Not done on purpose. Kings Felipe and Letizia are in Amsterdam to make their first state visit to the Netherlands. Just these days, when the April Fair is celebrated in Seville, where in 1999, 25 years ago, Guillermo de Orange, then heir to the Netherlands, and the Argentine economist Máxima Zorreguieta met, and, where, already married, They have returned on several occasions.
The two couples of kings, who in addition to being counterparts share a personal friendship and almost parallel lives, will meet again today morning in Amsterdam’s Dam Square, in the welcome ceremony that will begin two days of official events that include the corresponding gala dinner that will take place tonight at the royal palace and in which Letizia and Máxima are expected to wear their best jewelry, symbol of the respective crowns.
The story of Felipe and Letizia can be compared to that of Guillermo and Máxima. They are contemporaries; The two kings were proclaimed after the abdication of their predecessors and the two queens were, when they were single, professionals of bourgeois origin. Three daughters for the Dutch and two for the Spanish, in addition to Máxima’s Argentine origin, complete the package of similarities. There is also evidence of tuning, both two to two and four to four.
The kings of the Netherlands, in addition to meeting in Seville, have traveled to Spain on several occasions, with private plans. Officially, the two couples have only seen each other on the respective presentation trips after the proclamations (in 2003 and 2004), but they have met in third countries.
The Kings arrived yesterday in Amsterdam to hold a meeting with representatives of the Spanish community. This morning the official welcome ceremony takes place in the popular Dam Square, where, in front of the royal palace, honors typical of a state visit will be paid, after which a reception will be held for the two delegations and a private lunch between the two couples.
In the afternoon, Kings William and Philip will visit the Cruyff Foundation, where they will attend a futsal match played by children with disabilities. The Cruyff Foundation, based in Barcelona and Amsterdam, which preserves the memory and legacy of the legendary Johan Cruyff, serves children with disabilities and children from disadvantaged neighborhoods through sport. This institution has three hundred centers spread throughout the world.
Later, the King of the Netherlands will accompany Felipe VI to visit the terminals of the port of Amsterdam, where they will talk with representatives of Dutch and Spanish companies about the development of a maritime hydrogen corridor between the ports of Bilbao and Amsterdam. In June 2023, King William visited Spain in connection with several ongoing hydrogen projects.
The day will close with the gala dinner that Guillermo and Máxima will offer to Felipe and Letizia, at the royal palace in Amsterdam. At the dinner, Crown Princess Amalia will be present for the first time, as well as the previous queen, current Princess Beatrice.
Tomorrow, the kings and queens will share the tasks: William and Philip will attend a forum of Spanish and Dutch companies in the cybersecurity and fintech sectors in The Hague. Next, Felipe VI will visit the headquarters of the States General (the Parliament of the Netherlands) and, again together with King William, will attend a lunch with representatives of the Dutch Government. Afterwards, the two kings will visit the European Space Research and Technology Center (Estec) in Noordwijk, the technical heart of the European Space Agency (ESA), of which the Netherlands and Spain are founding members.
Meanwhile, queens Máxima and Letizia will begin the day at LAB6, a center in Amsterdam, where they will speak with workers from youth care centers where, without an appointment, people with mental health problems are cared for and supported. Next, Máxima and Letizia will attend a discussion on the film Campeones directed by Javier Fesser, within the framework of the tenth anniversary of the Amsterdam Spanish Film Festival.
In the evening, the two couples will meet again at the reception that Felipe and Letizia will offer to Guillermo and Máxima at the STRAAT, a museum of street art and graffiti in Amsterdam, where they will inaugurate an exhibition of works by ten Spanish and Dutch muralists. It will be the farewell, until the kings of the Netherlands visit Spain.
