Relationships between Members of the Spanish Royal Family

[M. Payton]

Please post a very clear picture of Letizia so that I can actually see her face kicking a car door..........not some grainy picture but a clear detailed picture..........and since when is touching your child making anyone desperate........that to me is called nurturing, showing love, guiding and be a responsible parent, at least that is how most of the mothers in this world are, maybe we all got it wrong....

 

[Kitty1224]

Actually, JC's escapades were pretty well known by all Spaniards, I can almost give you a chronological list of his mistresses, we all know who they are, there are even pictures of him with them.

Hell, we even saw him naked in a boat once

For Sofía, she's always been terribly reserved in her "personal" life but we also know she has like 3 friends because she understood how important it was to keep the Crown safe (like QEII has done), yet we see pics of her in London with her sister, in Greece with Tino & Co, in Geneva visiting Cristina & Co, we always saw pictures of her visiting her children when they were studying abroad, etc.

With F&L and their children, a LOT of the time we don't know where they spend their holidays outside of Spain, they have a perfectly great place in Marivent to promote tourism and spend their holidays, they don't even have to go out every day, the place is pretty private and they can sunbath and whatnot there; if they want to leave, at least let people know where they are, because after all we're paying for that and if we're paying for the keeping of a huge complex in Mallorca, do we also have to pay for their "foreign" holidays?

Would it kill them to be like the Belgians for example, from whom we always know if they are in France, in Spain, in Italy, hell, we knew they were in India at one point. A couple of pictures and the paps will leave them alone the rest of the way. (And they don't have a Marivent or a Balmoral, a place where they always spend their holidays).

It's basic PR.

And what do we mean with the 9-5 comment? Not that you NEVER have a break but that if you're in public, you keep yourself together unless it's like a funeral or something, you don't throw tantrums, touch your children endlessly to the point of making everyone desperate, slap hands away or kick car doors open because you're mad at something.

We all have to behave in our day jobs, why can't she do the same? Specially since her job is basically PR and image.

So the Gov't owns Marivent? Anyways the whole secretive stuff is bad PR on Letizia since she is known to hate Mallorca.

 

[Osipi]

I've been following this thread a bit off and on and there's something that really puzzles me.

With F&L and their children, a LOT of the time we don't know where they spend their holidays outside of Spain, they have a perfectly great place in Marivent to promote tourism and spend their holidays, they don't even have to go out every day, the place is pretty private and they can sunbath and whatnot there; if they want to leave, at least let people know where they are, because after all we're paying for that and if we're paying for the keeping of a huge complex in Mallorca, do we also have to pay for their "foreign" holidays?

Why is it so important that this couple and their children be on the public radar 24/7? Are they that important that they're not allowed private family time away to enjoy a vacation wherever they please to take one? How much of their private lifestyles actually is funded by the Spanish public? (I sincerely have no clue). Are you seriously suggesting that these people should be like puppets on a string for public consumption every single minute of every single waking day?

And what do we mean with the 9-5 comment? Not that you NEVER have a break but that if you're in public, you keep yourself together unless it's like a funeral or something, you don't throw tantrums, touch your children endlessly to the point of making everyone desperate, slap hands away or kick car doors open because you're mad at something.

We all have to behave in our day jobs, why can't she do the same? Specially since her job is basically PR and image.

This kind of contradicts what you've said before that they should always let the people know where they are and what they're doing and stay at home to promote tourism etc. Isn't their public roles the same as a "day job" and they're afforded a private time away from the "day job"? Just curious here.

All I know is that I can't form an opinion on Letizia's or Sofia's or Felipe's behavior on one little snippet of time captured on video that was public. If I can't do that with a public event, how the heck would I know how to have an opinion on how these people spend and behave themselves in private?

Sure makes me glad that nobody really cares who I am or what I do.

 

[leidi]

I've been following this thread a bit off and on and there's something that really puzzles me.



Why is it so important that this couple and their children be on the public radar 24/7? Are they that important that they're not allowed private family time away to enjoy a vacation wherever they please to take one? How much of their private lifestyles actually is funded by the Spanish public? (I sincerely have no clue). Are you seriously suggesting that these people should be like puppets on a string for public consumption every single minute of every single waking day?



