A kiss is still a kiss

As time goes by, the Spanish royal family is still looking for the way out of a terrible few years which have seen it wobble consistently with little sign of a let up.  And perhaps the scale of the predicament can be seen in the reaction to a simple gesture which took everyone by surprise and which has led to all kinds of chatter and comments.  Queen Sofia of Spain gave her husband a peck on the cheek on Wednesday as they waited for the arrival of the Dutch monarchs ahead of a lunch hosted by the Spanish royals.  Less than a second in front of the cameras which has kept people talking for almost twenty four hours.

 

King Juan Carlos of Spain is kissed on the cheek by his wife, Sofia, at the Zarzuela Palace on September 18th 2013

 

It is a long time since the king and queen of Spain displayed this sort of affection towards one another in public.  And a lot of water has passed under the bridge since then.  The fall the king had in Botswana on the infamous hunting trip that led to him publicly apologizing for letting down his people marked a sea change in the perception of Juan Carlos and Sofia's marriage as it was also revealed that the monarch had counted among his holiday party Corinna zu Sayn-Wittgenstein.  Suddenly the king's relationship with Corinna became big news and while she denied anything other than a business link with the king, speculation continued as 2012 drew on.

 

 

Corinna and the king - one of many photos of the two together that surfaced after the Botswana hunting trip

 

She gave a long interview to Hola magazine and had a shorter chat with El Mundo but neither dampened rumours and it's yet another interview, publicised in the last few days, that's led to so much chatter about a queen kissing her king.  Corinna has been talking to the American edition of Vanity Fair and telling them that the king speaks to her children (she has a daughter by her first husband and a son from her second marriage which ended in divorce in 2005) and that she thinks Juan Carlos is starting to look old.  Not exactly high romance but enough to revive all the old rumours.  And the fact that Sofia has dived in with a peck on the cheek at this point has led to criticism that the royal couple are playing to the gallery. 

 

 

He called her the ultimate professional - Juan Carlos and Sofia have been a royal team since 1962

 

Sofia has rarely been seen with her husband in the last year.  They appear together at official functions but outside of that, a glimpse of this long married pair together is hard to find.  There was no photo of them together in Mallorca this year, though the disaster of that holiday will take a lot of living down all round for Spain's royals, and when they do appear the camaraderie of yesteryear seems long forgotten. 

 

 

Once upon a time....the prince and princess who forged one of Europe's best known royal partnerships

 

The king's response to the kiss is also in the spotlight with some wondering why he didn't respond more effusively.  But given the backlash from some quarters that even this simple peck on the cheek has drawn, it's hard to imagine what might have happened had the king turned round and planted a smacker on the queen in response.  Perhaps the most surprised might have been Sofia - she herself has said Juan Carlos never really proposed to her, instead throwing a box with a ring in it at her. 

 

 

Another famous kiss for the king and queen of Spain

 

Which may be the answer to the question that this kiss prompted.  Why now?   This royal pair have a royal romance all of their own and like many regal marriages it's based in a personal relationship and a working partnership.  Juan Carlos and Sofia may never have been Romeo and Juliet but their union was, for many years, seen as a great monarchical marriage.  A little kiss on the cheek for a couple who have shared a massive amount, both privately and publicly, can do little to stem the tide of accusations facing Spain's royals at the moment but they have steered their ship through stormier waters than this and maybe Sofia the sailor wants to take the wheel again.  Or maybe, like all wives, however annoying the hubby has been, he's still her hubby and a wife is entitled to stake her claim when others appear to be doing the same.

 

The marriage of Prince Juan Carlos of Spain and Princess Sofia of Greece and Denmark, in Athens in 1962, began a lifelong partnership that would make a big difference to the kingdom Juan Carlos came to rule

The idea of romance changes with time.  Hand holding, kissing and smooching are modern ways of princely love but they weren't all that current when JC and his Sofi were starting out.  Juan Carlos and Sofia have been through a lot together and it looks like there is much more to come.  What should be the golden twilight of a reign that began with years of hard work has turned into a fight that shows no signs of quieting down just yet.  Much remains uncertain for Spain's royals.  But one thing is sure - we'll all remember this, a kiss that's still a kiss, as time goes by.