Click to see full image at Belga

 Today, Prince Philippe and Princess Mathilde kept a their yearly appointment with the press for a summer photo shoot with their family. This year, they took their children to an animal park called Parc Paradisio.

Princess Elisabeth, Prince Gabriel, Prince Emmanuel and Princess Eléonore enjoyed seeing the animals from close up, which of course brought about a load of cute pictures of the young Princes and Princesses with birds, monkeys and even a goat.

Click to see full image at Belga

Also, in line with tradition, the princely family was dressed similar: the two boys were wearing the same short trousers and sweaters, and the girls had T-shirts in the same pattern. Princess Mathilde and Prince Philippe were also wearing the same colours, which gives all pictures an extra touch of cuteness…

For the pictures and several film captions, please see here.

LadyLeana Belgian Royals Photo Session, Prince Emmanuel, Prince Gabriel of Belgium, Prince Philippe, Princess Eléonore, Princess Elisabeth, Princess Mathilde

 The Belgian government had appointed a parliamentary commission to discuss the dotation system of the Belgian royals. Every now and then, word came out that the commission wanted to strip Princess Astrid and Prince Laurent of their dotation, but up until now there had been no formal declaration regarding the matter.

From the TRF Avatar Gallery

On July 2, the commission finally came up with a final compromise. The current system of dotations will be kept in place until Prince Philippe succeeds his father as King of the Belgians. From then on, only the reigning monarch and the first in line to the throne will receive a dotation, as well as their spouses and the spouse of a deceased monarch. In reality, this means that of all Prince Philippe’s children, only Princess Elisabeth will receive a dotation from the moment that she is a legal adult. The dotation is, however, bound to certain rules. Members of the Royal Family who receive a dotation may not hold any commercial or other paying  position. This rule applies already to those who currently receive a dotation.

From the TRF Avatar Gallery

From the TRF Avatar Gallery

Princess Astrid and Prince Laurent, who are each currently receiving a dotation of over 300.000 EUR a year, will not lose their dotation, not even when their brother becomes King. The commission decided to would be unfair to them to sustain them for so long, and then suddenly take a way their income. They will remain in the old system for life.

The commission also decided that the costs and expenses of the Royal Family must be published each year. This will aid the transparency of the costs of the Royal family. This was not only the wish of the current government, but also of the King himself. After there have been many criticisms of the misty finances of the Belgian court, the King has urged the government to do something about it, so as to avoid further criticism.

For a discussion of the Belgian royals and their finances, see this thread.
For an article about the matter, see here (Dutch).

LadyLeana Belgian Royals Finances, Government, Prince Laurent, Princess Astrid of Belgium, Princess Elisabeth

 Prince Philippe and Princess Mathilde used last week’s school holiday to take their kids out to the snow. The family stayed in the Swiss Alps, in Verbier, where Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary of Denmark have been frequent visitors. Princess Elisabeth and Prince Gabriel are already quite skillful on the skis, and they look very cute in helmets and red ski outfit.

Click on the image to see more pictures

Thanks to royals.web-log.nl

LadyLeana Belgian Royals Prince Gabriel of Belgium, Prince Philippe, Princess Elisabeth, Princess Mathilde

 On 15 February 2009, the Princess Elisabeth Antarctica Belgian Polar Research Station on Antarctica will officially be inaugurated in the  presence of international press and political representatives. This Belgian base is designed to be completely self-sufficient and falls under the “Class Zero Emission”, i.e. all energy will be generated through renewable sources, such as wind mills or solar panels, thus generating no CO2 emission. 

Click on the image to see more of the picture at Belga

The little Princess Elisabeth herself, whose name the polar station so proudly bears, visited the International Polar Foundation in Brussels on the occasion of the inauguration last Friday, together with her father, Prince Philippe. They recorded a video message for the scientists who are stationed in Antarctica, in which the little Princess wished them good luck, in perfect Dutch and French.

For more pictures of the event, see belga.

For more information on Princess Elisabeth Antarctica, see here.

LadyLeana Belgian Royals Antarctica, Princess Elisabeth