This kind of contradicts what you've said before that they should always let the people know where they are and what they're doing and stay at home to promote tourism etc. Isn't their public roles the same as a "day job" and they're afforded a private time away from the "day job"? Just curious here.

All I know is that I can't form an opinion on Letizia's or Sofia's or Felipe's behavior on one little snippet of time captured on video that was public. If I can't do that with a public event, how the heck would I know how to have an opinion on how these people spend and behave themselves in private?

Sure makes me glad that nobody really cares who I am or what I do.

Not puppets on a string but there are many times where we don't know where they are (too much secretism around the Royal House, JC & Sofía were far much more natural, knew what was expected of them, yet they still had time for themselves) and the girls are seen as the Spanish expression says "De Pascuas a Ramos" (something like "every once in a blue moon") and rarely in a "natural" context, usually with their mother there moving them around, pushing, touching, etc; Felipe is a very loving father and he's far much more relaxed with his girls when he's with them.

The main problem I have with the Marivent situation is that we do pay for that, the mainteinance of the complex comes from the Spanish State and guess who pays for that? US.

If they dislike Mallorca so much, then don't come back there again and open the palace for everyone, there are tons of very nice Spanish tourist places they can do (for example, the Camino de Santiago would be a great idea for them), promote tourism that way and enjoy everything Spain has to offer.

But what do they do? Keep Marivent away from everyone, use it sparsely and then go off on foreign holidays where no one knows where they are, like I said, a couple of pictures here and there wouldn't kill them and they can continue their merry way enjoying their holidays.

It is like the 11M situation, F&L said they wouldn't go on holiday and whatnot and they were caught red-handed in the Miami airport when they were coming from the Bahamas.

Be honest, upfront, make the right choices, don't give republicans even more cannon fodder to throw your way.

Their PR department is a complete DISASTER, they censor as much as they can (lying again) and when situations go overboard, then they clumsily try to "fix" things, pulling very fake situations around.

And I completely agree with you, praise the Lord we're anonymous citizens, I am not sure if the tradeoff is worth it: privacy and peace for a glamourous life where every single step you take is going to be looked under a microscope.

 

[LadyFinn]

The main problem I have with the Marivent situation is that we do pay for that, the mainteinance of the complex comes from the Spanish State and guess who pays for that? US.

If they dislike Mallorca so much, then don't come back there again and open the palace for everyone, there are tons of very nice Spanish tourist places they can do (for example, the Camino de Santiago would be a great idea for them), promote tourism that way and enjoy everything Spain has to offer.

But what do they do? Keep Marivent away from everyone, use it sparsely and then go off on foreign holidays where no one knows where they are, like I said, a couple of pictures here and there wouldn't kill them and they can continue their merry way enjoying their holidays.

As lula has very well explained in this thread, queen Sofia loves to spend time in Marivent, both during Easter and in the summer. She stays there for long times with her sister. So Felipe lets her to enjoy her beloved Mallorca and Marivent, although Felipe and Letizia don't like to spend their holidays there. And now Felipe has made it possible to let Marivent's garden to be partly open for public.
It is also odd that Felipe and Letizia should promote the tourism in Mallorca. What about the other parts of Spain? Don't they deserve promoting too?

 

[M. Payton]

Did you know that in the 90's King Carlos went to Switzerland with a *new mistress* and did not tell anyone and that the military covered for him and that the PM had some important documents to be signed and no one could find him.....I have been researching JC/Sofia to get actual facts, not gossip. Sofia is every well know for leaving Spain on Fridays to go to London without telling anyone, this came from airport officials in Madrid. It seem that some here are putting a much higher standard to Letizia then the royal family that she married into. *NO* royal works 24/7 for the country, everybody gets time off and they deserve that. They are humans here not robots at anyone command. Nothing wrong in going out of the country for a vacation and I am of the firm belief that neither Felipe nor Letizia would ever go somewhere without telling one of their staff, they I am sure are so aware each second of the day that their is someone watching their every move. They have no secret love affairs to hide or shopping sprees to go to.....there is a very *clear double standard here in regards to Letizia* and for what ever reason I still can't figure it out. She is haunted like a mad dog because she touches her children and that makes everyone *desperate*......(Your comment).good grief that anyone could think that of her or any other queen or royal mother. *Shame** on the Spanish people and the media for acting this way towards their Queen for all she did was fall in love with the heir and marry him of which he wanted.....

