REST IN PEACE DUCHESS OF ALBA

As a little tribute to the recently deceased Duchess of Alba I want to publish again a post about her which I wrote and posted in 2011 in this blog. It said as follows:

"The Duchess of Alba, the grandest grandee in Spain, is said to be able to cross the country from north to south without leaving her estates, and possess more titles than the Queen of England and of highter rank.

The duchess of Alba is very popular in Spain and very well known abroad, where even she was in the best dressed Vanity Fair last year.

Though it seems international press is starting to name her as "the rocker duchess", I do prefer to name her as the hippy duchess, because she has been always a very free woman, very determined to do her own, following the live and let live hippy motto, because she has always dressed in her own hippy style and because she has always liked to spend holidays in Ibiza (the hippy paradise in Spain).

Cayetana Fitz-James Stuart y de Silva was born at the Palace of Liria on March 28th, 1926, in Madrid. The palace houses Francisco de Goya's full-length portrait of Cayetana's ancestor, The Duchess of Alba, reputed to have been his lover and model for his masterworks, The Clothed Maja and The Naked Maja.

A dazzling beauty in her youth, possessor of 44 noble titles and 150 hereditary ones, in fact according to Guinness World Records, she has more titles recognized by an existing government than any other noble. The duchess is renowned for her forthright character, forged during a high-rolling spell in England in the Second World War where her father, the 17th Duke, was Spanish ambassador in London.

In 1947 she married Luis Martínez de Irujo y Artacoz, son of the Dukes of Sotomayor, in "the most expensive wedding in the world", according to the press on that date. The couple lived mostly in the ancestral Las Dueñas palace in Seville, and had six children. She is said to have enjoyed a lively love life. The father of her fourth son, Fernando, is widely reported not to have been her husband but the Sevillian flamenco dancer Antonio el Bailarin ("the dancer").

After her husband's death in 1972, the duchess controversially married the free-thinking former Jesuit priest Jesus Aguirre y Ortiz de Zarate, in 1978. On his death in 2001, the title and property reverted to Cayetana. Dedicated Alba-watchers say her six children are split over their mother's marriage plans.

But despite wealth and her bluest of blue blood, Maria del Rosario Cayetana Alfonsa Victoria Eugenia Francisca Fitz-James Stuart y de Silva, 84, is being denied her heart's desire after her children scotched her plans to marry a civil servant 24 years her junior, Alfonso Diez, who says when he is interviewed that he has been in love with the duchess since thirty years ago. "They don't want me to marry, but they change partners more often than I do," the duchess complain about her six children, all of whom made high-profile marriages that ended in divorce. She admits to furious rows with her children over her marriage plans.

Her sons Carlos, Alfonso and Cayetano, are said to oppose the match, while Jacobo, Fernando and Eugenia want their mother to do what makes her happy. At present, Carlos, her eldest son, stands to inherit everything. He has progressively assumed responsibility for the family holdings since Aguirre's death. That may change if she marries again.

The House of Alba fears for the safety of a sumptuous patrimony should the twice-widowed duchess marry a third time. The duchess is mistress of a fabulous collection of estates, palaces and artworks, including portraits by Goya of an illustrious antecedent said to have been the artist's lover.

With her piping, querulous voice and eye-popping outfits, the duchess is constantly in the public eye at society weddings and bullfights featuring her ex-son-in-law Francisco ("Fran") Rivera Ordóñez, a popular torero (bullfighter) from a distinguished bullfighting family.

Some gossip columnists hint that Mr Diez is little more than a carpet- bagger battening upon a frail old woman estranged from her children. Others say it's bit much if Spain's top aristocrat can't choose her own partner for her twilight years.

The fact is that Cayetana de Alba is much more happier since she is dating Alfonso Diez, her health is better and she travels a lot with his boyfriend. But will she finally do her will in this matter and get married to the civil servant? Who knows? Let’s time passes by and we all see!

The Duchess of Alba and his last and third great love finally got married in October, 2011.

Duchess of Alba, many people will miss you because of many reasons, for your joy of life, for your spontaneity with everyone (rich or poor) and specially for your free spirit so far from a sourpuss aristocracy.

Duchess, rest in peace.

25 CUTE SUMMER QUOTES

 

“Summer was here again. Summer, summer, summer. I loved and hated summers. Summers had a logic all their own and they always brought something out in me. Summer was supposed to be about freedom and youth and no school and possibilities and adventure and exploration. Summer was a book of hope. That’s why I loved and hated summers. Because they made me want to believe.” ― Benjamin Alire Sáenz 

“One must maintain a little bittle of summer, even in the middle of winter.” ― Henry David Thoreau 

“I almost wish we were butterflies and liv’d but three summer days – three such days with you I could fill with more delight than fifty common years could ever contain.” ― John Keats

“Summer afternoon—summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language.” ― Henry James

“What good is the warmth of summer, without the cold of winter to give it sweetness.” ― John Steinbeck

“I know I am but summer to your heart, and not the full four seasons of the year.” ― Edna St. Vincent Millay

