SPAIN: There was a mood of anticlimax in Madrid yesterday as Spaniards recovered from Saturday's wedding of Crown Prince Felipe and his bride, the former journalist Letizia Ortiz.
Many people took advantage of the return of sunshine to visit the scenes of the previous day's celebrations. Attendance at the first Spanish royal wedding in 98 years included President Mary McAleese.
After a week of warm sunshine, a thunderstorm deluged the city just as the bride was about to begin to walk with her father along the 200 metres of red carpet separating the Royal Palace from the Almudena Cathedral. An impatient Prince, King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia and their guests were forced to wait 15 minutes before a hastily-summoned Rolls Royce drove her to the ceremony.
There was almost unanimous approval for Princess Letizia's stunning dress, a white silk gown with a four-metre train, deep v-neck and stand-up collar, with gold, silver and crystal embroidery. Its designer, the 86-year-old Barcelona-based couturier, Manolo Pertegaz, received congratulations from many of the guests and loud applause from the public waiting outside.
There was, however, some disappointment that neither the bride, groom nor any member of their families shed a tear during the 90-minute ceremony - Spaniards love to see a few tears at a wedding.
The only sign of emotion from Princess Letizia was when a pipe band from her native Asturias played the anthem, Asturias my Beloved Land. The prince - who is also prince of Asturias - gripped her hands and she bowed her head before leaning it on his shoulder.
The rain continued during their drive in the glass-topped Rolls Royce through the streets to the church of Our Lady of Atocha,where the bride left her bouquet, but the sun shone through timidly as they returned to the palace.
They slowed down as they passed the newly-planted Garden of the Missing, where 192 olive and cypress trees have been planted in memory of the 192 people who died in the March 11th train bomb massacre. They had earlier sent a wreath with the words: "Felipe and Letizia, always in our memory." After two months of mourning, the wedding has come as a welcome relief and, although they will never forget, it has given madrileños a chance to make a new start.
Newspapers brought out special editions dedicating pages to the "historic event". Television news bulletins carried endless replays of the day's coverage, society magazines disappeared from the news stands as fast as they arrived. Pages of copy were dedicated to comment, both negative and positive, of the guest list, who was on it and who had been omitted, the ladies' outfits and particularly questions as to why Prince Ernst of Hanover - husband of Princess Caroline of Monaco and cousin of Queen Sofia - was well enough to attend the dinner party on Friday night, but was "too tired" for the wedding ceremony on Saturday morning - although he had recovered in time for the banquet.
The guests included most of the royal households of Europe; presidents past and present, including Nelson Mandela; names from the sporting world, such as golfer Severiano Ballesteros, tennis player Juan Carlos Ferreiro, basketball player Pau Gasol; from the world of culture: tenor Placido Domingo and soprano Ainhoa Arteta; and the Spanish astronaut Pedro Duque.
If emotion was lacking from the formal cathedral service, the toasts were addressed to a more restricted audience and gave the king and his son an opportunity to show their inner feelings. Prince Felipe made no attempt to hide his happiness. "I cannot hide it, nor do I want to. I am a happy man because I have married the woman I love."