 

[Osipi]

Thanks much for the explanations on Marivent. To me it sounds a lot like Buckingham Palace which is the working office of the British royal family but not somewhere any one of them call "home". Or is that Zarzuela? I only know of Zarzeula from Dan Brown's latest book "Origins". Its kind of nice that Marivent is used by both the King and Queen and then Queen Sofia gets time to spend too at a place that she loves. That shows familial consideration from all sides.

I would think that when traveling outside of Spain its a wise move to keep things as private and under the radar as possible. Not only to give the family their private times but also it its a good security measure to have in place. High profile people are always high security threats and the less outsiders know, the better all around.

I really know next to nothing about Spain and its royal family but this is making a good start for me.

 

[leidi]

Thanks much for the explanations on Marivent. To me it sounds a lot like Buckingham Palace which is the working office of the British royal family but not somewhere any one of them call "home". Or is that Zarzuela? I only know of Zarzeula from Dan Brown's latest book "Origins". Its kind of nice that Marivent is used by both the King and Queen and then Queen Sofia gets time to spend too at a place that she loves. That shows familial consideration from all sides.

I would think that when traveling outside of Spain its a wise move to keep things as private and under the radar as possible. Not only to give the family their private times but also it its a good security measure to have in place. High profile people are always high security threats and the less outsiders know, the better all around.

I really know next to nothing about Spain and its royal family but this is making a good start for me.

The Royal Palace in Madrid is where they have the State Galas, the Banquets, the very important acts.

The Zarzuela complex (just outside Madrid) is their "home", their true residency, where they actually live, there are two main places there: one for JC & Sofia and another for F&L and their girls.

Marivent is akin to Balmoral for the BRF, a seasonal holiday complex in Mallorca.

 

[Kitty1224]

The Royal Palace in Madrid is where they have the State Galas, the Banquets, the very important acts.

The Zarzuela complex (just outside Madrid) is their "home", their true residency, where they actually live, there are two main places there: one for JC & Sofia and another for F&L and their girls.

Marivent is akin to Balmoral for the BRF, a seasonal holiday complex in Mallorca.

I can see why the people of Spain do not want the royal family anymore. Felipe is seen as a weak king, Letizia is unpopular. Ouch!

 

[donnaK]

Did you know that in the 90's King Carlos went to Switzerland with a *new mistress* and did not tell anyone and that the military covered for him and that the PM had some important documents to be signed and no one could find him.....I have been researching JC/Sofia to get actual facts, not gossip. Sofia is every well know for leaving Spain on Fridays to go to London without telling anyone, this came from airport officials in Madrid. It seem that some here are putting a much higher standard to Letizia then the royal family that she married into. *NO* royal works 24/7 for the country, everybody gets time off and they deserve that. They are humans here not robots at anyone command. Nothing wrong in going out of the country for a vacation and I am of the firm belief that neither Felipe nor Letizia would ever go somewhere without telling one of their staff, they I am sure are so aware each second of the day that their is someone watching their every move. They have no secret love affairs to hide or shopping sprees to go to.....there is a very *clear double standard here in regards to Letizia* and for what ever reason I still can't figure it out. She is haunted like a mad dog because she touches her children and that makes everyone *desperate*......(Your comment).good grief that anyone could think that of her or any other queen or royal mother. *Shame** on the Spanish people and the media for acting this way towards their Queen for all she did was fall in love with the heir and marry him of which he wanted.....

Agree 100% ! Couldn't have said it better. Letizia likes touching her girls is about the same as Sofia likes to pose with her grandchildren. That's their preference, none of others' business. Don't know one makes everyone 'desperate' (why ?), the other is being praised to the sky LOL.
Felipe brought girls to Zarzuela Friday afternoon since Friday school ended earlier. So it's absolutely untrue Sofia didn't have a chance to see girls.

