Prince William and Kate Middleton Celebrate 14th Wedding Anniversary Where It All Began

Prince William and Kate Middleton traveled to Scotland, where they’ll celebrate their 14th wedding anniversary on Tuesday.

It is the couple’s first away tour since Princess Kate’s cancer diagnosis, and a milestone for the Princess of Wales, who underwent a grueling course of chemotherapy this time last year.

Sources close to the couple say that William and Kate chose to visit the Isles of Mull and Iona in the Inner Hebrides despite it coinciding with their anniversary, which they have always celebrated privately.

Their decision to visit Scotland, where they met at University of St Andrews more than two decades ago, is a poignant reminder of how important the country is to the couple, who also hold the Scottish titles the Duke and Duchess of Rothesay.

After a day of engagements on the Isle of Mull on Tuesday, including a visit to a community hub in Tobermory, an area famous for its colorful buildings, the couple will visit a popular artisan market. They will also tour a working croft, where they will learn about farming and hospitality in the area and look at locally produced food on the land. On Tuesday evening, the couple who hosted a lavish wedding party at Buckingham Palace on April 29, 2011, will stay in a modest self-catering cottage (which is equipped with a kitchen).

“It says a lot about them,” says a longtime friend. “They could be doing something opulent but this is typically down to earth. They love being in nature, switching off and just being together. I think they both have a renewed sense of purpose and perspective after this past year.”

The traditional gift for 14 years of marriage is ivory, however, as Prince William is an advocate for wildlife protection who is vehemently opposed to the illegal ivory trade, it’s unlikely he will gift anything to do with elephants’ tusks. While he may give his wife a special and meaningful present following their turbulent year, the source added that the couple are unlikely to exchange lavish presents. “They are not showy in the slightest. In the past, I recall William gifting Kate a pair of binoculars which she absolutely loved.”

The focus of the two-day visit is on the island’s unique rural communities and nature. Being outdoors has been particularly important to Princess Kate during her recovery from cancer. A portrait of the princess, taken by Matt Porteous and released on the couple’s social media accounts amid her recovery, showed her standing against a willow tree, and a video released to mark the end of her chemotherapy treatment featured the Waleses enjoying the wild beaches and woodland of Norfolk where they recently spent the Easter holidays.

In a notable departure from the norm, the couple did not attend Easter Sunday service with King Charles and Queen Camilla and instead spent the celebration privately at their Norfolk home Anmer Hall with Kate’s parents, Carole and Michael Middleton.

Their Scottish tour will also see the couple visit the Isle of Iona which has a population of just 170 people and receives around 130,000 visitors each year. The Prince and Princess of Wales will join school children for an outdoor lesson in the ancient forest of Ardura, a place known for “gentle recreation, experiencing nature, finding solace and reflecting on cultural and personal links to our ancestors who used the forest before us,” according to the Mull & Iona Community Trust.

The royals are keen to learn more about how the rural communities live and how the Mull and Iona Ranger service is vital to the population.

On Tuesday, it was announced by Kensington Palace that the couple’s Royal Foundation will support and develop two community spaces on the Isle of Mull, Aros Hall, situated in the heart of the main street in Tobermory in the North of the island and Pennyghael Community Hall, in the rural Ross of Mull in the South. According to the palace, the halls will “provide vital social spaces where islanders can come together.”