Princess Ingrid Alexandra discusses royal family issues as she begins student life

The future queen of Norway misses her dog the most while

she’s studying in Australia, calls her mother when she’s having
a bad day, and jokes that her grandfather, King Harald isn’t
digital in a new interview.

Princess Ingrid
Alexandra sat down with NRK for a
wide-ranging interview to talk about her studies at the University
of Sydney, how she views her future as Norway’s first queen regnant
in modern times, and candidly speak about family life.

Addressing the arrest of her older half brother, Marius Borg
Hoiby, Princess Ingrid Alexanra said that it was difficult “as
a sister” and for her parents and those affected by the case,
but she stops herself before she can delve further into the topic,
with an apologetic “I don’t know if I want to go into it much
more than that.”

But while she’s hesitant to talk about her brother, she does
reveal that she calls her mother, Crown Princess Mette-Marit often,
and speaks of the strength she shows living with chronic pulmonary
fibrosis. “Of course it’s hard to be far away,” Princess
Ingrid Alexandra said. “I’m proud of my mother, who has an
incredibly strong will to stand up now.”  

She also reveals that it’s Queen Sonja who mainly keeps in touch
on behalf of her paternal grandparents, as she’s “very good at
sending long messages on behalf of both her and Grandpa [King
Harald]. She then explains what they are doing and sends pictures,
so we definitely keep in good contact.”

As for King Harald’s texting and emailing skills: “He helps
send, but he’s not good at writing long messages. He’s not that
digital.”

Princess Ingrid Alexandra, who goes simply by Ingrid while at
the University of Sydney—and uses Alexandra as her surname, if
required—said that she chose to study in Australia because she felt
it would be nice to have an international perspective while
studying international relations and political economy.

The students don’t talk much about monarchy, according to the
future queen. In fact, she says it’s only discussed as a form of
government, but Princess Ingrid Alexandra feels that the her degree
will help her with the job of Queen of Norway.

“It is important to have a basic understanding of the
political system, of international relations, and how things work.
And you learn an incredible amount from just being in
conversations, having good discussions where you even disagree. I
think that will be very important for me in the future as
well.”

She says that she didn’t choose Australia because of its
distance from Norway, and chooses skiing in Norway over surfing in
Australia when prompted. But she says that Sydney “was the
right choice for me. They have an incredibly good university with
good teachers and a nice student environment.”

The future queen isn’t currently involved in any student groups,
but she does attend a lot of panel discussions and alumni meetings
to hear from different perspectives. She also lives in student
housing at the campus.

Princess Ingrid Alexandra says she enjoys exploring new areas of
Sydney, though “I haven’t explored as much as I’d like
yet.” She’s not deterred by this though, as she says, “I’m
here for three years. I’m enjoying it incredibly well—it’s a
beautiful city, and there’s a lot to discover.”

The exam period begins on 17 November, and Princess Ingrid
Alexandra reveals that she’s feeling some nerves.

After that, she’ll return to Norway for the summer holiday, and
where she says she hopes to do a little bit of work. While she’s a
full-time student, she’s not expected to carry out royal duties and
only attends state events that she’s present for. Prior to
attending the University of Sydney, the future queen did a stint in
the Norwegian army with the Engineer Battalion in Brigade Nord,
attaining the rank of Private.