 

[Duc_et_Pair]

I can see why the people of Spain do not want the royal family anymore. Felipe is seen as a weak king, Letizia is unpopular. Ouch!

Can you back your statement with facts? That the people of Spain do not want their royal family anymore. That Don Felipe is seen as a weak King? Have they asked the Spainiards about that? And where are the statistics?

By the way: whether the King is "strong" or "weak" is of no any importance. The real King of Spain does not house in La Zarzuela but in La Moncloa (the residence of the Prime Minister). The King has only a ceremonial role.

 

[leidi]

Can you back your statement with facts? That the people of Spain do not want their royal family anymore. That Don Felipe is seen as a weak King? Have they asked the Spainiards about that? And where are the statistics?

By the way: whether the King is "strong" or "weak" is of no any importance. The real King of Spain does not house in La Zarzuela but in La Moncloa (the residence of the Prime Minister). The King has only a ceremonial role.

Right now in Spain, the Crown is virtually the only guarantee to keep the country together, if it goes (the only way to do it is via a Constitutional reform), it will open a can of worms that can tear it apart, so it is for the Government's interests that the Monarchy is seen as a rock, not as a soap opera.

And don't bother with polls, in Spain those ALWAYS lie, at least when they come from the Royal House and the Government, both are utterly shameless when it comes to those.

(For the record, I don't think Felipe is weak and most people don't see him as that but he does have to put order in his house, make sure incidents don't keep happening).

 

[Denville]

it does not seem as if either of them came out of this looking very well.. and while I don't follow the RF, It does seem as if Letiizia is perhaps "over fussy" with her children in public. It may be her being over protective, but it is excessive and looks bad...

 

[Duke of Marmalade]

Strangest thing I saw on TV last night, an silly entertainment show, some fashion show in NYC and of all things here come Catherine Zeta Jones walking down the red carpet and guess what she was doing, holding hands with *drum roll please*...her daughter who was *14* years old. Was CZJ in the wrong to hold hands with her daughter I ask? I see Letizia holding hands with her girls, what are they 10 to 12, is wrong I ask? I would like to think that perhaps *both mothers* are guiding and showing love to their girls for after all they are MOTHERS first in this world.

I don't like it when I see Queen Sofia or Queen Letizia holding hands with both girls, or any celebrity doing it. They are teenagers now, not toddlers, for me it looks ridiculous. Kids can stand for themselves at that age and the only explaination for me is that holding hands with a teenage kid is good PR, like 'look how close I am to my child'.

I found it equally ridiculous in the birthday video for King Felipe, when he went down the stairs holding hands with Leonor, this must be PR, I honestly cannot imagine any 12 year old girl who holds the hand of her father when going down the staircase at home.

 

[lula]

Balmoral is privately owned by the British Royal Family ... Marivent is not owned by the Royal Family, it is not owned by the State ... it is owned by a regional government and used by the Royal Family in an unusual agreement. It is the regional government that pays for its maintenance, not the Spanish state.

The difference between Spain and other royal houses such as Belgium or Netherlands, is that they make an agreement, according to which they pose for the photographers and the photographers leave them alone for the rest of the holidays.

That agreement in Spain would never work, the press would never accept it ... they want the photo shoot and continue photographing ... so if they go abroad, they tell the press where, they would NEVER have peace. Even in Mallorca,the agreement was to pose during the week of the sailing cup and then leave the Royal Family in peace, Felipe and Letizia tried the first years, but it was impossible.

To this you can add, that the Spanish Royal Family has always been exposed to a real and direct terrorist threat, and therefore their levels of security have always been very strict and have also conditioned their personal lives.

As donnaK said, Juan Carlos and Sofia could disappear weeks from the agenda and nobody said anything... Letizia has acts every week, and only "disappears" during the holidays, but a week without her, and the journalists and photographers are already nervous and begin to complain.

The press never had serious objections with Juan Carlos, Sofía or Felipe himself spending part of their vacations abroad without announcing it publicly, but in the case of Letizia it is a huge problem.

