IT hasn´t been a good period for the Spanish royal family; the King´s incident with Chavez, nationalist parties in the Spanish parliament calling for royal expenses to be audited, the fine imposed on the cartoonists for their improper cartoon of the heirs to the throne and now the announcement that King´s elder daughter is to separate from her husband. Thankfully, there is enormous support for the Spanish royal family in Spain, and quite rightly so. King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia have played an enormous role in the transition period from dictatorship to democracy. King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia have played a key role in making Spain, what it is today, a leading European country.
Rumours about the state of the marriage of Princess Elena have been circulating for sometime. The announcement on Tuesday night did not come as a shock although it was the talking point across the country yesterday. Spain is obviously changing. The media has changed and while Spain doesn´t have a tabloid press it does have so-called pink TV programmes. Yesterday, these programmes were discussing yesterday one issue; the separation. I am sure that the grey clouds which are at present hanging over the royal family will soon pass.
CONGRATULATIONS for the Balearic government, the Tourist Board and all the other leading local authorities for a very successful World Travel Market in London this week. There has certainly been some good news for the Balearics with reports of a rise in holiday bookings to the island.