King Juan Carlos is on an official visit to the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait this week, looking to further cement ties with the Persian Gulf nations and promote economic cooperation.

The King has for decades been keen on developing a personal relationship with Middle Eastern royals to lobby for economic opportunities for Spanish firms.

Over the weekend Queen Sofia, who is a big fan of classical music, attended a performance of Verdi’s Requiem at the Toledo Cathedral in honor of the deal of painter El Greco.

And this evening, Her Majesty was in the Balearic Islands at the Mallorca Cathedral for another concert, this one to benefit drug treatment and abuse prevention.

Also in recent weeks, the Royal Household announced that Queen Sofia will have a new chief of staff beginning in October — Arturo Luis Coello Villanueva.

Villanueva will replace José Cabrera García, who will retire after three decades in service to the Crown.

The gossip surrounding the Spanish Royal Family grew dramatically this week with the release of a new book by Spanish historian and Royal chronicler Pilar Urbano.

Essentially she says the King tried to oust former Prime Minister Adolfo Suárez, who recently died.

As a result, she says, the Don Juan Carlos inadvertently sparked the infamous 1981 coup attempt, which the King is credited with having put down.

Spain’s Royal Household and its political establishment have dismissed the allegations and have come in the King’s defense.

Also this week media outlets reported reforms aimed at making litigation against Queen Sofia, Prince Felipe and Princess Letizia go straight to the Supreme Court.

King Juan Carlos cannot be taken to court. He is, by the Constitution, inviolable.

King Juan Carlos this week awarded Enrique V. Iglesias by inducting him into the Order of the Golden Fleece.

Iglesias, of Spanish and Uruguayan citizenship, is the Ibero-American Secretary General, and has worked for closer relationships between Iberia and Latin America.

Queen Sofia, Prince Felipe, Princess Letizia and Infanta Elena were also on hand at the ceremony, held at the Madrid Royal Palace’s Hall of Columns.

Queen Sofia also visited the Royal Palace this week to attend the Royal Guard’s Changing of the Guard ceremony.

The ceremony is a weekly event popular with tourists and other visitors.

King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia this week attended the State Funeral of former Prime Minister Suárez González at Almudena Cathedral in Madrid.

Prince Felipe and Princess Letizia were also in attendance.

Suárez was the frist Prime Minister that King Juan Carlos appointed after the death of military ruler Francisco Franco.

Your blog host was recently a guest on Voice of America’s Independence West current affairs show speaking about the Spanish Monarchy. Click here to listen.

Queen Sofia is spending most of this week on an official visit to Guatemala, where she is meeting with country leaders and local Spaniards.

Like many of her trips abroad, Queen Sofia is visiting projects and facilities backed by Spanish development aid funds. She also brought medicines with her on a Spanish Air Force jet.

Also this week King Juan Carlos swore in the new magistrate of the Constitutional Court, Ricardo Enríquez Sancho, at Zarzuela Palace.

Prince Felipe stopped in Brazil this week to meet with local officials and business leaders.

His Royal Highness made stops in São Paulo after being in Chile for the inauguration of President Michelle Bachelet.

In Brazil, Don Felipe also met with leaders of the Israeli community.

The Spanish Royals, like the government, have been working to promote closer ties with the Jewish diaspora.

King Juan Carlos, for example, recently met with a Sephardi Jewish leader.

Many Spanish Jews were ejected from Spain centuries ago.

Members of the Royal Family have made Brazil a key stop in their effort to promote greater economic ties between both countries.

Today Queen Sofia visited the stories city of Toledo to help launch a major exhibit of works by painter El Greco, who once worked in Toledo.

In the coming days, Queen Sofia is scheduled to visit Guatemala. She has recently made trips to the Philippines and Bolivia.

King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia, plus Infanta Elena and Princes Letizia attended services today at Almudena Cathedral in Madrid to remember the 10th anniversary of the Madrid train bombings.

Members of the Royal Family met with government officials, first responders, victims and their families.

Foreign observers have expressed interest at how willing the Spanish Royal Family is to break protocol to comfort grieving families.

Prince Felipe was not at the ceremonies today. He was instead meeting with Chile’s outgoing President Sebastián Piñera and helping inaugurate new President Michelle Bachelet.

Prince Felipe has for year’s been the King’s representatives at presidential inaugurations throughout Latin America.