For decades, Sofia has invited her family (the summers of Greece family in Marivent paid by the Spaniards were very criticized in their time) and friends to Marivent. Letizia has never been able to invite her family, her first summer she took a few days to her 4-year-old niece, and they also criticized her. So if she wants to spend vacations with her family, it can not be there.

When she was pregnant with Leonor, after spending several weeks in Mallorca, they decided to visit Letizia's grandmother in Asturias ... the scandal was huge, and they began to accuse her of wanting to change the holiday destination. Recently the grandmother of Letizia has confessed that they have been in Asturias on several occasions, but very discreetly and the press has not known.

In Majorca there are serious problems with tourist saturation, and with the tourism model itself. Felipe and Letizia decided to leave the photos of the yacht club, and make the photoshoots in other rural and unknown places on the island ... which for many people was a very good idea ... the press did not like it either.

For many Spaniards, the vacations of the Royal Family in Mallorca, were a frivolous spectacle, where politicians, businessmen and celebrities strolled to get out in the photo. For journalists it means a week of easy work with paid vacations, sun and parties... that's what they do not want to lose.

Juan Carlos and Sofia "fed a monster" and Felipe and Letizia now have to confront it. For years they fed a holiday model and many people made a lot of money with it, and that ended up being out of control.

The debate on the vacations of the Royal Family is even within the broader debate about the tourism model that some areas of the country want, which like the Balearic Islands have reached saturation, and where Spanish citizens can not live because everything It is expensive and oriented to tourism.

 

[leidi]

Balmoral is privately owned by the British Royal Family ... Marivent is not owned by the Royal Family, it is not owned by the State ... it is owned by a regional government and used by the Royal Family in an unusual agreement. It is the regional government that pays for its maintenance, not the Spanish state.

The difference between Spain and other royal houses such as Belgium or Netherlands, is that they make an agreement, according to which they pose for the photographers and the photographers leave them alone for the rest of the holidays.

That agreement in Spain would never work, the press would never accept it ... they want the photo shoot and continue photographing ... so if they go abroad, they tell the press where, they would NEVER have peace. Even in Mallorca,the agreement was to pose during the week of the sailing cup and then leave the Royal Family in peace, Felipe and Letizia tried the first years, but it was impossible.

To this you can add, that the Spanish Royal Family has always been exposed to a real and direct terrorist threat, and therefore their levels of security have always been very strict and have also conditioned their personal lives.

As donnaK said, Juan Carlos and Sofia could disappear weeks from the agenda and nobody said anything... Letizia has acts every week, and only "disappears" during the holidays, but a week without her, and the journalists and photographers are already nervous and begin to complain.

The press never had serious objections with Juan Carlos, Sofía or Felipe himself spending part of their vacations abroad without announcing it publicly, but in the case of Letizia it is a huge problem.

For decades, Sofia has invited her family (the summers of Greece family in Marivent paid by the Spaniards were very criticized in their time) and friends to Marivent. Letizia has never been able to invite her family, her first summer she took a few days to her 4-year-old niece, and they also criticized her. So if she wants to spend vacations with her family, it can not be there.

When she was pregnant with Leonor, after spending several weeks in Mallorca, they decided to visit Letizia's grandmother in Asturias ... the scandal was huge, and they began to accuse her of wanting to change the holiday destination. Recently the grandmother of Letizia has confessed that they have been in Asturias on several occasions, but very discreetly and the press has not known.

In Majorca there are serious problems with tourist saturation, and with the tourism model itself. Felipe and Letizia decided to leave the photos of the yacht club, and make the photoshoots in other rural and unknown places on the island ... which for many people was a very good idea ... the press did not like it either.

For many Spaniards, the vacations of the Royal Family in Mallorca, were a frivolous spectacle, where politicians, businessmen and celebrities strolled to get out in the photo. For journalists it means a week of easy work with paid vacations, sun and parties... that's what they do not want to lose.

Juan Carlos and Sofia "fed a monster" and Felipe and Letizia now have to confront it. For years they fed a holiday model and many people made a lot of money with it, and that ended up being out of control.

The debate on the vacations of the Royal Family is even within the broader debate about the tourism model that some areas of the country want, which like the Balearic Islands have reached saturation, and where Spanish citizens can not live because everything It is expensive and oriented to tourism.

