Elspeth A. Lodge

Will you be meeting and greeting the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge on their upcoming trip to Canada? Or on their brief stint in the U.S.?

Well, here’s what you need to know: below, proper etiquette and some insider tips that will make you a standout in the crowd.

1. Don’t act too familiar: A nice one pump handshake will do the trick, and not to firm, they have to shake a lot of hands! Will and Kate are young and modern, and, therefore, more laid back about social etiquette, however, they don’t want people trying to hug and kiss them. Can you imagine a hundreds of people you don’t even know hugging and kissing you? Yeah, not a very pleasant thought, right?
2. NO TEDDY BEARS: One of the most common gifts at royal meet and greets is the teddy bear, believe it or not, and the royal family hates them! Royal biographer Hugo Vickers said to CTV: “If a child has personally made a teddy bear for the royals, the youngster will no doubt be disappointed if they do not accept it. However, if the teddy bear is accepted, and it turns out to be a favourite of the child, he or she is likely to burst into tears moments after it has been taken away. For the royals it’s a no-win situation,” If you must bring a gift, he says FLOWERS are your best bet. Just make sure they are clean, dry and appropriately wrapped.
3. Don’t be creepy! “Members of the Royal Family have become experts at ignoring two things: crazy people and crazy gifts.” Says Vickers. “No one wants to carry around a tacky framed picture of himself as a child, especially after receiving it from a stranger, and the same holds true for William and Kate. They will strategically avoid ‘seeing’ certain gifts.”
   
4. If you try to converse, keep it brief. Imagine hundreds of people trying to tell you their life stories–you don’t want to, do you? There will be many eager fans and only so much time to meet them. So, when you converse keep it light, pleasant and brief.
5. Smile: Nothing will make the couple take to you like a friendly smile, so flash those pearly whites. You might even want to take the time to whiten your teeth before you arrive.
6. Appropriate attire: Use common sense. No cleavage hanging out, no short skirts or hot pants or Daisy Dukes. In other words, dress conservatively.

British media sources say it’s possible Prince Harry will serve in Afghanistan again, where he spent a brief 10 week stint as a forward air controller in 2007-2008:

“Defense chiefs and the Queen have given the go-ahead for Harry, a qualified Apache flier, to fulfil his dream of returning to battle the Taliban,” says the Sun.

If deployed, the Prince will provide air cover for ground troops and seek to destroy Taliban positions, reports say.

If his aircraft malfunctions, Harry will find himself in more danger than the average flier–not only will he be facing Taliban by himself, but he will be a “high value target” say officials:

“Harry will face extreme dangers,” an Army Air Corps source said to the Sun. “Should his Apache malfunction and be forced down the tables are seriously turned. It would be a race between the Taliban and coalition forces to get to the Prince. Every time he takes off this thought is bound to be in the back of his mind and it will take extreme bravery for him to see through his deployment.”

The Sun says the final decision regarding Harry’s deployment will be made early next year.