“A man says a lot of things in summer he doesn’t mean in winter.” ― Patricia Briggs, Dragon Blood

“it’s a smile, it’s a kiss, it’s a sip of wine … it’s summertime!” ― Kenny Chesney

“Spring passes and one remembers one’s innocence. Summer passes and one remembers one’s exuberance. Autumn passes and one remembers one’s reverence. Winter passes and one remembers one’s perseverance.” ― Yoko Ono

“Summer will end soon enough, and childhood as well.” ― George R.R. Martin

“My old grandmother always used to say, Summer friends will melt away like summer snows, but winter friends are friends forever.” ― George R.R. Martin

“One swallow does not make a summer, neither does one fine day; similarly one day or brief time of happiness does not make a person entirely happy.” ― Aristotle

 “If it could only be like this always – always summer, always alone, the fruit always ripe and Aloysius in a good temper…” ― Evelyn Waugh

  

“Summertime is always the best of what might be.” ― Charles Bowden

“Summer, after all, is a time when wonderful things can happen to quiet people. for those few months, you’re not required to be who everyone thinks you are, and that cut-grass smell in the air and the chance to dive into the deep end of a pool give you a courage you don’t have the rest of the year. you can be grateful and easy, with no eyes on you, and no past. summer just opens the door and lets you out.” ― Deb Caletti

“Summer bachelors like summer breezes, are never as cool as they pretend to be.” ― Nora Ephron

“Why is summer mist romantic and autumn mist just sad?” ― Dodie Smith

 “Summer’s lease hath all too short a date.” ― William Shakespeare

“Some of the best memories are made in flip flops.” ― Kellie Elmore 

“One benefit of Summer was that each day we had more light to read by.” ― Jeannette Walls

  

“In summer the empire of insects spreads.” ― Adam Zagajewski

“A breeze, a forgotten summer, a smile, all can fit into a storefront window.” ― Dejan Stojanovic 

“I wonder what it would be like to live in a world where it was always June.” ― L.M. Montgomery 

“The days draw out, the weather gets warmer, and it’s what we call summer, with a bitter laugh when we’ve said it.” ― Stan Barstow 

“It’s summer and time for wandering…” ― Kellie Elmore

  

“That familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with the summer.” ― F Scott Fitzgerald 

“August rain: the best of the summer gone, and the new fall not yet born. The odd uneven time.” ― Sylvia Plath

“Watching the summer close is like watching a good kid die for no apparent reason.” ― Darnell Lamont Walker

And with this post I want to wish from the blog Sangria, Sol y Siesta a very 

HAPPY SUMMER FOR ALL THE VISITORS!

TIMES OF CHANGES COME TO SPANISH MONARCHY WITH KING FELIPE VI

After the country recovered from the shocking news on June 2 about King Juan Carlos abdication, it was announced that his son Felipe VI would be crowned on June 19.

Juan Carlos ruled for 39-years following the rowdy times of dictator Francisco Franco, so Felipe VI’s coronation will be the first one Spain has seen since his father’s in 1975 and he is the first Spanish monarch to directly inherit the crown in centuries. The last one was Felipe V in 1701.

Hours after Juan Carlos I announced his abdication, thousands of anti-monarchy protesters took to the streets ahead of the coronation of Felipe VI to ask for the abolition of the monarchy. The king made mistakes like we all do, but on balance, there can be no question that his reign has been positive and King Juan Carlos will be remembered as a rallying figure who brought Spaniards together during the transitional period from Franco’s dictatorship to a new democracy. He has been the best symbol of a peaceful coexistence and Spain’s best spokesman. 

But really the question of whether a modern democracy needs a king in 2014 is another question. The fact today is that the 1978 Spanish constitution was established with a majority support of the monarchy.

Felipe VI will be crowned at a time of great dissatisfaction, not only with the royals, but the economic and social problems in all of Spain and his first task will be to try to work with all sides. Not an easy job indeed.

But how is really the new King of Spain, Felipe VI?

Felipe is the third child and only son of King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia of Spain. Born on January 30, 1968, in Madrid, Spain, Felipe known also as Felipe de Borbon y Grecia as well as the Prince of Asturias was a popular figure as a schoolboy, dodging palace bodyguards assigned to him by enlisting the help of his chums. 

Apart from stints in all three branches of the armed forces, the 6ft 4in royal has studied abroad - in the US, Canada and Brussels - and has both a masters degree in international relations and a law degree. He speaks French and fluent English, Greek and Catalanian.

He also loves astronomy, skiing and sailing. He even competed in the 1992 Olympics as a member of the Spanish sailing team, in the same way his father did two decades before. Felipe took part in the opening ceremony as the Spanish team’s flag bearer. He finished in sixth place in the soling class and obtained an Olympic diploma. Navigation is linked to his holiday in Majorca, an island that loves and in which he feels very comfortable.