Then they should really leave Marivent, open it to the public. I don't think people would object as long as it doesn't stay closed for everyone apart from the Royal Family. That's the biggest beef everyone seems to have, a massive complex in Mallorca that is seldomly used nowadays and that is not open for people's enjoyment.
And promote tourism in Spain somewhere else, tour the country during their holidays, make great photoshoots in beautiful destinations instead of the same old same old pictures at the yacht club or at the Palma Cathedral.
Make their own rules, journos can complain all they like but they will follow the RF wherever it goes, they will get used to it.
All they honestly care is the WHO in the pictures, not the WHERE.
For the paparazzi, it's not as if they can't go to their private calas and stay in Marivent if they want to take sun, those are as protected as it goes, so they can take the normal pics and then enjoy the rest of their holidays in the private parts of the island, let themselves be seen like once a week or so at the yacht club with Felipe's friends or something, it's not 24/7 surveillance.

 

[M. Payton]

I don't like it when I see Queen Sofia or Queen Letizia holding hands with both girls, or any celebrity doing it. They are teenagers now, not toddlers, for me it looks ridiculous. Kids can stand for themselves at that age and the only explaination for me is that holding hands with a teenage kid is good PR, like 'look how close I am to my child'.

I found it equally ridiculous in the birthday video for King Felipe, when he went down the stairs holding hands with Leonor, this must be PR, I honestly cannot imagine any 12 year old girl who holds the hand of her father when going down the staircase at home.

Every single parent in the world has their *own* way of parenting their children and heaven forbid anyone outside the family tell them what to do or how to do it. That goes for all families, not just royals. Whether anyone likes it or not each is responsible for the up bringing of their children. IMHO I see nothing wrong in the way Letizia guides her girls when they are out at an event, sometimes just a pat on the back is a way of reassuring your child that everything is fine or as I say.....mom has your back, she is there. So some think that is out of bounds or not right, well that is okay too for after all these girls will be brought up by both their parents,not just one. I think that as the girls get older and develop more self confidence and attend more events in time that they will be able to do things on their own....it takes time as we all know they are still children not even teenagers yet. After all this thing of wanting them out now is for someone else's own satisfaction, not their well being.

 

[lula]

Leidi, but there the problem is Sofia, that has always enjoyed that house as hers. And I do not imagine the brutal campaign that some would initiate against Felipe if he decided that his mother can not use it anymore.

Felipe and Letizia have not even occupied Marivent, but occupy Son Vent. Which probably indicates that when Sofia dies or can not go to Marivent everything will change.

While Marivent is a palace that was donated by the family of a painter to be converted into a museum, Son Vent is a traditional Mallorcan house belonging to the army. The controversy that exists with one, would not exist with the other that belongs to the army (of which the king is Supreme Chief) and therefore to the State.

National heritage has a house in Lanzarote that was a gift from the King of Jordan to Juan Carlos and he donated it to the State. The Royal Family is the one who has the right to use it, but it does not ... Zapatero used it as a summer residence. King Felipe has decided that instead of being closed, it is better to give its use to the Ministry of Tourism to use it to promote tourism in the Canary Islands.

 

[leidi]

Leidi, but there the problem is Sofia, that has always enjoyed that house as hers. And I do not imagine the brutal campaign that some would initiate against Felipe if he decided that his mother can not use it anymore.

Felipe and Letizia have not even occupied Marivent, but occupy Son Vent. Which probably indicates that when Sofia dies or can not go to Marivent everything will change.

While Marivent is a palace that was donated by the family of a painter to be converted into a museum, Son Vent is a traditional Mallorcan house belonging to the army. The controversy that exists with one, would not exist with the other that belongs to the army (of which the king is Supreme Chief) and therefore to the State.

National heritage has a house in Lanzarote that was a gift from the King of Jordan to Juan Carlos and he donated it to the State. The Royal Family is the one who has the right to use it, but it does not ... Zapatero used it as a summer residence. King Felipe has decided that instead of being closed, it is better to give its use to the Ministry of Tourism to use it to promote tourism in the Canary Islands.

