SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS RADIO) – Following the news of Queen Elizabeth II's death, former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown reminisced on his experience meeting the late queen.
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Queen Elizabeth II visited California in 1983 when Brown was Speaker of the House. During the 10 day trip, the queen and Prince Philip traveled around the state from Sacramento to San Francisco to Yosemite National Park and down to Southern California.
"She came to California and I think her first stop was to Sacramento to meet the legislators and she had with her, of course, her significant other. She stood in front of the chambers and appropriately acknowledged all of the existence of all of our members," Brown told KCBS Radio's Holly Quan.
"I chatted with her. I walked out to bring her in, walked her into the chambers, walked her around, did all the things that we do with significant visitors," he remembered.
Brown said the queen was truly curious about the inner workings of the California government. "She kept asking me questions about what is this and who is that and why are they there," he said. "It was not a run-of-the-mill tour."
Queen Elizabeth II was very regal, Brown said. "She was very charming, but very focused on whoever she was immediately talking to. She looked at them, she didn't look around."
The queen passed away on Thursday at Balmoral Castle in Scotland after 70 years on the throne. She is Britain's longest-reigning monarch.
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