Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway (center), Crown Prince Haakon of Norway and German Chancellor Angela Merkel pose with sailors after returning from a boat trip to see nearby chalk cliffs in the Baltic Sea on June 12, 2010 in Sassnitz, Germany. The Norwegian royal couple visited northern Germany over the weekend after receiving a personal invitation from Merkel to emphasize the strong ties between their two countries. The royals also visited the historic Hanseatic League city of Stralsund, which had trading ties to Bergen as early as the 13th century, and the Baltic resort town of Binz. Newspaper “Aftenposten” reported that the crown prince congratulated Germany during the visit with their victory in the Eurovision Song Contest, which played out in Oslo last month, and thanked Merkel for visiting Norway in 2008 and attending Oslo’s new Opera House. Later this week, Haakon and Mette-Marit will be traveling to Stockholm, for the royal wedding of Sweden’s Crown Princess Victoria.
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