His role as heir to the Spanish throne, meant Felipe's love life was inevitably the focus of much media speculation. He enjoyed a high-profile five-year courtship with Norwegian model Eva Sannum, which had inspired a debate in Spain as to whether the Prince should be able to marry a commoner. That relationship came to an end, however, when the prince announced it had failed to "thrive". 

Other girlfriends included US Giselle Howard, German royal Carolina de Waldburg, and aristocrat Isabel Sartorius, with whom he ended a similarly controversial romance in 1992.

Felipe had always insisted that whoever he chose, it would be "a relationship based on love, respect and kindness", and when the royal palace made the surprise announcement of his engagement to 31-year-old newsreader Letizia Ortiz Rocasolano (a commoner, divorcée and popular public figure) it seemed the Prince had kept his word. 

The pair tied the knot in the summer of 2004 in Madrid's Almudena Cathedral. Their first child, daugther Leonor, was born on October 31, 2005, and the couple welcomed their second daughter, Sofia, on April 29, 2007.

The love and respect Felipe looked for in his life partner is also reflected in the attitude he holds towards his parents. "In the king (Juan Carlos) I have a father, but also a leader, a friend and a counsellor," he says. "My mother has provided the humane, intellectual and spiritual part of my upbringing. I’ve often been described as being a combination of both my parents, physically and in character."

In addition to his official activities, Felipe is Honorary President of several associations and foundations, such as the Imperial Munitions Board, which finances specific economic and social development activities in Ibero-America and other countries, and the Spanish branch of the Association of European Journalists, which is composed of outstanding communications professionals. Most noteworthy is the Príncipe de Asturias Foundation, where he presides annually the awards ceremony of the highly prestigious Prince of Asturias Awards, at the international level, that carry his name.

Within the framework of these institutions which work towards aims of general interest, Felipe focuses his interest on activities in the fields of development projects, voluntary work, the environment, universities, the integration of young people in the workplace and business, relations between business circles and society and social communication.

On the occasion of the United Nations declaration of 2001 as the International Year of Volunteers, the UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan, named Felipe an "Eminent Person" so that he could contribute on an international level towards enhancing the importance of voluntary workers.

It's said that he is the most accomplished Prince nowadays and also he knows to sew a button or make an Spanish omelette. Those who know him as a child say "he has never been given importance by being who he is. And that, coupled with their "listening" and his insightful reviews, makes him to have a seductive effect on their partners.

About who has influenced him the most is the King, who has transmitted his love for his country above and also his mother whom he owes his good manners and education. But whom he really takes after is his grandfather Paul, the father of the Queen Sofia, who was an exemplary man and a great King of Greece .

Don Felipe’s wife, Doña Letizia, has also greatly influenced him. He has become more human and closer and has helped him to communicate better in public. Indeed, Don Felipe had noticed her as a television news presenter of TVE. Then I was impressed by his professionalism on the job, but since he met personally liked "much more." She was a bright girl, full of sparkle, judiciously, tenaciously defending their arguments and feet on earth.

When Don Felipe was a kid wanted to be an astrophysicist and still loves scientific discoveries and technological innovations, but the real passion in his life is politics in the highest sense. When he had the chance to complete his education he chose an MA in International Relations.

It's been 18 years in which he has served as an apprentice King, so his new life as Head of State will not be so different to the latter years.

Don Felipe will keep on living in the same house he has lived since June 2002, a Spanish house of 1,700 square meters divided into four levels: a basement (service area), ground floor (initially was given official use) and a first floor and an attic (both are the private area).

The new King will continue getting up at seven o'clock, as usual, and after having breakfast with his wife and daughters will walk to the Zarzuela Palace. But instead of heading to the small room located in a basement that had been issued so far, he will be installed in the bright office Rey, close to the Audience Hall.

His assistants admire him. No one has received an only scold from the Prince. They say that while he is very demanding of himself, he is sympathetic to the faults of others.

Don Felipe is meticulous in his job. He travels with his I-Pad, which carries all his reports. He doesn’t use much papers. He also likes watching some movie when he finishes working to relax. His favourite hobby is going to the cinema. And also he loves reading history books and great writers. Don Felipe likes to drive and does it in all private journeys, though for security reasons, he changes cars often.

He also likes to have lunch and dinner out with family and friends. He enjoys good wine and good food. He likes both the Spanish traditional food and exotic oriental dishes, from burgers and pizzas shared with her daughters to the sophistication of the new kitchen.

About his image, he really doesn’t need to take great care of himself to offer an unblemished image. He likes wearing short hair to prevent it from forming curls. When he needs to buy clothes, he uses intermediaries or requests to be carried to Zarzuela. He only goes shopping to buy a gift or an emergency, as the day he was seen shopping yogurts in a supermarket.

On June 19 Felipe will become the youngest king of European monarchies while Leonor, with only 8 years, will be the youngest heir to the royal houses.

As he assumes his new role, Felipe VI is seen as the hope to unite a country that has been severely affected by the worldwide financial crisis and high unemployment in recent years. Let’s give him an opportunity to show how well accomplished he is for it.

Long life to the new King!