Prince Felipe Pushes Madrid’s Candidacy

Prince Felipe arrived in Buenos Aires this week to help boost Madrid’s chances of becoming the Olympic host city for 2020.

His Royal Highness, the Prince of Asturias, is the honorary head of Madrid’s delegation, has been assisting rehearsals and will be on hand for the city’s presentation over the weekend before the International Olympic Committee.

© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos
© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos

Princess Letizia will join her husband in Argentina later this week, the Royal Household said.

Meanwhile, King Juan Carlos today met with Bolivian President Evo Morales at Zarzuela Palace.

© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos
© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos

Gossip about the Royal Family continues amid the ongoing corruption investigation surrounding the Duke of Palma, the King’s son-in-law.

Media outlets reported this week that Don Juan Carlos loaned his daughter, Infanta Cristina, Duchess of Palma, more than 1 million euros to buy a mansion in Barcelona.

Charity, Sports and Foreign Trip For Royals

Queen Sofia today visited a food bank in Palma de Mallorca in the Balearic Islands where she proposed collecting items from the increasing number of cruise ships that dock.

© Govern de les Illes Balears
Her Majesty met with local political and non-profit leaders.
© Govern de les Illes Balears

Her foundation helps fund dozens of food banks around Spain.

Earlier this week King Juan Carlos was at Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in Madrid for the Santiago Bernabéu Trophy.

© Real Madrid
© Real Madrid

And earlier this month Prince Felipe visited Paraguay to help inaugurate incoming President Horacio Manuel Cartes Jara.

© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos
© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos

Prince Felipe also met with members of the Spanish community in Paraguay and with outgoing President Federico Franco.

His Royal Highness arrives at Government Palace.
His Royal Highness arrives at Government Palace.

Making Their Presence Felt

Members of the Spanish Royal Family are making their presence felt while on vacation in the Balearic Islands.

Today Queen Sofia participated in a meeting of a charitable organization and visited some of the projects around Palma de Mallorca.

© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos
© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos

King Juan Carlos, who has been absent from some of the family get togethers, met with Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy at Marivent Palace in Palma last week.

No doubt the diplomatic row between Spain and the United Kingdom over Gibraltar came up.

© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos
© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos

Earlier this month Queen Sofia and King Juan Carlos, plus Prince Felipe, Princess Letizia and Infanta Elena presided over the traditional dinner at Almudaina Palace for local Balearic Island leaders.

© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos
© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos

Infanta Cristina, Duchess of Palma, is said to be moving to Switzerland for work. Her husband remains under investigation for alleged misuse of public funds.

Royals On Vacation

Members of the Royal Family have relocated to the Balearic Islands for vacation, as has become tradition.

News outlets from around the world have published pictures of Queen Sofia, Princess Letizia, Infanta Elena, Infanta Cristina and their children.

Click here for pictures from the Daily Mail.

Click here for pictures from Hola.

Today Prince Felipe and Princess Letizia visited an old estate in Mallorca with their daughters, Infanta Leonor and Infanta Sofia.

© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos
© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos

Over the weekend Prince Felipe was on hand for the awards ceremony for the well known and much anticipated King’s Cup sailing tournament.

© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos
© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos

Late last month the Queen and her son Prince Felipe met with emergency workers, also in Mallorca, to show solidarity with their work, including fighting wild fires.

© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos
© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos

Prince Felipe was in Palma de Mallorca in mid-July before vacation time for a meeting of European foreign ministers at Almudaina Palace, which is near Marivent Palace, where the Royal Family stays during summer weeks away.

© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos
© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos

Perhaps the most notable moment of the Royal Family’s time in the Balearic Islands so far was Queen Sofia wearing a handbag with pictures of her grandkids on it.

King and Queen, Prince and Princess Deploy To Comfort Accident Victims

King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia immediately deployed this week to the Santiago de Compostela area in the Galicia region to comfort victims of the high speed train derailment, which killed dozens of people.

© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos
© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos

Their Majesties, especially the Queen, are known for their ability to connect with and comfort people in mourning.

Prince Felipe and Princess Letizia deployed on Friday to University Hospital in Santiago, one of the facilities where the injured were taken.

© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos
© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos

They also met with area residents and rescue workers during their visit.

King Juan Carlos On Work Trip To Morocco

King Juan Carlos arrived in Morocco today for a work visit, including meetings with King Mohammed VI.

