King Albert II & Queen Paola: Current Events, Part 2 (Mar. 2007 - Aug. 2010) - Page 3

**Marengo** · #41 09-24-2007, 07:02 AM

Thanks for posting those, stephanie, it is appreciated. The King didn't use his walking stick, though I am not a great fan of the stripes on his suit.
Flandersnews.be has an article about the visit, which can be read here:

Quote:

Joseph Kabila pays a short visit to Belgium

Sun 23/09/07 - On Sunday morning, the Congolese president Joseph Kabila arrived at Melsbroek military airbase (near Brussels) for a short visit to our country. In 24 hours' time, Mr Kabila is meeting a number of Belgian ministers and our King.

Joseph Kabila is on his way to a United Nations meeting in New York and is making a stopover in Belgium which will last some 24 hours.

johann · #42 09-26-2007, 07:19 AM

The palace issued a press statement concerning King Albert´s health today.

Quote:

The King has to cut down his activities upon medical advice. The program will be limited to political audiences regarding the forming of a new government and to activities concerning the international relationships, such as the State Visit to Ireland and the accreditation of new ambassadors. Once the new government is formed, the King has to take a period of rest to recover completely.

Poor Albert. It seems his general state of health is good (the state visit to Ireland in October isn´t cancelled), but he didn´t have the time to recover well from his hip operation. The regular convalescence after undergoing a hip operation is three month. And we all know how troubled the last four months have been for Albert. I just wonder how long he has to wait till he finally is able to rest a bit, since the political situation is really serious and the coalition talks are not even reassumed (15 weeks post election! - and I restrain myself from commenting on the “professionalism” of the involved politicians).

**Marengo** · #43 09-26-2007, 11:43 AM

That is very worrying news. Especially considering that the King can't take a good rest with all the political turmoil of the moment I hope even more that the mess will be solved soon but I doubt it. All the best for the King!

From Expatica:

Quote:

Doctors tell king to cut down activities

26 September 2007
BRUSSELS (AFP) - Doctors told Belgian King Albert II on Wednesday to cut back on his activities, just as the monarch is playing a key role in resolving a political crisis in the country.
"The king is not ill," said palace spokesman Pierre-Emmanuel De Bauw.
"But he has not had the chance to complete his convalescence since his operation in June. Therefore he will limit himself to political contacts and external relations. His state visit planned in Ireland in October has not been put in doubt," he told AFP.
King Albert, 73, broke his hip in a fall in the grounds of his Laeken palace in Brussels in June.

Read the expatica article here.

from flandersnews:

Quote:

"King Albert should take more rest"

Wed 26/09/07 - King Albert II of the Belgians is to limit his engagements as doctors advise him to take more rest.

At the end of June, the king had to undergo a hip operation after sustaining a hip fracture due to a fall at home.

entire article here.

stephanievl · #44 10-03-2007, 06:27 AM

During her mission in Tanzania princess Astrid talked about the heath of her father.

'With the heath of the king there is not catastrophic. Like everybody is he someone of flesh and blood.' Astrid told the press.

'I phone him every day' she says. 'We are very close. He finally can have some rest. The poor man went over a serieus hip operation. One day later he already started consultations about the forming of a new government. He has not stopped 1 day with working. Now we should give him some time to recover'.

fanletizia · #45 10-03-2007, 09:02 AM

King Albert ® and Queen Paola (L) pose for a photo with (2nd L to 2nd R) Romania's President Traian Basescu, his wife Maria and Bulgaria's President Gueorgui Parvanov and his wife Zorka at Laeken Palace in Brussels October 3, 2007. Basescu and Parvanov are on a one-day official visit to Belgium to inaugurate the Europalia-Europe cultural festival.

Yahoo! News Photo

fanletizia · #46 10-16-2007, 11:27 AM

Queen paola - child focus

http://www.isopix.be/view_main.aspx?...FFRE_ID=377959

stephanievl · #47 10-16-2007, 02:53 PM

More pictures:

BelgaPicture - Category details

stephanievl · #48 11-11-2007, 11:33 AM

Rice · #49 11-11-2007, 12:50 PM

The king is looking well. Hopefully, he's recovering a bit more from his surgery this past summer.

**Marengo** · #50 11-12-2007, 10:46 AM

Quote:

People of Belgium mark Armistice Day

Sun 11/11/07 - King Albert has led the nation in the annual ceremony of remembrance at the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior in Brussels.

The eleventh of November marks the day in 1918 when the guns fell silent on the battlefields of the Great War.

Read the entire article of flandersnews.be here.

stephanievl · #51 11-13-2007, 09:38 AM

**Marengo** · #52 11-13-2007, 10:34 AM

Any idea what Spullenhulp is? By the name of it I would think that they collect things and hand them over to less privileged people? The Queen could use some colour btw, too much grey lately, though this time it is appropriate for the occassion.

stephanievl · #53 11-13-2007, 10:45 AM

Spullenhulp is an organisation that fights poverty and help peole with problems. They help those peole to integrate themselfs back in the society.
Website (only french and dutch)
Novouverture

paola · #54 11-13-2007, 04:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stephanievl

Spullenhulp is an organisation that fights poverty and help peole with problems. They help those peole to integrate themselfs back in the society.

Quote:

Originally Posted by stephanievl

Website (only french and dutch)
Novouverture

Thanks for the link. Reading the announcement of this visit on the webside of the Belgian Monarchie I got the impression that it was, what we call in the Netherlands, a "Kringloopwinkel" [A not commercial second hand shop] But I notice now that it is a part of a bigger organisation to exclude poverty.

Looking at the pictures at first I thought that Queen Paola was looking for a nice tie fore here husband

, but on an other board I red that she choose it for the chairman. Queen Paola looks quite relaxed, though she could use "a little bit sun", I think.

Paty · #55 11-22-2007, 05:57 AM

Queen Paola attended Festival Poms DOr, November 21

Gallery from IPA

Rice · #56 12-05-2007, 09:55 PM

Queen Paola has been out of the public eye lately. I do hope she is okay. Maybe just taking a well deserved rest!

paola · #57 12-06-2007, 04:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rice

Queen Paola has been out of the public eye lately. I do hope she is okay. Maybe just taking a well deserved rest!

According the official website of the Belgian monarchie [Monarchie.be] she has at least two [public] engagements this year. On December 13th the yearly Christmas concert of the Queen Paola foundation and December 18th the presentation of the certificates of the "Muziekkapel Koningin Elisabeth” at Waterloo.

And [almost] every year the palace organizes a Christmas concert in December. So I think we can still expect some pictures of Queen Paola this year.

I hope for pictures with the whole Royal Family and a proud "nonni" Queen Paola.

Rice · #58 12-06-2007, 09:43 PM

A Belgian Royal Family holiday photo would be lovely.
And thank you for the update Paola!

Paty · #59 12-14-2007, 06:25 AM

Queen Paola attends the Christmas concert of the Queen Paola foundation, Thursday 13 December

Gallery
BelgaPicture - Category details

Rice · #60 12-14-2007, 11:14 PM

So nice to see Her Majesty again--she looks lovely as always.
Is there typically a concert where we see the entire royal family. I seem to remember something last year. I recall a photo of the Princesses Elisabeth, Louise and Laetitia Maria all holding hands? I thought it was a holiday concert?