Monday, April 23, 2012

State Visit to Germany - Day One

You know you are a royal from Luxembourg when you visit Germany and the media does not care, the very same media that usually goes mad about all things royal. Thus, we have to be happy about what the Luxembourgish media is offering us.

Today was the first day of the state visit the Grand Duke and the Grand Duchess are paying to their neighbouring country. As always when they leave the country on official capacity, the grand ducal couple was send off with military honours at Findel Airport in Luxembourg. As soon as they crossed the border, my almost favourite part of every state visit started: The aircraft of the grand ducal couple was accompanied by fighter-interceptors through the German airspace all the way to Berlin. Always a very impressive sight.

After landing at Berlin's Tegel airport and 21 gunshots honouring the guests from Luxembourg, Grand Duke Henri and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa made their way to Schloss Bellevue, the official residence of the German president. At the castle they were welcomed by president Joachim Gauck and his partner, they signed the golden book and the two gentlemen inspected the troops.

Afterwards, the Grand Duke and his wife went on to meet with the mayor of Berlin Klaus Wowereit at the Brandenburg Gate to take some touristy pictures, before they had lunch at Schloss Charlottenburg.

Once finished lunching, Grand Duke Henri and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa made their way to the Neue Wache to lay down a wreath at the Central Memorial of the Federal Republic of Germany for the Victims of War and Tyranny.

They went on to visit the Berlin State Library, the largest and most important academic research library in the German speaking world. At the library two cultural treaties were signed and the Grand Duke was gifted with a Mercator atlas and digitalised maps of the Luxembourg fortress.

Afterwards, Grand Duke Henri met with Norbert Lammert, president of the German parliament, at the Reichstag building for a bilateral dialogue.

In the evening a state banquet was hosted by the German president at Schloss Bellevue. This was the moment the Hereditary Grand Duke joined his parents for the state visit. The Grand Duchess wore (almost invisible) the Citrine Topaz Tiara Alexandra wore for the last National Day Gala we still haven't seen pictures of. Yeah, I'll never stop whining. Apart from that, I learned that there are even more Luxembourgers working for German TV than I already knew; is there one science show without a Luxembourgish host?!

Pictures can be found over at Tageblatt, Bildmaschine, APA Picturedesk 1, APA Picturedesk 2, Demotix 1, Demotix 2, L'essentiel, Wort, Belga, Daylife, RTL, Stadtmorgen, on the website of the government and on the website of the cour.

A video of the day's activities is available at RTL. A video meeting Berlin's mayor can be found here.

The speech of the German president held at the gala dinner can be found on his website.


Source: Wort

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