Belas and its charms, Portugal

August, the 2nd

My very dear and esteemed soul,

Melancholic as I've lately been, the weather here hasn't been helping! It's either extremely hot during the day or rather cold during the night and early mornings ... oh and windy, gosh !!

Some days ago I was invited by a dear friend to visit Belas and its former Royal Palace.
One of the oldest in the realm it matches - in age and style - with the one from Sintra, the so called "palace of the old kings".
Its splendidly charming and its surrounded by beautiful and fanciful (dare I say) Palaces of the most influential nobility!

The Palace (or Quinta) was indeed a royal palace during the medieval period and since then it has fallen into many private hands... Currently belonging to the Counts of Pombeiro they have been given the honor to, lets say, entertain or shelter His Highness the Infante D. Carlos who's poor health doesn't match with Lisbon's climate n'or with the life at Court within the Paço da Ribeira's walls.

It was this princely child that I was hoping to see while strolling within the gardens when I was interrupted by a footman that kindly asked me to leave the grounds because someone very important was to arrive!

"Good heavens, who?!" I dared to ask, but his mouth was kept shut ...       

Minutes later, away from the gardens but still not that far, I started to hear dogs barking, horses and a carriage was approaching the main gate. My curiosity toward the whole thing started to grow when I watched that, coming from no where, an unimaginable number of the count's guards and servants aligned themselves from the gates to the main door as well as the owners, came out to receive such visit! Monsieur le Comte was looking serene and happy to be able to receive such guest. He already knew her, but ... who was it?

From the looks the coach appeared to be of expensive and solid construction with big windows fully covered with glass from which one could see, peeping through the costly velvet curtains, one or two ladies admiring the weather.
The horses were exhausted!
As soon as the doors were open everyone knelled on the floor and, oh my, someone came out! It was Her Majesty herself!

Later, after the royal visit, both Monsieur le Comte and Madame la Comtesse apologized immensely the way I had been shuffled away, but when Her Majesty decides to visit, she prefers not to be seen ... In fact, whilst visiting, she's not the Queen but a mother in great distress for her unhealthy child ...

It's understandable, right? But you may also understand my astonishment to visualize such simple scene related to one of the most important Queens within Christendom!
Ah Mater Dolorosa ... !

Adieu ma chère ... I promise that from now on I'll write you more often!

Forever yours truly,
P

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Royal Palace of Mafra , Portugal

15th of July

Dear beloved,

And thus I went to this rather simple place called Mafra.
Was here where, as you probably remember, His Magnanimous Majesty ordered the construction of this massive new Solomon's temple as, some say, a promise to God and the venerated Portuguese Saint Antonio if the royal couple would have any offspring!
If it worked? Well, it worked so delightfully well that even before making the promise, the Queen had already delivered a baby princess!

But here I went again, through the most dreadful circumstances (the roads there aren't the most pleasant) finally arriving a bit before lunch time ...

Can't tell you of my very first impressions as I had been there before but... can you keep a secret? Each time I visit, the vast monument seems to be smaller and smaller!

As my poor head was still trying to get some balance from the constant curves on the way there, and my ears were sill buzzing from all the chatty people I had to share the coach with, couldn't find any disposition to start my visit by the Basilica, so - and because I'd imagine that there would be some stairs inside for me to climb and thus my mind and body would have enough entertainment and reason to complain due to such physical effort, I've penetrated the monument through a tiny side door on the left.

As I didn't know what to expect, I decided to just go through. Maybe someone would try to stop me? A guard? A servant? No! No one! Within the vastness of the whole building and throughout almost one hour visit, I've crossed paths with two elderly ladies that from their looks seemed to be there since the foundation of this kingdom (or even planet?!), a scholar inside the library and, on the way out, a rather youngish fat boy that kept playing with some keys and I feared that the whole place would be under his care!

The rest? Well .... in between huge and vast empty rooms, I've noticed that they have lots of good portraits of the royal family but contrary to the majority of the huge religious painting collection (kept in pristine conditions), most of them are moldy or faded away - makes me think that the country, although always with God on their mouths, has no respect for his representatives on Earth ...
I was intrigued by a particular one. Said to be by an "unknown painter" but I've seen His Majesty painted "that way" somewhere before ... Only now I remember that it was from Monsieur Q and it would take only a few seconds to relate both portraits by whoever runs the place, only a few seconds ...

I was feeling so appalled by the lack of esteem toward the sacredness of the place, that couldn't have left more sad and once again disappointed toward the so called "human race" than when I entered ... No sketches, no inspiration ...

Near by, don't know by whose authority, there were some popular gathering selling the usual non sense stuff but I wasn't bothered to have any part of it and thus I took the coach back where I fell asleep throughout the whole journey!

I heard, in the meantime, that the Royal Family is visiting soon.
Maybe it generates the interest and the funds to refurbish the whole Palace (and luckily for the monks who still may live there (as I haven't seen any during my visit) and convent!

One can only hope because only from thinking of it I become sleepy ... Awwwwwwwweeeeeee, goodbye my love ...

