Meghan Markle traveled incognito to New York City in 2019 to escape media attention. Feeling unsafe as a royal, she found comfort in bookstores.

Meghan Markle, wife of Prince Harry, had sneaked away to New York City in 2019 to seek the “safety” she was craving. Notably, Meghan and Prince Harry were working as senior royals at the time. However, she had complaints about the media scrutiny that came along with the title.

According to media reports, the Duchess of Sussex went incognito for her NYC trip to watch Serena Williams play in the US Open.

“For me, sneaking to New York five years ago was a really big deal,” the ‘Suits’ actress said, describing how she had worn a hat and kept her head down while visiting a bookstore, according to Town and Country.

“I was still so uncomfortable being out in the world. The safety of what I was craving, I knew I could find in a bookstore,” Town and Country quoted Meghan Markle as saying at the opening of the Montecito bookstore, Godmothers.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex withdrew from their duties as senior members of the royal family in January 2020. The couple, who are now parents to two children, relocated to California shortly thereafter and have since given up their official residence in the UK.

The recent opening of the local bookstore, established by literary agent Jennifer Rudolph Walsh and entrepreneur Victoria Jackson, drew a host of celebrities this weekend.

Among the attendees were Meghan and Harry, Oprah Winfrey, Ellen DeGeneres, Portia de Rossi, Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos, Jane Lynch, and others.

The name for the new community space was introduced by Harry during the book party for his memoir, “Spare”.

At that event, the Duke of Sussex recognized the support he had received from Winfrey, Jackson, and Jennifer Rudolph Walsh, affectionately referring to them as his “fairy godmothers.”

Godmothers features an “Our Local Authors” display where Harry’s memoir and Markle’s children’s book, “The Bench”, live, along with titles from Rob Lowe, Cameron Diaz, Winfrey, DeGeneres and others.

Godmothers is nestled on a street corner in Montecito, which is home to celebs such as Ariana Grande, Jennifer Aniston, Adam Levine, Gwyneth Paltrow and more A-list stars.