King Juan Carlos meets with members of the Moroccan Royal Family. © Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos
King Juan Carlos meets with members of the Moroccan Royal Family.
© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos

Both monarchs have a relatively close relationship, even if both countries sometimes disagree over immigration issues and Spain’s North African enclaves of Melilla and Ceuta.

In the mid 1970s Prince Juan Carlos, acting as Head of State near the death of dictator Francisco Franco, decided against fighting Moroccans over the territory now known as Western Sahara.

© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos
© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos

His Majesty has been relatively busy in recent weeks. Last week he presided over a meeting of the newly-reformed National Security Council.

Meeting at Zarzuela Palace.
Meeting at Zarzuela Palace.

Queen Sofia, meanwhile, was in Asturias today for a tourism promotion trip. She also encountered protests from miners, upset about recent cuts in subsidies.

20130715 inauguracion parador corias 01

King Juan Carlos Presides Over Economy Meeting

King Juan Carlos last week for the first time ever presided over a meeting of the permanent commission of a government advisory body on economic and social issues.

© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos
© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos

The meeting was evidence of the Monarch’s concern over the country’s precarious economic condition.

Don Juan Carlos is also in the midst of working to restore the monarchy’s standing among many in the public, who have taken a more dim view amid recent scandals.

He said that in current times Spaniards “live in decisive times for developing solutions that allow growth and employment, to offer opportunities to the young and the unemployed — who are the most bitter face of the crisis — and to preserve social cohesion and consolidate successes.”

Also last week, Prince Felipe was in Switzerland trying to sell the International Olympic Committee on Madrid’s candidacy to host the 2020 games.

Prince Felipe during his presentation, showing a picture of his parents as sport enthusiasts.  © Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos
Prince Felipe during his presentation, showing a picture of his parents as sport enthusiasts.
© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos

The Queen Doing What She Does So Well

Queen Sofia visited resident and rescue workers in flood impacted areas of northeastern Spain last week.

© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos
© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos

The Queen is known for wanting to visit and comfort people affected by natural or manmade disasters.

In doing so, she’s following the reigning philosophy of her mother, Frederica of Hanover, Queen of Greece.

© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos
© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos

Meanwhile, in a gaggle with reporters during a military ceremony last week King Juan Carlos called liars those who say he’s ill.

He said his issues were simply a question of screws, meaning, small adjustments.

© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos
© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos

And Prince Felipe and Princess Letizia presided over an award ceremony and meeting of the leadership of the Prince of Girona Foundation.

As heirs to the Spanish throne, Their Royal Highnesses are not only the Prince and Princess of Asturias but also of Girona, with Don Felipe as heir to the thrown of Aragon.

© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos
© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos

Other titles used by the crown prince include Duke of Montblanc for Catalonia, Count of Cervera for Valencia, Lord of Balaguer for Mallorca and Prince of Viana for Navarre.

Royal Family Members In Whirlwind Of Activity

Members of the Spanish Royal Family have been busy with agenda items over the past several weeks.

Today King Juan Carlos met with Paraguayan President-elect Horacio Manuel Cartes Jara at Zarzuela Palace in Madrid.

© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos
© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos

Last week, the King presided over a meeting of the permanent members of the Council of State, an advisory body.

© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos
© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos

On Friday Queen Sofia presided over a gala concert and gathering for mezzosoprano Teresa Berganza at the Royal Theater in Madrid, across the Plaza de Oriente from the Royal Palace.

© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos
© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos

And Prince Felipe recently presided over North Atlantic Treaty Organization military exercises in the Valencia region.

© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos
© Casa de S.M. el Rey / Borja Fotógrafos

Members of the Royal Family will soon likely head to Marivent Palace in Mallorca for summer vacation.

King’s Father Honored

Members of the Royal Family, the King’s extended family and aides celebrated yesterday the 100th anniversary of the birth of Don Juan de Borbón, the Count of Barcelona.

20130620 misa centenario don juan 05

The Count of Barcelona, son of King Alfonso XIII and Queen Victoria Eugenia, was technically next in line for the throne but never reigned.

Soon after dictator Francisco Franco picked King Juan Carlos as his successor, Don Juan resigned his dynastic rights in favor of his son, but only after knowing Spain would make a return to Democracy.