All the little stories of the Pope's visit

BarcelonaI am writing these lines while the Holy Father is still circulating in the Spanish state. He arrived on Saturday, June 6, when he landed in Madrid, and left this Friday from the Canary Islands. In between, he has been in Catalonia, where he has starred in a series of moments that will go down in history, because no matter how much we agnostics try to convince ourselves that he is just another head of state, the media power he has is far superior to that of most heads of state, which gives him extra power in terms of soft power. To him and also to whoever receives him, if they know how to sell their arguments well.

For all these reasons, neither in the center of Spain nor in our own country has anyone wanted to miss the photo with Leo XIV, because except in very specific circles, an image with him adds more than it subtracts. Politicians, businessmen, and all sorts of figures from civil society have approached him as much as the media. And behind all of them, influencers of all kinds and people from the street who could not resist the moment. In fact, for those of us who were able to witness the blessing of the tower of Jesus of the Sagrada Familia from the inside, there was no doubt about the passion that Robert Prevost arouses among a huge number of people, a crowd that waited up to three hours to see him for a few minutes live when he came out of the basilica to give the blessing. A crowd, incidentally, much more diverse than we who are not part of it usually imagine.

'Inside but outside'

One of the main co-protagonists of the papal visit has been the various members of the royal family and other satellites of the institution, with the exception of King Juan Carlos, who has not made an appearance. In fact, after the life we know he has led, it has been better this way, as it can be described in any way less than Catholic and – I would even dare to say – Christian. One of the great beneficiaries of the pontiff's visit has been, as always, Queen Letizia. History has given her a privilege which is to be able to wear white when everyone else has to wear dark, and this has made her shine especially in her public appearances alongside the Holy Father. Despite being part of the game because she cannot do otherwise, the queen has managed to distance herself with the encrypted messages she sends through fashion.

For her three dates, she wore two dresses reused from other occasions, which is completely normal in our lives but, at her level, is unusual and should be applauded, as it sends a message against overconsumption in fashion, a plague of our times. If she hadn't worn a new outfit for such a date, few others would have dared, as in her league they always play to leave unique photos for posterity. Two of the three, we had already seen them... But if she wants to be a queen close to the people, priorities must be different. And she never loses sight of that, unlike so many other members of her political family. She has not worn a mantilla or a peineta either, which many characters from the most conservative and Hispanist wing of the monarchists would always be very excited about.

It was also illuminated by the question asked by Valentina, the visually impaired girl who described to the Pope, the kings, and the politicians accompanying them what the tower was like that was blessed on Wednesday afternoon by touching a model. In a brief moment of confusion, the girl asked Letizia who she was, and she replied with "The queen, delighted." A familiar phrase that broke with the protocol coldness so typical of these types of events. When saying goodbye, Valentina had felt her so close that she said "Thank you, Letizia," which she later corrected with "Your Majesty." The misunderstanding was just a detail because everyone present had already fallen in love with her story. The headlines that Valentina has garnered and her example are gold for people who, like her, suffer from visual impairment.

Well accompanied

We also need to talk about how important the visibility has been for the LGBTIQ+ community that Jaume Collboni attended the mass at the Sagrada Família with his partner. The message is global and very powerful. A unique occasion, very well seized. Also that of the vice-president of the Generalitat, Albert Dalmau, who attended the prayer vigil at the Olympic Stadium with his husband, just as the rest of the heterosexual members of the Government attended with their partners. Spaces must be occupied so that people who are still victims of prejudice understand that members of the LGBTIQ+ community are not second-class citizens. Normalization on hostile territory. A success. A goal, if you allow me.

Even the meals of the head of the Catholic Church have found a place these days in the media, which have had generous audiences perhaps driven by the need we all had to see something on television that wasn't Donald Trump finishing off what's left of the world. The most successful was the menu that the classic restaurant Lhardy served at the Episcopal Palace of Madrid to give him a review of the gastronomic geography of – almost, because Catalonia wasn't there... – the whole State. Croquettes of cocido,Russian salad, gazpacho, spider crab from Galicia, fish from the Cantabrian Sea, prawns from Motril or Iberian ham from Huelva marked the list of solids. Among the liquids, wines from two denominations of origin from León stood out: DO Bierzo and DO León.

But, speaking of classic symbols, the presence of Queen Sofia at the nunciature headquarters, where Leo XIV was staying during his stay in Madrid, accompanied by her two daughters and some of their descendants, has also been noteworthy. From the video that was published, several issues have been very noticeable. The first is that Sofia – despite being Greek and Orthodox – is one of the seven women in the world who can wear white in front of the Pope, a right that she – who already has seven Popes on her CV... – exercised again. It was curious that she did so not with a skirt below the knees, as protocol dictates, but with trousers. They say she is the first queen in history to attend a reception with the Pope in trousers. I wouldn't have bet a euro that it would be precisely the last great royal in Europe who would usher in a new protocol era at 87 years old. Feminist empowerment? Better late than never.

Infanta Elena attended accompanied by her daughter, the influencer and television contestant Victoria Federica. Cristina attended with Pau and Miquel, two of her four children. To make conversation with the poor pontiff, who after so many days socializing must have been mentally exhausted and not saying much, Sofia told him that two of Cristina's children were missing (Joan and Irene, the eldest and the youngest). It is funny to note that of all those present, no one mentioned that Froilán was also missing. The distribution of rosaries that the Holy Father gave in that little room has also become famous from this video. He gave one to each person except Sofia, to whom he gave two, one of each color – some were for the men and others for the women – we imagine so that she can give it to her still husband if they ever meet again. The best of all reactions was Cristina's, who – it can be heard in the original video – asked the pontiff for rosaries for the three grandchildren who had not gone. On top of not going... Is this not feeling any shame for asking hereditary? I wonder what would have become of all of them on this visit if their mother were no longer here...