Infanta Elena did something unusual at her 60th birthday celebrations: she brought together the majority of the royal family. The Infanta celebrated her day with a meal in a restaurant in Madrid, which brought together Kings Felipe and Letizia, Emeritus Juan Carlos and Sofía, and almost all members of the Borbón and Grecia families. The lunch was also attended by Infanta Cristina with three of her children – Juan, Pablo and Irene – and the two laureates, Felipe Juan Froilán and Victoria Federica, as well as Princess Irene, sister of Queen Sofía, and some other relatives. . However, Princess Leonor, who is on mountain exercises in the Aragonese Pyrenees with the cadets from the Zaragoza General Academy, is not there. Infanta Sofía, who has been on vacation since December 5 and, like her older sister, returned from boarding school in Wales (United Kingdom) where she attends high school, was also not seen entering the restaurant.
This is the second meeting of the Borbón family and Greece since October 31, on the occasion of the 18th birthday celebrations of the Princess of Asturias at the El Pardo Palace in Madrid. Unlike that day, when the celebration was private and hardly anyone in attendance was visible, this time the royal family was seen smiling in front of the photographers at the doors of the restaurant. Of course, they posed separately and there was no family photo.
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The guests at the 60th birthday of Felipe VI's older sister. streamed gradually into the restaurant, which is located in the Chamartín district of Madrid near the Santiago Bernabéu and is characterized by its seasonal products. Don Felipe and Doña Letizia got out of the official vehicle at Paseo de la Castellana and walked a few meters to the site, where they greeted the media waiting outside with a smile. Juan Carlos I arrived alone in a car with his assistants and Queen Sofia arrived in another accompanied by Infanta Cristina. Elena de Borbón also appeared alone and behind the wheel of her own vehicle after doing her morning work at the Mapfre Foundation. In addition, Alexia of Greece, eldest daughter of Constantine, the former monarch of Greece and brother of Doña Sofía, who died in January this year, also took part in the celebration.
Kings Felipe and Letizia left the restaurant in Madrid this Wednesday. Jaime Villanueva
The presence of Juan Carlos I on his daughter's birthday marked the emeritus' seventh trip to Spain since he settled in Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates) in 2020. On this occasion, he flew with Infanta Cristina from Geneva aboard a private plane, a Bombardier model of VistaJets, which landed at Adolfo Suárez Airport in Madrid-Barajas at around 11:30 a.m.
Unable to remain in Zarzuela, where he resided during his nearly four-decade rule, Don Juan Carlos is expected to leave Madrid late this afternoon. He did this on his last visit on October 31st. Don Juan Carlos, who turns 86 on January 5, was not invited to the swearing-in of the Constitution in the Congress of the heir to the throne. Nor for the subsequent ceremony in the Royal Palace with the powers of the state, but for the Princess's family dinner, whose guests included, in addition to the Kings, the Princess of Asturias and Infanta Sofía, the Emeritus Queen, the Infanta Elena, and Cristina and her children; as well as Infanta Margarita, sister of Juan Carlos I, her husband and her daughter. Present on behalf of Queen Letizia were her parents, her sister Telma and her nieces.
Infanta Elena arrived this Wednesday in Madrid at the restaurant where she is celebrating her 60th birthday with her family. Jose Ruiz (Europa Press)
The last time the Emeritus visited Spain was at the end of November, when he traveled to Sanxenxo (Pontevedra) to sail aboard the Bribón in Galician waters and eat with his friends after taking part in a medical visit to Vitoria . Don Juan Carlos spent a week in the Galician city. It was in Sanxenxo that he was also from September 25th to October 2nd, days in which he enjoyed the visit of several relatives, including his sister Margarita, his nephews Alfonso and María Zurita and his firstborn, Infanta Elena.
Infanta Cristina with her mother, Queen Sofía, upon their arrival at the restaurant this Wednesday in Madrid. Jose Ruiz (Europa Press)
When Juan Carlos traveled from Abu Dhabi to Spain on October 31, he only spent a few hours in Madrid and flew to London at the end of the family celebration. This fact deeply displeased the emeritus, according to a friend of his in an article in EL PAÍS. The father of Felipe VI. settled in the United Arab Emirates in 2020 as his tax irregularities and personal behavior caused controversy. Don Juan Carlos was exonerated in all cases brought against him in Spain and other countries.