A little note just to let you know there will be a little posting hiatus for the next few days. Sorry the catch up hasn't been quite as fast as hoped but it just can't be helped. But, we will get there and be back on top for upcoming events. See you soon!Labels: Dear readers...
"There she is!", "I can see her well..." whispered two high school students in the third row when Crown Princess Mary ascended the long staircase ...at the University of Aarhus.Jyllands Posten 'Mary fik egen regnskov i Århus' - Mary got her own rain forest in Århus (by Morten Nystrup)
The Crown Princess sat right in the front row in front of the stage and had a bit of an untraditional welcome from the rapper Per Vers, who granted permission for the university's principal Lauritz B. Holm-Nielsen to speak ...
The afternoon's session was the official opening arrangement for Research Day which is a nationwide initiative by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation.
So the science minister Helge Sander was also on the stage.
"Research matters a lot for all of us and we have to take care to explain research so that there is understanding of why a lot of money has to be spent on it," said the minister to 400 people, who were gathered at the lecture room.
Crown Princess Mary is patron for Research Day.
She received a certificate presenting a small piece of rain forest to her and handed over the Research Communication Prize for 2008 to Professor Ove K. Pedersen from Copenhagen Business School.
The award winner is in Washington at present so his daughter Lea Bøttger-Pedersen accepted the bouquet and a cheque for DKK100.000 for him.
Outside the lecture room the Crown Princess got a five minutes physics show from two students from the University of Aarhus, which showed her how water rises when inland ice melts, and then they blew up a nitrogen bomb in the lake outside.
The Crown Princess nodded with interest.
She was particularly busy with the bomb, which consisted of liquid nitrogen in a half litre coke bottle. When liquid nitrogen is heated, it expands 650 times and blows up the container.
That produced an enormous explosion in the lake.
"Thank you very much, it was exciting," Crown Princess Mary said and disappeared upstairs to a reception for specially invited visitors.
It isn't only reserved for brother-in-law Prince Joachim to own a piece of earth: Crown Princess Mary became a forest owner during the day's visit in Århus.
As patron of Research Day Crown Princess Mary visited the University of Aarhus today.
During the visit she handed over the Research Communication Prize for 2008.
As a welcome for the Crown Princess the university's principal, Lauritz B. Holm-Nielsen presented, the Crown Princess with 500 square meters of rain forest in Ecuador.
This was to emphasise that climate is the theme for the university's activities during Research Day.
Tomorrow, on Friday, their doors are opened to the public to allow people to learn more about the university's research in the climate area...
Labels: Mary, Research Day, Tanja Kjærsgaard Doky
Prince Joachim and his fiancée, Marie Cavallier had a private visit to Roskilde Cathedral. When the couple left the cathedral an unknown man shouted after the Prince and Marie. A couple of days ago Roskilde Cathedral was contactd by the DRF to arrange a visit from Prince Joachim and his intended, Marie Cavallier.
The visit was part of Marie's introduction to her new role as a Princess of Denmark. The couple had an opportunity to put flowers on the grave of King Frederik IX and Queen Ingrid.
The Royal couple were recieved by the Dean of Roskilde.
There was a bit of drama when the Royal couple was leaving the Cathedral in the Royal car, Crown 20, as an unknown man started to shout "Joachim". The couple continued towards the car. When the car started the unknown man started running along with the car and followed it for a few yards.
A TV crew followed the couple during their visit to the church as part of the making of a documentary.
Labels: Joachim, Marie Cavallier, Roskilde Cathedral
First lady, Regional Director, distinguished guests,
It was with pleasure that I accepted the invitation to say a few words on the occasion of the launch of the European Immunization Week – a week dedicated to strengthening immunization programmes and raising awareness of the benefits of vaccination throughout the European region.
As Patron of the World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe, I am committed, along with many others, to helping improve the health and well-being of the people of the European region. In particular those lacking access to basic medical services.
Immunization saves lives. Apart from safe drinking water, no other health intervention has reduced diseases and mortality as effectively and safely as immunization. No child should suffer from illness, a lifelong disability or die due to vaccine-preventable diseases.
Immunization now reaches over 90% of the children in this region. However, discrepancies in population groups still persist and a large number of unvaccinated children can be found in countries throughout the region. These vulnerable or hard-to-reach children must be reached with life-saving vaccines.
Due to the achievements of immunization, incidences of dangerous vaccine preventable infections have declined leaving weakened fear of these diseases. Furthermore, many health care professionals and parents have no first hand experience with illnesses such as measles, diphtheria and pertussis. As a result, continued advocacy and effective communication on the necessity of immunization remains crucial.
It is the right of every child to grow up healthy, and vaccinated against those diseases that can so easily be controlled. I hope that the countries within the region will act quickly and effectively to ensure that children and adults, especially those in vulnerable and hard-to-reach groups, have access to immunization and basic health services.