Yours truly,
P

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Dear visitor,

For the sole purpose of quieting your soul we're obliged to clarify that all of the above content is a mere fantasy and that the painting depicted isn't the one referred on the text .
If you'd have any thoughts or comments, you may either write them below or by email @ myroyaldolls@gmail.com

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Whitehall Palace, London

April, the 30th


Ah my dear, how are you today?
No, I won't bother both of us with my frequent sorrow for not having you near me, specially because today I'm feeling rather cheerful and, why not admitting, gay !

Was remembering when we went to London and were admitted to join some courtiers to Whitehall Palace during the birth of Princess M.
You may remember the pathetic fuss as no one seemed to know if to stay at Whitehall or to go to St James Palace, ah ah ah! Luckily for us, the arrival of De V couple took us away from it all (strange that such a diligent gentleman was married with such a lady ... I must presume that she too had qualities or else she wouldn't have ended being appointed governess to the royal princesses ... !

Speaking of strange people, that dynasty was indeed odd since the very beginning, don't you agree my dear? a King that wanted to be as a queen, the next was beheaded, his son being an utter womanizer but unable to have legitimate offspring, his brother being a catholic in the midst of protestants, two queens with weird tendencies towards same age lady friends and in the midst of both a foreign cousin with, him too, peculiar tendencies ... Hummm ........Odd indeed ... !

It is though, undeniable, the symbolic presence of these two last princesses as Queens as both helped the country to move onward and, at least, Queen A always knew how to surround herself with strong beautiful ladies, politicians and artists!  ...

Strong ladies as Her Grace the Duchess of M  ... !

Ah that dear Madame, I miss her wit and typical British dark sense of humor ... ! Such a gloomy end she had ...
Can't stop myself from looking at the copies I made from the portraits she commissioned me of her and with her daughter who would become the 2nd Duchess...

But lets not speak of sorrows or who misses who, for now at least ...   

Adieu, oh adieu ...

With much love and affection, yours truly,

P

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Dear visitor,

For the sole purpose of quieting your soul we're obliged to clarify that all of the above content is a mere fantasy and that you can purchase the exposed artworks on Mr P's shop @ https://www.etsy.com/shop/myroyaldolls

Thank you for visiting and don't forget to subscribe !

MyRoyalDolls is an registered art project as a brand with lots of possibilities besides mere art commerce.

From Paris, France

April, the 27th


My dear, hello ...

You know how hard it is for me to start any of the letters I send you as I miss you so much, but ... how have you been?

I'm so sorry for this sudden silence but I have been immensely occupied as I've predicted and, I think, told you on my last letter.

Yes, the trip to France was rather intense as there were lots of clients wanting my attention as well as lots of friends to see again.

Being one of the greatest capitals of the so called "modern world", Paris is utterly filled with tourists and you already know how much that annoys me.

From all the noblesse that have requested my services I will mention Monsieur le Marquis de C and Madame la Marquise. 
As I guess I've also told you before, this noble couple have insisted to have their portraits done since my last trip to their country, so even before arriving I tried to establish contact in order to make all the arrangements for the sitting session.

They've received me at their château de Vaux le Vicomte and the occasion couldn't have been better:  after all the services given to the nation his Majesty très-chrétien decided to raise their status and are now Ducs de P (probably there was a somewhat coup de main by their cousins? Wink wink)
Won't bother you describing the château once again n'or I'll tell you all of the somewhat changes that this family has "inflicted" on some of the once great apartments of Monsieur F,  but I'll tell you that the gardens, as I was told later, were kept untouched since the last owner. And it was precisely there were, whilst preparing to sketch Madame, we were told that the Notre Dame Cathedral was on flames! Ah mon Dieu what an unpleasant fuss from then on! Madame la Duchess was distraught! In tears she was on her knees praying for God's mercy in the middle of the grass - can you imagine? Some minutes before she looked like an early blossomed rose, posing for my painting ...

(people tend to have bad or any memory at all! It was obvious for me that, even by being a symbol of the nation, none of that was still from its original epoch, so if it was rebuilt before, it will be rebuilt again, right? But anyway ... Surely his Majesty will gather all the efforts to keep and restore what was left within a blink of an eye, as he's such a powerful and enticing person ... I'm also sure that all the noblesse will gather their efforts and money to help their King and nation to have their symbol back.)

Ah but the paintings, well, the paintings came out beautifully as Monsieur decided to pose leaning against a beautiful iron gate whilst wearing a silk magenta habit! Madame, as I wrote you before, posed as if strolling in the gardens wearing a silk orange robe à paniers (quite difficult to keep all her dogs from ruining the scene !!)

I've made many other sketches which I'm sure I'll use them sooner or later on some other portraits or pictorial compositions, or maybe will transform them into sculptures? Who knows ... !

Well my love ... its getting late and I'm getting tired ... The light is awful and my eyes are already heavy ...
Too many emotions running through my poor soul whilst writing to you, so many memories, so many unfulfilled wishes ... I leave you now with the hopes of writing again soon ...
Bye...

With much love and affection, yours truly,
P

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Dear visitor,

For the sole purpose of quieting your soul we're obliged to clarify that all of the above content is a mere fantasy and that you can purchase the exposed artworks on Mr P's shop @ https://www.etsy.com/shop/myroyaldolls

Thank you for visiting and don't forget to subscribe !

MyRoyalDolls is an registered art project as a brand with lots of possibilities besides mere art commerce.