As a crown princess Victoria of Sweden is familiar with the intricacies of foreign diplomacy and accustomed to taking the unexpected in her stride. The 29-year-old royal initially looked mortified, however, when she accidentally knocked over a post while opening the Netherlands' famous Keukenhof Gardens.
The poised princess, chic in a beige coat and holding a matching clutch, momentarily lost her composure as she sent a yellow pillar flying, before dissolving into peals of laughter. Fortunately the candid camera-moment also amused the Dutch premier Jan Peter Balkenende, who was accompanying Victoria on a tour of the garden's spring blooms.
The princess, who is the eldest child of King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia, will have found a few reminders of home during her visit to the park, as its theme this year is Swedish botanist Carolus Linnaeus. Carolus developed a classification system for tulips - Holland's national flower - and among the horticultural delights on offer was a yellow and blue-dominated garden based on Sweden's national colours.
Victoria may have found the 80-acre park's Royal Hats exhibition of interest, too, as it features a selection of regal millinery from all over the world. The park, which is an hour's drive from Amsterdam, is open from the first day of spring through to May 20 and features over seven million seasonal bulbs from tulips to hyacinths and narcissi.
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Photo: © Alphapress.com
