Camilla Comes Into Her Own

Nov. 5, 2005 — -- She's not Princess Di.

But after her trip to the United States with her husband, Prince Charles, Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, may be finally appreciated for just being Camilla, some royal watchers say.

She warmed the hearts of those affected by Hurricane Katrina when she and Prince Charles toured the damaged Ninth Ward.

"You have to see it with your own eyes to believe it," she said. "Not even the television pictures can show how terrible it is."

And the duchess's empathy did not go unnoticed.

"This is huge," said New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin. "I can't tell you how much I appreciate them being here."

By most, the trip is seen as a successful public relations move. But it has not matched the interest sparked by Charles and Diana's first visit as man and wife when the princess famously danced with actor John Travolta at the White House. Despite the ambivalence of Americans, royal watchers say Camilla's success should be measured differently than that of the stunning, late princess.

"She'll settle for being accepted," said Duncan Larcombe, the royal correspondent for The Sun, who maintained that the duchess of Cornwall didn't come to win American hearts. "She's 58 years old. She is never going to be fairly compared to a 30-year-old princess in her prime and a very beautiful woman. Camilla's got different qualities."

A handful of people have shown up at events to protest Camilla. They brought signs with Diana's image on them. But experts say the opposition has not been vocal enough to be of much significance.

Nevertheless, glamour may have been on Camilla's mind. She reportedly brought 50 different outfits for the trip, which, if true, is costing British taxpayers roughly $445,000.

Pressure to look good, Lacrombe said, has been coming from on high.

"For ten years now … at least ten years, there has been this Project Camilla -- to change her from a woman who Diana famously called "the rottweiler," to a woman who could be queen."