1 Princess Diana, minus estranged husband Prince Charles and her recent Madonna-like hair style, continued her return to public life Monday, arriving in Tokyo for a four-day visit.
2 Hoping to emphasize her role as a working member of the British royal family, Diana wore a conservative pink suit and pearls for her arrival. Her hair was back to the more familiar short -- and dry -- style.
3 Diana unveiled a brushed-back, fresh-out-of-the-shower hair style during a trip to New York last week, where she attended an awards ceremony held by the Council of Fashion Designers of America.
4 The glittery setting and surprise wet look grabbed headlines in London, where the princess' return to public life is being watched closely.
5 Diana and Charles separated in 1992, and she announced the following year that she would drastically cut down on public appearances. She has recently begun to re-emerge, however.
6 In contrast with her splashy New York appearance, Diana's Japan trip is designed to bolster her more serious royal image, and very little glitz is on the agenda.
7 The first stop on Diana's schedule was to be Tokyo's National Children's Hospital, where she was to meet with some of the patients and give a speech after having lunch.
8 Because she is here as patron of the British Red Cross, the 33-year-old Princess of Wales is also scheduled to visit several other Japanese public health institutions and make a brief stop at the headquarters of its counterpart, the Japan Red Cross.
9 A stopover in the earthquake-ravaged city of Kobe had been expected, but was dropped from her itinerary at the last minute. British Embassy spokesmen said the trip was omitted because of concerns that security for the princess would be a burden on already-strained local officials.
10 Before leaving on Thursday, Diana is also scheduled to have tea with Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko, who is also a Red Cross patron, and lay a wreath at a cemetery for Commonwealth soldiers in Yokohama, just south of Tokyo.
11 Diana first visited Japan in 1986 when she was at the height of her international popularity, and hundreds of thousands turned out to see her. She came again in 1990 to attend Akihito's enthronement ceremonies.
12 This time, the Jan. 17 earthquake which left more than 5,200 people dead has dominated Japan's attentions. But on Monday, television talk shows featured her arrival prominently. One network scheduled a one-hour, prime-time special entitled 'The Truth About Princess Diana and the Love Story of the Century.'
13 As this is her first visit without Prince Charles, palace officials here have appeared a bit confused as to how she should be received.
14 Though Buckingham Palace is calling it a 'working' visit, the Japanese Foreign Ministry says she is not here at the invitation of the government and has thus not included government leaders on her itinerary.
15 The imperial tea wasn't added to the schedule until Friday, just days before her arrival, and palace officials said Monday there were no plans for Diana to meet with Crown Prince Naruhito and Crown Princess Masako, both of whom studied at Oxford and are fluent English speakers.

The glittery setting and surprise wet look grabbed headlines in London , where the princess ' return to public life is being watched closely .
being watched closely
Why is she being watched?