Yesterday an interview was shown with Prince Constantijn shopping in a supermarket, being an daddy-assistant-referee alongside the football pitch, was on tutoyer terms with the interviewer (jij and jouw) instead of the more distant vousvouyer (u and uw).
We saw a modern and comfortable house in the very middle of a neighbourhood, be it a big and monumental one. It was strange to see an Audi from the Court picking up the royals in a totally normal neighbourhood street, with bicycling moms passing by, while an uniformed chauffeur saluted them.
It was mind-boggling to see the Prince in jeans, in a blue Mini, queuing in a supermarket and later, dressed in jacquet, waving to thousands cheering to him during the ceremonial procession at Prinsjesdag, seated in a horse-drawn gala berline. During the whole interview the Prince, sorry, "Constantijn", played down every royal aspect. As if it is just some nuisance so now an then, but comes handy in other situations.
It made me realize that every year 100 million Euro is spent on a royal lifestyle that really no one seems to pursue, after all even the King did perfectly fine just living in a private villa. I am not sure what to think. If the message is: "royals" are just the folks-next-door, then the documentary did hit bull's eye. But it also pops up the question. 400 men and women working in the royal household? For whom????? It must be the most swollen overhead on any organisation in the Netherlands. That is the confusion the documentary caused to me.
https://www.rtlnieuws.nl/nieuws/ned...antijn-50-koningshuis-interview-diana-matroos