Son Vent is still in the Marivent complex, it's not like La Almudaina, which is truly outside of it.

And frankly, Felipe has to make a choice: either he spends his holidays in Mallorca with all his family, even if Letizia hates the yacht club environment and his friends there or convinces his mother to go somewhere else like Greece with her brother and sister.

In fact, if Sofía still wants to stay in Mallorca, she can use La Almudaina, it's not as if she's going to be homeless in the island

He has to draw the line at some point and get things done, this half-hearted effort to please them all has gotten him into a lose-lose situation and the faster he solves it, the better.

 

[wyevale]

the people of Spain do not want the royal family anymore.

Blimey ! 'jumping to conclusions' MUCH ? Your extrapolations are REALLY funny...

 

[Osipi]

And frankly, Felipe has to make a choice: either he spends his holidays in Mallorca with all his family, even if Letizia hates the yacht club environment and his friends there or convinces his mother to go somewhere else like Greece with her brother and sister.

Wouldn't that be considered Felipe's private business and not based on public opinion where he lives and where he vacations and such? I don't know how things are in Spain but I've never heard of public opinion ruling private lives anywhere.

And yes, its a serious question.

 

[lula]

Son Vent is close to Marivent, but originally it is not the same property, so it can be separated as it was in the past. As I say the properties do not have the same owner, one belongs to the Government of the Balearic Islands and the other belongs to the Army.

La Almudaina is a historic building, it is not a habitable building.

King Felipe has started by opening the Marivent gardens, probably he wants to do something progressive to please everyone. As I said Juan Carlos and Sofia accepted many favors there in the past (like the yacht that the businessmen gave to the king)... Juan Carlos stopped going to Mallorca and left the problem to others.

 

[wyevale]

Existing in a 'fish-bowl' as they do [amongst SO fiercely critical a public,with so vicious a press], is it any wonder the Kings feel the need to re-assure their children during their public appearances ?
I am not a parent, but I am an Uncle, and I was always hyper-vigilant when with my young nieces in big crowds. To me it is completely understandable, that Queen Letizia [especially] who has been the subject of so much HATE, should be paranoid and deeply worried for her children...

Her instincts MUST be to want to 'protect', even if the harsh reality is that she cannot... and that [in the long run], she has to learn to 'let go, and trust' her daughters to the 'tender mercies' of the Spanish public'..

 

[JR76]

I really don't see what the Royal Family spending time at Mallorca does for tourism. With more than 15 million visitors every year the island really doesn't need more tourists and some inhabitants of Palma are protesting against the amounts of tourists they receive every year.

 

[lula]

Yes, but Juan Carlos and Sofia arrived there in the 70s, when tourism was not what it is now ... and for decades Mallorca attracted a high class tourism attracted by the royal presence. For that reason the political authorities and the businessmen did not want them to leave, and in many cases they exceeded in satisfying their whims... It was also a good way to promote their good image as politicians or businessmen.

Always remember that the origin of the Noos case is in Urdangarín and in his business with politicians in Palma...

 

[Duc_et_Pair]

[...] That's the biggest beef everyone seems to have, a massive complex in Mallorca that is seldomly used nowadays and that is not open for people's enjoyment. [...]

It is really not a "massive complex". Picture

 

[leidi]

It is really not a "massive complex". Picture

You're missing the gardens and other facilities plus the private part of the beach...

 

[JR76]

Has anyone ever thought about that the reason for the Queen , Catherine ZJ etc holding the hands of their daughters in public is that the children get scared by the crowds and the press? On the same day as the Palma incident we had little James Severn crying outside St George's Chapel and last year Vincent of Denmark started crying at the photo opp on his first day at school.

 

[LadyFinn]

You're missing the gardens and other facilities plus the private part of the beach...

This is a photo of Zarzuela, not Marivent.

 

[Duc_et_Pair]

You're missing the gardens and other facilities plus the private part of the beach...

La Zarzuela is near Madrid. In the middle of Spain. No beach at all.
We are talking about Marivent on the island of Mallorca.
This is the correct aerial picture: http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Hdk8jM97l.../UnhnYE6NLl0/s640/JARDINES-MARIVENT-PLANO.JPG