It’s the final day of The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s royal tour of Pakistan, and most will agree that it’s been a huge success. In fact, the only thing that could have made it better would have been a photo opportunity with some adorable puppies. As if by magic, that’s exactly what we've got.
Kate and Willliam are at Islamabad’s Army Canine Centre today meeting with the puppies and dogs who live there, as well as the handlers, to see a training session and agility activities. The appointment signifies one of the UK’s many connections to the country: the British army has trained and advised the Pakistan Armed Forces on how to use dogs to sniff out explosives.
Afterwards, Kate and William will visit a military post with views over the Hindu Kush and Tora Bora mountains, flying over the Khyber Pass, a route between Pakistan and Afghanistan. The flight comes just one day after a dramatic incident. Yesterday, their plane was forced to abandon its target of Islamabad and return to Lahore, thanks to a ‘fierce electrical storm’.
William asked travelling media if they were OK following the turbulence, joking, ‘I was flying.’
The pair will depart for the UK on Friday night, having arranged the itinerary around their young family. Kate and William are said to have wanted to see their children – Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis – before school on Monday, and be back in time to spend the weekend with them. The tour may have been short, but the couple have attended several functions and meetings, including an appointment with Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan, an expedition to a glacier to learn about climate change and a visit to the same hospital that Princess Diana attended as part of her own trips. She went to the country of an official basis in 1991, returning in 1996 and 1997 for personal humanitarian missions.
READ MORE: Kate and William's plane's emergency landing
READ MORE: Kate Middleton Pays Tribute to Princess Diana With Her Pakistan Tourdrobe
Kate Middleton and Princess Diana Pakistan
1 of 1017 October 2019
For the fourth day of the royal tour, Kate arrived in Lahore wearing a white shalwar kameez designed by Gul Ahmed and a shawl designed by Maheen Khan.
2 of 104 July 1996
Princess Diana wore a similar beaded shalwar kameez while attending a dinner at London's Dorchester Hotel in aid of the Shaukat Khanum Memorial Hospital in Pakistan.
3 of 1016 October 2019
While visiting Chitral in the Hindu Kush region, near the Afghan border, Kate and Will were presented with traditional Chitrali hats, which Kate immediately tried on.
4 of 10September 1991
On her first solo trip to Pakistan in 1991, Princess Diana was also gifted a traditional Chitrali hat to try on.
5 of 1015 October 2019
While spending the day with children from three local schools in Margalla Hills National Park, Kate wore this beautiful cornflower blue shalwar kameez — Pakistan's national dress — and a dupatta by Pakistani designer Maheen Khan. She complemented the look with beige Russell and Bromley flats, after changing out of £23.99 New Look sandals.
6 of 1023 May 1997
Kate's royal blue look is a very similar colour to this embroidered top worn by Princess Diana in 1997 while touring Imran Khan's charity cancer hospital with Khan and his wife Jemima in Lahore, Pakistan.
7 of 1015 October 2019
For an engagement with the prime minister of Pakistan, Kate donned this stunning emerald green tunic by Catherine Walker, a favourite designer of Princess Diana.
8 of 10September 1991
Kate's green tunic mirrors this green coat-dress, also by Catherine Walker, worn by Princess Diana while on a visit to the Badshahi Mosque in Lahore in 1991.
9 of 1014 October 2019
While stepping off the plane in Pakistan, Kate wore this stunning ombré blue dress designed by Catherine Walker with a pair of matching trousers. This combo was inspired by the traditional shalwar kameez, an outfit that features a loose-fitting tunic with trousers underneath.
10 of 1022 June 1996
Princess Diana wore a very similar look while visiting the Shaukat Khanum Hospital In Lahore in 1996.