the king and i

Last Wednesday,

I flew to New York

where John and I

had dinner with 

T.M. King Carl XVI Gustaf,

Queen Silvia,

and 

 H.R. H. Princess Madeleine

of Sweden.

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We attended the

Swedish-American

Chamber of Commerce

Farm to Fork

Gala.

I have been to many events in the city,

but never a black tie event

and certainly,

never with royalty.

(I tried every editor around and frustratingly,
cannot remove the red-eye.)

I'm sure we looked 

a little lost

as we navigated the entrance 

to the

Mandarin Oriental Hotel.

And it was surreal 

to walk the red carpet 

behind the rope

and be photographed.

We tried to pretend 

that we knew

what we were doing!

I swooned over the dresses

during the cocktail hour.

This was my favorite dress

of the night.

It was just different,

edgy,

youthful.

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The protocol for royalty

was fascinating.  

We were advised of many requirements

in an e-mail prior to the event.

For example,

 there were to be no photographs of the 

Royal Family,

unless they were on stage.

The Royal Table

Everyone rose as the 

Royal Family 

entered

and we were not seated again

until they were seated.

And so on.

I thought 

Princess Madeleine 

was simply stunning.

John and I were delighted 

with the group at our table.

The owners of

Aquavit

were gregarious

and 

we fell in love with 

multiple

Tony Award winner,

Nelle Nugent.

The evening's entertainment

was provided by the

Broadway Green Alliance.

Two consummate performers

from Wicked sang,

"For Good."

The performance was moving because of their

ethereal voices,

but even more so

as I thought of the recent loss of my friend.

I couldn't stop the tears that sneaked

silently

down my cheeks.

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It was a magical evening

filled with

champagne,

glamour,

elegance,

emotion,

celebrities,

 food,

entertainment,

and 

royalty.

What more could a girl want?