Two kings, two queens, four friends on day two of the Belgian State Visit to the Netherlands
(photo MonarchieBe Twitter)
Day two of the Belgian State Visit to the Netherlands was all about a morning of Maxima and Mathilde, an afternoon of kings and an evening filled with royalty. Plus a lot of red hats. There was also art, business and community work - State Visit Day Two was a busy one.
As day two got under way, King Philippe of the Belgians headed off to hear how his country and the Netherlands are working together in the field of space technology. Everyone else followed his wife's almost flying saucer of a hat as Mathilde and Maxima really got down to business.
The Queen of the Netherlands and the Queen of the Belgians spent time at the Rooms with Opportunities project in Nieuw-Amsterdam. The organisation helps young people who leave school without qualifications and supports them as they continue their education and look for work.
Philippe had his best grey coat on as he met the Prime Minister of the Netherlands, Mark Rutte, and attended a meeting with leading politicians at the Dutch Parliament. It was a valiant effort but those red hats won all the way.
Maxima and Mathilde's next stop was at Vitalis which helps children between the ages of five and eighteen and who are in a vulnerable position for many different reasons. The queens heard about the work and spoke to some of those being supported.
King Willem-Alexander joined the royal party at lunchtime for a meal offered by the Dutch Parliament and held in the Knight's Hall.
The afternoon saw King Willem-Alexander and King Philippe taking part in a discussion between Dutch and Belgian entrepreneurs about the challenges facing the business community right now. The red hats headed to an art museum.
Queen Mathilde has given her support to several big exhibitions about Belgian artists in the past few months and as part of he State Visit to the Netherlands she and Queen Maxima toured a display of work by Pierre Alechinksy at the Cobra Museum in Amstelveen.
The evening saw a right royal turnout for a concert in Amsterdam offered by the King and Queen of the Belgians as a thank you for their State Visit. Philippe, Mathilde, Willem-Alexander and Maxima were joined by Princess Beatrix, Prince Constantijn, Princess Laurentien and Princess Margriet for the event.
It was a glittering end to day two with the State Visit concluding on November 30th with a series o daytime engagements. No word yet on whether there will be red hats, though.
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