Princess Maxima speaks at the 11th Inter-American Forum on Microenterprise in Luque, Paraguay on October 8, 2008.

Princess Maxima of the Netherlands is in Paraguay for a 3-day working visit to attend and speak at the 11th Inter-American Forum on Microenterprise (FOROMIC).

Yesterday, October 8, 2008, Princess Maxima also visited an elementary school in San Antonio, Paraguay. The school is participating the Aflatoun Child Savings International program, which aims to provide financial education to children.

Princess Maxima interacts with elementary school students in San Antonio, Paraguay

Princess Maxima has a background in finance and economics, which she uses in her work as a member of the Dutch royal family. She has a degree in economics from the Catholic University of Argentina, and has worked in the finance industry prior to her marriage to Crown Prince Willem-Alexander.

More photos here and here.

Video of the school visit here.

Images used with permission from www.splashnewsonline.com

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Denmark’s Royal Family attended the opening of the “Folketingets” parliament at Christiansborg Castle in Copenhagen on October 7, 2008. Although Queen Margrethe, unlike Britain’s Queen Elizabeth, doesn’t address the assembly during the opening session, it is traditional for the Danish royals to be in attendance.

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The royals arrived at Christianborg Castle in order of succession to the throne. Thus, Princess Benedikte, the Queen’s younger sister, arrived first, followed by Prince Joachim and his wife Princess Marie. Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary came after them, and last, Prince Henrik and Queen Margrethe.

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You can see more photos here, and a video of the royals’ arrival here.

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Prince William and Prince Harry at the City Salute at London’s St Paul’s Cathedral in May 2008

Britain’s Prince William and Prince Harry will take part in a grueling 1000-mile motorcycle rally across South Africa’s Eastern Cape later this month.

The Enduro Africa 08 event aims to raise money for the UNICEF, Prince Harry’s Sentebale charity in Lesotho, and the Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund. For 8 days, riders from all over the world will ride across some of the most rugged and isolated terrain in South Africa. There are no road signs throughout the route, which goes trough game reserves, tribal areas and wilderness. The riders will be using Honda CRF 230s motorcycles, which will be provided by the organizers.

Each participant needed to raise at least £4,995 in order to ride. Enduro Africa will donate a minimum of £1,500 per participant. In the past years, part of this donation consisted of the motorcycles used in the event. The charity Riders for Health provides motorcycles to health workers in Africa. In some areas, the motorcycles are the only means to deliver health care to people in need.

There will be two groups for this year’s Enduro Africa. The first group has already started their adventure. The princes will be in the second group that will leave for South Africa later this month.

Sentebale, also called The Princes’ Fund for Lesotho, was founded by Prince Harry and Lesotho’s Prince Seeiso to help orphans and vulnerable children who have had to deal with AIDS and poverty. Sentebale, which means “forget me not”, was named in honor of the princes’ mothers, who both worked with AIDS victims and orphans.

via Telegraph; image used with permission from Newscom

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Princess Beatrice took a break outside the university last week.

She and her sister Princess Eugenie attended the Form Menswear launch at London’s Harrods Department store on October 2, 2008. The two British princesses enjoy the fashion scene in London. Princess Beatrice once participated in a charity fashion show with her mom Sarah Ferguson.

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Prince Charles, Camilla and Prince Harry attended the thanksgiving service for Captain Gerald Ward, Prince Harry’s godfather, at St Mary’s Church, last October 3, 2008.

Ward died on September 23 while playing a charity golf match at the Sunningdale Golf Club. He was a close friend of The Prince of Wales.

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Prince Harry and Tom Parker-Bowles, Camilla’s son, acted as ushers at the service. Prince Charles gave a tribute to his friend of 40 years. Harry’s battallion, the Trumpeters of the Blues and Royals, played at the end of the service.

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After months of talks and whispers about Kate Middleton’s seeming lack of a regular job, Prince William’s girlfriend and her family seemed to have addressed the issue directly yet very subtly.

On the front of the website of Party Pieces, the party supply company managed by Kate’s parents, there now appears a tiny photo of Kate, her mom Carole and a company employee. Here’s a screenshot from the company website:

In a newsletter for October ‘08 on the company’s ‘About Us’ page, there is also a detailed description of Kate’s job:

Party Pieces launched First Birthdays at the beginning of the year with Kate managing the project and producing this year’s catalogues and website. First Birthdays is full of wonderful ideas from party decorations and tableware to keepsakes and personalized products for that very special First Birthday.

In putting this information out, Kate is letting the world know that she is being productive with her time and talents, without having to talk about it at all.

Working at her parent’s company could be the perfect situation for her now. She gets to help her parents and protect her privacy. Furthermore, she can’t be accused of using her royal connections to land employment benefits and she also has flexibility in her schedule.

image from Party Pieces

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Crown Princess Mary of Denmark talks with Sudanese refugee children at the Lama Refugee Camp in Uganda.

Denmark’s Crown Princess Mary is in Uganda this week to carry out engagements related to the Danish Refugee Council, of which she is patron.

Princess Mary arrived in Uganda on September 28, 2008 and will stay until October 4. Among the places that she has already visited are:

• Mulago Hospital in Kampala, which provides HIV/AIDS health services to refugees. The Princess talked and played with the children in the hospital’s Child Care Room.
• Redeemer Childrens Orphanage, the home of 79 orphans from both Sudan and Uganda. During her visit here, children moved the Princess to tears with songs and stories of their suffering.
• Lama refugee-camp in Mojo which houses refugees from Sudan.

More photos at Danish Royal Watcher

image used with permission from Newscom

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The Spanish royals with the Morelia Childrens’ Choir in Michoacan, Mexico last September 29, 2008. (Second row, from left, Michoacan Governor Leonel Godoy, Mexican First Lady Margarita Zavala, Mexican President Felipe Calderon, Prince Felipe and Princess Letizia)

Crown Prince Felipe and Crown Princess Letizia of Spain are on an official visit to Mexico. The royal couple arrived in Mexico City last September 28, 2008 and will stay in the country until October 2, 2008. (photos of their arrival here and here)

They have met the President of Mexico Felipe Calderon in his home in Michoacan, as well as at an official welcome ceremony in Los Pinos. A private dinner on the night of September 28, and a luncheon yesterday, September 30 were held in their honor.

The official schedule of Prince Felipe and Princess Letizia include attending the inaugural meeting of the First Congress of Latin-American Culture, meetings with representatives of Spanish companies that are based in Mexico, and a reception for their countrymen who are living in Mexico held at the National Arts Center. They will be accompanied by President Calderon to some of these meetings.

via Royal Forums; image used with permission from Newscom

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Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden visited Skåne County in southern Sweden last September 29, 2008. It was a part of the country that she has not seen before.

Part of her trip included visits to the Kristianstads Vattenrike Biosphere Reserve and the Hassleholm Culture House, which features the exhibit “Pompeii at Table”, a display of everyday food and excavated objects from Pompeii.

Princess Victoria also made a stop at the Wanas sculpture park, where exhibits of contemporary art take place around a medieval castle. The Wanas Estate has one of the largest facilities for organic milk production in Europe.

via Sofia’s Royal Sweden; image used with permission from Newscom

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Japan’s Prince Akishino and Princess Kiko were among those who took part in a rare and very happy occasion last Thursday, September 25, 2008.

The royals helped release 10 ibises back into the wild, for the first time in more than 2 decades. The endangered birds, a national treasure of Japan, have been bred in captivity. Some of the birds were fitted with tracking devices before their release.

image used with permission from Newscom

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