On September 21, 2011, Their Royal Highness Prince Philippe and Princess Mathilde of Belgium visited the town of Zwalm this afternoon. During their day trip the royal couple met with local dignitaries, viewed the art exhibit, Art & Zwalm, and visited a care center. To view photos please click here and here.
The world’s biggest pain in the okole, H.R.H. Prince Laurent of Belgium, continues to embarrass himself on an international level.
So what did he do this time? During the Imperial wedding festivities in Germany last month the Belgian prince, who looks like Peter Griffin from the show Family Guy, had a hissy fit prior to and during the charity concert held at the Opera House in Berlin. According to onlookers, the prince refused to walk the red carpet in front of the Opera House like everyone else.
Excusez-moi! Je suis le Prince Laurent de Belgique! Je mérite un meilleur siège!
Arriving 32 minutes late in he sped past attendees in his jet black Porsche and then proceeded to park in handicapped zone. After barely making it up the short flight of stairs he was none too pleased with his seating assignment inside the Opera House. So he complained like a baby, but alas he didn’t get his way.
Source: RTL.be and private sources.
On June 22, 2011, Their Royal Highnesses Prince Philippe and Princess Mathilde of Belgium arrived in New York City for a nine-day economic mission to the United States. The royal couple travelled along with several hundred Belgian businessman in the hopes of strengthening economic relations with U.S. companies.
According to the newspaper, Nieuwsblad.be:
The Prince, Princess Mathilde, Minister of Foreign Affairs Steven Vanackere (CD & V) and Walloon Minister of Economy Jean-Claude Marcourt (PS) on Wednesday walked through Central Park. They also took some time to stop and eat some local Belgian waffles.
Prince Philip on Thursday morning brings a visit to Swift, the company that manages a super database of financial transactions in the world and has an establishment in the Walloon Brabant La Hulpe. Princess Matilde will have breakfast at the same time at a branch of the Belgian bakery chain Le Pain Quotidien. Later, the couple will visit Ground Zero.
The majority of the delegation consists of some three hundred business people representing 203 Belgian companies. The companies include sectors from pharmaceutical, biotechnology and ICT. Representatives from the financial sector and travel along the Belgian universities.
The next stop on this whirlwind economic mission trip is Washington, D.C. from June 26-29 and ending in Boston on June 30.
To view photos please click the links here and here.
Source: Nieuwsblad.be
Photo courtesy of: Jason Kempin/Getty Images
There were some speculations as to whether or not Their Majesties King Albert and Queen Paola of Belgium would attend the princely wedding in Monaco on July 1 and 2, 2011.
Well, it has been confirmed. According Monaco-Matin, via the Palais Princier de Monaco, the king and queen will attend along with H.R.H. Prince Philippe and Princess Mathilde of Belgium, T.R.H.s Prince Laurent and Princess Claire, and H.R.H. Princess Astrid.
To view the updated royal guest-list please click here and scroll down.
Also, to watch a video about the wedding preparations please click the here. Push the “play” button and roughly a minute and a half into the program the information about the wedding will begin. If you are having trouble viewing the program, all I can say is sorry. 🙂 Finally, the link will most likely air the princely wedding on July 1 and 2 so you might want to bookmark it if you live outside of France and Monaco.
Source: Monaco Matin
On May 19, 2011, T.R.H.s Prince Philippe and Princess Mathilde of Belgium attended the Queen Elisabeth Music Competition in Brussels, Belgium. Founded in 1957 this famous competition, named after Queen Elisabeth of Belgium, is solely focuses on classical music. The events in the competition range from “… piano, voice, violin, and composition” and is “…considered the world over to be one of the most prestigious and most difficult in existence.”
To learn more about this competition please visit their official website here.
Sources: Concours Reine Elisabeth.be Queen Elisabeth Competition, Wikipedia
Photo courtesy of: Daylife by Bruno Fahy/AFP/GettyImages
On May 17, 2011, Their Majesties King Albert II and Queen Paola of Belgium visited the Museum aan de Stroom (MAS) in Antwerp, Belgium.
The MAS museum was designed by Neutelings Riedijk Architects and completed in mid-2010. According to the official website for the museum, MAS.be, the structure of the building:
…immediately catches your eye. Antwerp’s latest tower reminds us of the 16th-Century storehouses typical of the city of Antwerp and its port. The MAS is designed as a giant storehouse with stacked containers or “boxes”. These museum boxes are stacked in such a way that they create a spiral tower. As you ascend, you get a constantly changing view of the city. A breathtaking 360° panorama awaits you on the roof.
Since its initial completion it took sometime to move the permanent collections into the museum which officially opened today thus the reason Their Majesties visit. The museum houses, “… ethnological, maritime, ethnic and art historic collections…”
To learn more about the Museum aan de Stroom please visit their site here. To view photos of His Majesty King Albert and Queen Paola of Belgium at the MAS this afternoon please click the link here.
Source: MAS.be Photo courtesy of: Nieuwsblad.be by Belga
According to the Belgian online newspaper, Knack.be, T.M.s King Albert II and Queen Paola of Belgium will attend the beatification of the late Pope John Paul II on May 1, 2011. Also, T.R.H.s Prince Felipe and Princess Letizia of Asturias will attend on behalf of the Spanish royal family, according to the newspaper, Rome Reports.
It is unknown at this time if other members of various royal and princely houses will attend, such as Luxembourg and Monaco, but I have a feeling the latter two houses will confirm in the next few days so stay tuned.
To view a video report regarding the royal attendance please click the link: Video
For more information about the beatification of the late Pope John Paul II please click the links here and here.
Source: Rome Repors and Knack.be
The Royal Correspondent 