Interview 2/2...Enjoy !
You are not only a mother but also a business woman. A German female writer says children and a carrier cannot go together.
MC : This is an invention of men. It has been genetically proved that women master multitasking, whereas men function by following one track. I experience it personally : the more chaos there is, the deeper I am plunged in my work, the better I feel. Women should use this advantage.
Easy to say when you have a butler and employees to blow the balloons…
MC : As an investment banker, my husband is often away. We both work. Time with our children is very important though. We do not go out more than 2 or 3 times a week. We have supper together. I take my children to bed every day and I bring them to school every morning. Same for picking them up from school. My organization is around their timetable, not the other way round. In the end it makes me happier, because I feel I do a good job as a mother. But naturally do I need some help at home, paid with my own revenue (“Gehalt” = revenue/salary ??).
Is there any reason why one should send their children to a boarding school ?
MC : I went to a boarding school myself – and I hated it. My parents lived in Hong Kong. I was 9 when I was suddenly sent thousands of kms away, in Switerland’s “Le Rosey”. I find it horrible to separate children from their parents at such an early age. My daughter does not even spend one night at her girl friend’s home. On the other side, you are involved in a huge network : I shared my first room with a greek young girl.
Now you are wife of Greece’s CP. Norway, Denmark, The Netherlands, Spain : no other CP has such connexions.
MC : My husband’s family has been living in exile for 30 years. In that respect are we not exactly part of this. What was important to my husband, was sharing common values, for instance the fact that I did not come from a split family. I am very proud of my father. He built his success out of nothing. Times when you drew your value from your birth or name are completely behind us.
All 3 Miller sisters married very well. Is there a recipe ?
MC : We happened to be in NY at the good time. But I was very protected at home, I had to be back very punctually. All ran to “Studio 54”, I was not allowed to. Probably a good thing, as it was quite a decadent time. Then I met Pavlos via a relative. I think timing is all in a life. To be at the right place at the right moment.
What do powerful men look for in a woman ?
MC : A good co-pilot. Not one that stands before or behind, but someone that flies “with”.
Your father founded duty-free shops. Are you (Schäppchenjägerin???) ?
MC : No. I like shopping. What woman does not like it ? During holydays I often worked with my father, but I learned more to sell than to buy. Nowadays shopping for children is my favourite. Retail suffered a lot from 9/11, except the “baby business” branch. It stems from a kind of protective instinct : one does not think of oneself, one wants to do something for the children.
When you meet Highnesses on big occasions, does anyone express himself really ?
MC : No, you do how you want to do. As long as you are (“anständig” ???), everything is allowed.
Are there phone calls between CPss, like MM, Mary, Maxima …??
MC: Yes, we get on well together, there are phone calls and communication, like in any industry.
Royal Houses would be an industry ?
In a way, like fashion, cinema, business. It is a group with relations, roles, intrigues.
Intrigues ? Tell us…
MC : Oh no. First is the ceremonial aspect, big dinners with big dresses, like a fairytale…
You are linked to the Tsar’s family by marriage. Do you own one of these knee-length chains with pearls as big as pigeon eggs, from the Romanov’s treasure ?
MC : Not me. But my mother-in-law, Queen Anne-Marie, has jewels from the Romanovs. Rubies und emeralds (“Rubine und Smaragde”??). She wears them for big occasions.
Interview from Dagmar von Taube
Die Welt 24/09/06