The importance of immunization cannot be underestimated. The diversity of the region creates enormous challenges in your efforts to reach your common goal of increasing vaccination coverage. I wish you and the region’s member states every success in achieving that goal.
Good luck and thank you.
Labels: Caroline Heering, Mary, World Health Organisation Regional Office for Europe
Even though Princess Isabella is still a bit unstable on her legs, she will make her way to the cake on Monday, because the Royal Family’s youngest member is a firm little – and very charming – lady.
"She is ready but still a little heavy," Crown Prince Frederik said when he carried his little daughter in his arms during their skiing vacation in February. Today, the young Isabella is still a little unstable on her legs, but she can crawl. Therefore, it won’t be hard for her to reach the birthday table on Monday to blow out her first birthday cake candle, just like her big brother, Christian, did when he turned one.
Nobody, not even the Crown Prince Couple themselves, knew that Mary was expecting a little girl, so when the news was released on April 21 last year, both the Royal Family and most of the country were thrilled. And this was because Denmark had finally gotten a little princess. She was born at 4.02 in the afternoon and an hour and a half later Frederik stood in the vestibule of Rigshospitalet and told how his little daughter was 50 centimetres long and weighed 3,350 grams.
The colour of the newborn’s eyes was discussed keenly. Were they going to be brown like Mary’s or blue like Frederik’s, but when the little Princess was christened a few months later, there was no doubt. Isabella Henrietta Ingrid Margrethe, as she was named, has the prettiest, big, blue eyes.
Isabella’s playmate
The Crown Prince Couple love being with their children. Those are the best hours of the day, and therefore, Frederik and Mary take the young ones with them whenever possible. Crown Princess Mary has wanted to breastfeed her children, so both Christian and Isabella have been “out and about” since they were very young. In Isabella's case, this meant that she has already been in Croatia, the U.S. and Romania as well as a lot of places in Denmark before her first birthday. The first time she was out, the trip went to Tåsinge, where the two month old baby slept safely in her carrier while her mom and dad and Christian was at a christening in the church at Valdemar’s Castle.
At the christening with the Handwerk family in the beginning of February, Isabella had gotten big enough to be in her dad’s arms with a straight back and red cheeks, wearing a frilled shirt and dark brown dress. The little Palma, as the Handwerk baby was baptised, will be one of Isabella’s young playmates in the future.
During the Crown Prince Couple’s visit to New York and Romania, it was only Mary and Frederik, the nanny and the security guards who saw Princess Isabella. An official visit is most importantly about having the Crown Prince Couple in the spotlight, while a family trip is something different. So when Frederik and Mary went on a cruise last summer in Croatia together with some of their friends, both Christian and Isabella were photographed.
When it comes to taking pictures of their own children, Frederik and Mary aren’t any different to other parents. Both Christian and Isabella have frequently been recorded on video from the moment they opened their eyes for the first time in the delivery room at Rigshospitalet up until now.
If you ask the Crown Prince Couple themselves, they think that they’ve been “very lucky” with their two kids. Frederik himself has described Christian as “a happy little romping boy”, but that at age one and a half, he could also sit perfectly still for nearly an hour probably amazed most of those who watched him in Fredensborg Castle Church at Isabella’s christening.
"Isabella would never have been able to do that. She would have run around in the church. That’s for sure," said someone very close to the Crown Prince Couple.
The fact that Isabella has a stronger tempererament than her older brother has is something Mary agrees on.
"Isabella can be extremely happy but she can also be extremely angry," said Mary, when her little daughter was eight months old, but during the skiing vacation in Switzerland in February, she softened her quote a little.
"Isabella’s temperament is not as powerful as it was when she was very young. I think she is a bit more calm now," said Crown Princess Mary, while she was sitting in the snow, holding her little daughter. And Isabella, who was covered in mittens and a hat and a pink snowsuit, didn’t say a thing.
Shares the diaper changes and the playing
Prince Christian began in the local day nursery Queen Louise’s Children's House in Fredensborg when he was a year and a half old, and shortly after Isabella was born, she was signed up for a spot at the same place.
"It is always nice to be prepared," as Crown Prince Frederik has said. At the moment, Isabella is still taken care of and played with at home in the Chancellery House, where the Crown Prince Couple share both the diaper changes and the nightly supervision as well as the playing on the floor, swinging in the garden and rides in the stroller with the family’s dog, Ziggy, running next to it.
Crown Princess Mary has had to prepare for the birthday on Monday on her own. Frederik is sailing in the World Championships in Farr40 in Florida at the moment, and as it doesn’t end until Saturday, he won’t be able to celebrate his mother’s birthday today either [was published on Queen Margrethe's birthday].
But when Isabella wakes up Monday morning, her dad is back home again. Then she will be celebrated with flags and cake and perhaps grandmother, who lives at Fredensborg Castle again now, and who will drop by with a gift for her youngest grandchild. (many thanks for translation ambiDK!)
