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CROWN PRINCE PAVLOS AND MARIE CHANTAL OF GREECE INTRODUCE BABY ODYSSEUS
Pursuing a line in names drawn from Greek myhtology for their children, Prince Pavlos of Greece and his wife Marie-Chantal plucked Odysseus from the acient archives to give to the most recent addition to their family.
And their two-month-old son is already living up to his name, getting his travels off to a good start with a trip to Paris en famille. "Pavlos manages an investment fund and has various reasons to be in France," Marie-Chantal explains. "So we took the opportunity to bring the little ones along."
Odysseus arrived, like a gift from the gods, on Marie-Chantal's birthday, September 17 - to the delight of his siblings, who had been eagerly awaiting his birth. "They talked about it all summer," says Pavlos.
The baby prince has a sister, Maria-Olympia, aged eight, and two brothers, Konstantine Alexios, five, and four-your-old Achileas Andreas. The name Olympia is taken from Mount Olympus, home to the 12 gods who ruled Greece after the overthrow of the Titans. Achileas, like Odysseus, was one of Homer's heroes - and happens to be played by Brad Pit in the big-screen blockbuster Troy. Only Konstantine breaks the symmetry, by being the name of Prince Pavlos' father, Greece's former King.
Greek mythology offers a wealth of unusual names and it could be that Marie-Chantal and Pavlos aren't finished yet. "We've always dreamt of having a big family," Pavlos once said. "My wife and I think our role as parents is so important."
Daughter of British duty-free billionaire Robert Miller, Marie-Chantal has another role she takes seriously. Having discovered a gap in the market when shopping for clothes for her brood, she set up a line in children's wear and is now at the head of a thriving business.
"My father always taught me the value of hard work," she told Hello! recently. "And I inherited my business instainct from him, too. I've always loved to try new things: I've worked at the famous Andy Warhol Factory, for example."
While her business interests and lively social agenda command attentionn it is undoubtedly her family who gets the lion's share if the Princess' time. Because, as she explains: "I found a balance and I found my Prince, the man I love."
According to Pavlos, his wife, whom he decribes as "easy-going, down-to-earth, sensitive, polite and totally approachable", is one of those superwomen who cleverly fit a wide range of demands into their time. The trick? "She works 24 hours a day."
He and Marie-Chantal both make quality time with the children their priority. "We do so many things together," Pavlos told us during a family holiday this summer in his native Greece. "We swim, look for sea urchins, watch cartoons, play hide and seek and golf and tell stories."
The couple also have a well-considered approach to child-rearing. Says Pavlos:" The trick is to give them room to grow and to encourage them to make choices and to be self-reliant without putting pressure on them. We want them to grow up normally and humbly. With love, limits and rules."
And travel, of course. Little Odysseus looks set to be christened in Athens, next March.