Yahoo – AFP,
26 April 2014
The Hague (AFP) - Hundreds of thousands of orange-clad Dutch lined the streets on Saturday as the Netherlands celebrated its first-ever "King's Day" in honour of Willem-Alexander, inaugurated one year ago.
 |
Dutch fans
dressed in orange celebrate the first King's Day, the celebration
of the
birthday of the king, in Breda, Netherlands, on April 26, 2014 (AFP
Photo
/Martijn Beekman)
|
The Hague (AFP) - Hundreds of thousands of orange-clad Dutch lined the streets on Saturday as the Netherlands celebrated its first-ever "King's Day" in honour of Willem-Alexander, inaugurated one year ago.
The popular
king and his Argentinian-born wife, Queen Maxima, were greeted by thousands of
enthusiastic fans in the northwestern fishing town of De Rijp, where they took
part in traditional Dutch games.
Queen
Maxima hit a ball into the mouth of a mock-up whale -- symbol of the town's
past as a whale processing centre -- to thunderous applause before moving on to
receive flowers from well-wishers.
From there
the royal procession, including the king's mother, now Princess Beatrix, who
abdicated last year after 33 years on the throne, travelled south to Amstelveen
near Amsterdam.
The royal
couple were awaited by their three daughters, crown-princess Amalia, 10 and
princesses Alexia, 8 and Ariane, 6, who made a surprise appearance, before
unveiling a giant painting in the city centre.
Willem-Alexander,
46, was sworn in on April 30 last year, the first Dutch king in more than 120
years.
 |
Dutch King
Willem-Alexander (L), his wife Queen Maxima and their daughters
(From L-Front)
Princesses Amalia, Alexia and Ariane, as they attend King's Day
celebrations in
Amstelveen, Netherlands, on April 26, 2014 (AFP Photo/Robin
Van Lonkhuijsen)
|
Saturday
marked the first-ever "King's Day" celebration, a tradition
introduced during the reign of a succession of Dutch queens, starting around
1890.
The day
came just ahead of the monarch's birthday on Sunday, and saw the country turn
orange as the Dutch donned hats, shirts, scarves, sunglasses and even blow-up
crowns in the colour of the Royal House.
Some 89,000
people travelled by train to traditional party spot Amsterdam on Saturday
morning, the Dutch rail service said, to join some 800,000 other visitors
expected in the city.
Dutch media
speculated that Willem-Alexander may change celebrations next year or do away
with the tradition altogether, but he told crowds in Amstelveen: "Why
would you want to change something that's such a success?"
Although
the monarchy is popular in the Netherlands, some question the cost of the royal
household and republicans are seeking a reduction to the king's tax-free salary
of 825,000 euros (about $1.1 million).
A survey
published on Saturday by the NOS public broadcaster said 74 percent of those
Dutch questioned said they trusted the king.
 |
The Dutch
Royal family pose for a picture in Amstelveen, The Netherlands, on
April 26,
2014, during the first King's Day, the celebration of the birthday of the
king
(AFP Photo/Frank Van Beek)
|
Meanwhile,
the government's information service on Saturday unveiled the Royal House's
first Facebook page.
The
introduction of technology is part of a "quiet revolution happening at the
palace," Dutch centre-left newspaper De Volkskrant said this week.
"Beatrix
never sent an email and had a mobile phone for only six years. Following the
king's inauguration his whole court is now armed with iPads and iPhones,"
the paper said.
Even web
search giant Google took a bow on Saturday, sporting a royal orange theme for
its Dutch search engine, www.google.nl.
Related Article:
 |
| Google: Fijne eerste koningsdag ! (26 Apr 2014) |
No comments:
Post a Comment