the country.
The photograph was released by Kensington Palace, and it shows the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge sitting on the bench with the Taj Mahal in the background. It evokes memories of Princess Diana’s picture, but some believe both of them have two different moods.
The photo taken on Saturday shows Catherine and William sitting close to each other looking happy and in love, meanwhile, in the 1992 photo Diana is sitting by herself, showing a lonely figure. It is known that back then her marriage to Prince Charles was under strain; they would separate formally that same year and divorce four years later.
Even though there is an obvious link between the Taj Mahal and Diana, some sources that were close to the couple say that the visit to the monument was not meant because of such link, but because the couple was interested in creating their own memories. The source added that Princess Diana’s visit to the Taj Mahal was not a particularly strong memory.
“He has many other memories of his mother that are much more important to him. The visit was about creating new memories for their family,” the source said.
The couple’s tour guide told reporters after their visit that Kate had established to be more focused on the romantic history of the Taj Mahal than anything else because she thought it was the perfect place to visit ahead of their wedding anniversary.
The royal couple had already visited Bhutan, Mumbai, New Delhi and Kaziranga National Park in the Indian state of Assam.
Source: CNN