I am a career diplomat. In previous incarnations I worked closely with the Office of Protocol. For example, as a geographic director general responsible for our relations with north Asia and the Pacific, I had close collaboration on high-level visits to and from that area of the world. I developed a great respect for the expertise of colleagues within the Office of Protocol.
There are few of us, in fact, who are what I would call amateurs. Most have years of expertise in various areas, such as Andrea Hudson. But it also helps the office that it includes people like Charles Reeves, like me, who have also served abroad a great deal and who have seen standards of treatment of protocol in other countries. My most recent incarnation was in fact as ambassador to Jordan and Iraq.
I can tell you there is great diversity in terms of protocol around the world, but there are basic principles that remain the same under the Vienna Convention, for example, and under the principles of reciprocity of treatment—how our high-level visitors are treated when they are abroad.
Sorry, that's a rather long-winded answer to a basic question. I apologize for going on.