The Italians serenade Nancy Pelosi, spying with the British and the French, plus international romanceBY GAIL SCOTT I Left My Heart in San Francisco Nancy Pelosi, the first female Speaker of the House, and 600 of her closest friends swooned while Tony Bennett and James Taylor serenaded her during the dinner hosted by Italian Ambassador Giovanni Castellaneta and his fashionable wife Lila. Other ready-to-party, high-profile female Democrats attending this "no-media-allowed" event included Sen. Barbara Boxer, Madeleine Albright and Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, who lives just up the street.
Swinging Doors After shocking diplomatic Washington with his abrupt resignation on Dec. 12 after less than two years as Saudi ambassador, Prince Turki al-Faisal returned to his office on January 8 with still no word on what's happening. Sources say Prince Turki's hopes to replace his ailing older brother as the Saudi foreign minister are all but dashed. Looks like Prince Bandar bin Sultan, former dean of the diplomatic corps here, will win this top job. King Abdullah's trusted foreign policy advisor Adel al-Jubeir, who is surprisingly not a royal family member, is expected to be en route to Washington as the next Saudi ambassador. Prince Turki's wife, Princess Nouf, remains in Europe. France, Britain Honor American Spy On the 100th anniversary of her birth, French Ambassador Jean-David Levitte and British Ambassador Sir David Manning paid tribute to the late Virginia Hall, a Baltimore native who many call the greatest female American spy. During WWII, she helped train and co-ordinate members of the French Resistance. She became a Member of the Order of the British Empire and was the only civilian woman to receive America's Distinguished Service Cross in World War II. Life Preserver Debbie Sigmund's "Innocents at Risk" charity, which raises awareness of the increased international trafficking of women and children, will hold its first major fundraiser on April 19 at the Library of Congress. Over the last three years, more than a dozen embassies have hosted monthly awareness meetings for this cause. In December, Ecuador's Fabiola Gallegos opened her handsome Kalorama residence to discuss this exploding problem and collect holiday gifts for Crossway Community, an innovative program for at-risk mothers and their children providing not only housing but preschool education and intensive life skills development. Honoring Moreno Former Colombian Ambassador Luis Alberto Moreno, now president of the Inter-American Development Bank, is the Latino Student Fund's special honoree for this year's gala on March 9. LSF Founder Rosalia Guttierrez-Huete Miller says, "This year's theme, "Son Caribeño" (or "Caribbean Beat"), is in honor of our Diplomatic Chairs Flavio and Minerva Espinal of the Dominican Republic, who are extremely dedicated to improving educational opportunities wherever they are." To help the Washington area's talented Latino students meet their educational dreams, call (202) 244-3438.
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