The Netherlands’ Crown Prince Willem-Alexander and his wife Princess Maxima wrapped up their acquaintance trip to the Dutch Caribbean on Wednesday, with a visit to a school and a military base in Aruba.
The previous day, Maxima, a native of Argentina, chatted with some local women in her native tongue as she watched a variety show. “We do speak Spanish at times,” she told one Aruban woman of her conversations with Willem-Alexander. “We just don’t speak it that much, since my husband doesn’t know all the words yet.”
The couple began the visit on August 11 on Curaçao, the second largest of the Netherlands Antilles, located 60 kilometres off the Venezuelan coast. After touring the island, including a trip to the captial Willemstad, the royal pair carried on to Bonaire, St Maarten, Saba and St Eustatius.
Though set in the tranquil surroundings of the Caribbean, the ten-day trip was certainly a busy one for the Dutch royals. Other items on the itinerary included a visit to an Aloe farm in Aruba, hospital and museum tours on the give-mile island of Saba, and a royal cavalcade as hundreds of children waved orange flags in St Maarten. However, the young royals did have time to relax – on Monday they took a break while staying at Aruba’s golf resort, Tierra del Sol, where the crown prince played an 18-hole round.
The voyage to the autonomous Dutch territory was the second for the prince and princess. The first was cut short in May, 2002, when it was originally scheduled, because of the murder of Dutch politician Pim Fortuyn.
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Photo: © Alphapress.com
