King Juan Carlos was never one to celebrate birthdays; In fact, he only officially celebrated turning 70 in 2008, without thinking, then, that he would turn 80 as an abdicated king. Today, however, some of his friends will accompany him at his residence in Abu Dhabi, on the day he turns 86. A dinner, with a flamenco air, which will be attended by about a hundred people, most of them Spaniards, in which in addition to celebrating the anniversary, a new stage in the life of the King's father will be celebrated once all the pending judicial obstacles have been overcome and , especially after a year in which, although not completely, he has managed to normalize his visits to Spain.
The King's father left Spain on August 3, 2020, with the idea of returning as soon as the storm generated by the avalanche of information that attributed fiscal irregularities, million-dollar gifts and private conflicts to him cleared up. His repeated attempts to return were thwarted on several occasions and his stay, at first temporary, in Abu Dhabi, became permanent now a year ago. First he left his temporary residence, transferred by his host, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and after moving to a new house, especially adapted to his needs, King Juan Carlos announced, on January 23, his decision to settle permanently in the emirate while informing the Treasury of his decision to be a tax resident in Abu Dhabi. A situation that allows you to avoid accounting for his accounts.
In that new house, to which he moved some of the furniture and personal belongings that surrounded him in Zarzuela, is where this Friday he will gather his friends and, also, part of his family. His daughters Elena and Cristina, who have already visited him on other occasions, as well as friends, Spanish, Emirati, English and other nationalities, most of them companions, regular or sporadic, at other meetings held by King Juan Carlos in Abu Dhabi that they have not transcended. On this occasion, the King's father has had no problem with the summons having been known in advance, since it is held precisely after having closed his last judicial front: the one that kept him pending the resolution of a court of London that had to settle the harassment lawsuit filed by Corinna Larsen. Once the claims of his ex-lover have been rejected, and with the cases regarding the Spanish treasury also resolved favorably, King Juan Carlos has considered that it is time to thank his friends for the support received in recent times.
Last year, he also managed to normalize his visits to Spain. Four to Sanxenxo, and two to Madrid, one to attend the family celebration on October 31 for Princess Leonor's 18th birthday that took place in El Pardo, and the most recent, on December 20, to celebrate, in a restaurant in Madrid, the 60th birthday of Infanta Elena, who managed to seat her father and brother at the same table.
On his getaways to Galicia, always with Pedro Campos (who will be at the celebration today) as host and in order to compete in the 6M class regattas, King Juan Carlos has managed to reduce media attention. Not so on his lightning visits to Madrid, where, given the impossibility of spending the night in Zarzuela (due to his own decision not to use publicly owned residences and, at the same time, his refusal to do so in a hotel or private residence), he prefers arrive and leave the same day.
King Juan Carlos is not planning, at this time, a definitive return to Spain, his only wish, expressed repeatedly to his closest friends, is to avoid interfering in the reign of his son, Felipe VI, and, at the same time, maintain the emotional ties and family contact. Even though he is aware that time is against him and that he may never return to live permanently in the country of which, for almost 40 years, he was head of state, Juan Carlos de Borbón today assumes that, at 86 years old, the The life he enjoys is not the best but it is good enough.
