Yesterday, October 27, the Crown Prince of Norway Haakon and his wife Mette-Marit arrived in Saint-Petersburg.

They have already met the governor of the city Valentina Matvienko and gave numerous interviews to Saint-Petersburg journalists.

The Norwegian Prince, first in line to the throne, has caused a moral dispute by marrying a single mother 25th August this year. Mette Marit Tjessem Hoiby was a commoner. In the early nineties she was part of the Norwegian Techno and House community. Several of the nine Archbishops across the country have expressed their concern about the Prince's relationship and the fact that the couple lived together before they married. Archbishop Svein Holdberg said in a personal letter to the king and queen that he was devastated. "The question is whether the Prince has abdicated already or not. The royal family should be an ideal for the people and at the moment the prince is not fulfilling his duties as a public royal figure."

However, the Norwegian Minister of Church, Trond Giske has opposed the church and supported the couple. "He should marry whoever he wants. Young people in Norway want a monarchy they can identify with and they think his actions are not immoral. They are a reflection of the society we are living in," Giske said.

Now this controversial couple is in Saint-Petersburg

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