I came across this article on the Washington Post
At D.C. School, Royalty Comes Courting
Danish Princess, in U.S. to Promote Her Country, Dazzles Students in Northwest
By Sylvia Moreno
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, January 16, 2004; Page B03
Little girls fantasize they want to be one, and most fairy tales have one. Yesterday, a real live one came to visit Horace Mann Elementary School in the District.
Her Royal Highness Princess Alexandra of Denmark toured the school in Northwest Washington to get a look at the U.S. educational system. No gown, no crown, no slippers. This was a modern-day princess, svelte in a two-piece raw silk suit by Danish designer Henrik Hviid and wearing brown suede high heels decorated with heart-shaped rhinestones.
She switched fluidly between Danish and English and got the royal treatment: curtsies all around, students and teachers in their party best, a bouquet of fresh blue and white hydrangea and a huge greeting card made by Jane Menell's first-graders.
"The Jumping Jaguars are happy to have you visit our class," the hand-painted card read in block letters. "We hope you enjoy your time at Horace Mann."
The second-graders were not quite so restrained. "Shhhhhh!" one little girl hissed at another as they sat on the floor of the school library and Alexandra stepped around piles of library books lined up on the floor. "That's the princess, dummy!"
The 39-year-old Alexandra arrived in Washington on Monday on a nine-day U.S. visit to "promote Danish culture and Danish awareness in Washington and, obviously, in the States in general," she said.
She described her first visit to the nation's capital as "action-packed." Her schedule included lunch at the State Department, the premier of the Danish Royal Ballet's "Napoli" at the Kennedy Center, tea with first lady Laura Bush, private tours of the White House and Capitol, and meetings and social functions at the home of the Danish ambassador, Ulrik Federspiel.
The princess is to go to New York today. As honorary president of UNICEF Denmark, she is to participate in the UNICEF executive board meeting.
Alexandra, who was born in Hong Kong to a Chinese father and Austrian mother, married Prince Joachim of Denmark in 1995. They have two sons, ages 4 and 1. She has special interests in children and education, said Danish Embassy officials, who set up the tour of the school, which has two Danish students.
Principal Sheila Ford said about 12 percent of Mann's 228 students are categorized as international, many the sons and daughters of diplomats or employees of international financial institutions. Twenty-three languages are spoken by students at Mann, which has been named a Blue Ribbon School of Excellence by the U.S. Department of Education three times.
Alexandra said she thought it was important to see how the school system functions because the city is so diverse.
"You have many different nationalities and cultures that are brought together under one roof in a school, and you've shown here today how they can harmonize together," she said. "The students, they all interact very well together."
The princess said she admired the school for helping children who enroll without knowing English become bilingual.
"The school makes a big effort to realize that that's one of its main priorities, that students can understand each other," Alexandra said. "That's vital in being able to play with each other and to look after each other."
The princess and a small entourage visited a few classrooms, the science lab and the library. She asked students to describe a typical day, whether they "loved" going to school and to talk about what they were studying.
"By the end of the year, we're supposed to know the whole world," said fifth-grader Amirah Abdullah as she paused while taking a social studies test. "Now we're on South Africa."
The princess left good impressions all around, winning the approval of even the youngest fashion mavens.
"She had pretty shoes, and she sounded nice," said Dinah Gordon, 6, who helped hand the princess her bouquet.
"It was good," said Hitomi Shimada, 7. "This was the best day."
