The Infanta Sofia turned 18 on April 29. Far from King Felipe and Queen Letizia, and far from her sister Leonor, who at that time was crossing the Atlantic aboard the training ship Juan Sebastián Elcano.
It was Sofia’s turn to blow out the candles in Wales, where she is studying the International Baccalaureate at the UWC Atlantic College, and where she is about to finish a key stage.
How did Infanta Sofia celebrate her 18th birthday?
The birthday fell just when the final exams are looming, so there were no big celebrations. But at this school, where young people from all over the world live together, they have a special way of celebrating.
At midnight, classmates get together and sneak into the birthday boy’s room. They sing “Happy Birthday” and bring cake.
It’s all very improvised, very boarding school. One student said that everyone stays awake waiting for the moment. No one wants to miss the scene. This is what the profile @leonorysofiaaltezasreales revealed.
It doesn’t end there. The next day, the dining room turns into a noisy and chaotic party that, according to the students, looks like something out of a Disney movie.
Banging silverware, plates clattering on the table and another massive chant echoes throughout the school.
That was the way Sofia received her coming of age. No speeches, no protocol, but a lot of youthful complicity.
While all that was going on, the Royal House released the official portraits of the infanta for her 18th birthday. A symbolic gesture that marked the date from a distance.
According to ¡Hola! magazine, Leonor managed to congratulate her by phone while she was on board the ship.
Now, with her studies coming to an end and summer approaching, Sofia has important decisions ahead of her.