Dutch-Italian State Visit Heads To Palermo

On their second day of their state visit to Italy, King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima went to Palermo, Sicily, in the south of the country.

Upon their arrival the Royal Couple was received by the Mayor of Palermo, Leoluca Orlando, in Quattro Canti, an octagonal Baroque square in the city centre. Then, walking through the street of the city, the King and Queen, accompanied by the Mayor, visited Palazzo delle Acquile, the city hall. There they signed the Guest Book.

Afterwards the Royal Couple visited Palazzo Reale, the seat of the Sicilian Parliament and the Cappella Palatina, the former Royal Chapel of the Norman Kings of Sicily situated on the first floor of the Palazzo Reale. The King and the Queen also took a walk throught the traditional market town of Mercato del Capo.

Near the Courthouse of the city, the Royal Couple paid a visit to the Piazza della Memoria where a monument in memory of the murdered mafia magistrates, Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino, is located. At the police headquarters, along with the Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bert Koenders and the Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Angelino Alfano, the King and Queen were present at the signing of an agreement between Italy and the Netherlands in the field of combating human trafficking.

Along with the Mayor, the Royal Couple paid a visit to “Moltivolti”, a multicultural center for culture, entrepreneurship and also a bar and a restaurant founded by six young people from different nationalities. At lunchtime the Embassy of the Netherlands in Italy hosted a luncheon. The King and the Queen returned to Rome in the afternoon.

In the evening they hosted a concert at Palazzo Colonna to the President Sergio Mattarella and the Italian authorities. Performer was the violinist Janine Jansen. Princess Christina, aunt of the King, Prince Jaime of Bourbon-Parma and Princess Viktória were present as well.

Filed under Italy, The Netherlands
Tagged Bilateral Relations, Concert, House of Bourbon-Parma, Italy, King Willem-Alexander of The Netherlands, Music, President Mattarella of Italy, Prince Jaime of Bourbon-Parma, Princess Christina of the Netherlands, Princess Viktória of Bourbon-Parma, Queen Máxima of the Netherlands, State Visit.

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