The Latvian holiday Mārtiņi and its equivalent across the world

Priecīgus Mārtiņus! (Warning, this is a dense post - but I promise you'll learn about a bunch of really cool holidays and traditions you've probably never heard of before!)

Mārtiņi (Martin's Day) is the name of the festival celebrated in Latvia on November 10^th, marking the end of the fall and the beginning of winter. Halfway between the autumnal equinox and the winter solstice, in ancient Latvia Mārtiņi marked the passage from veļu laiks (season of the spirits) to ledus laiks (season of ice). By Mārtiņi it was expected that all preparations for winter were finished, such as salting meat and fish, storing the harvest and making preserves. This day also marked the beginning of mumming and sledding, among other winter activities. Mummers, also called ķekatas and budeļi, are costumed and wearing masks, traveling from home to home bringing their blessing, encouraging fertility, and scaring away any evil spirits.

The seasons and their associated deities and symbols - source here

As with many of the ancient Latvian holidays, there are certain ways to tell your fortune for the following year. For example, young, unmarried girls must toss their skirt into the middle of the room before going to bed; the one she dreams picks up the skirt is the one she will marry. Superstitions were also numerous; supposedly to guarantee the health of the horses through the harsh winter a rooster should be killed in the stables. Coincidentally it is tradition to sacrifice a rooster in Ireland as well; the blood was collected and sprinkled on the four corners of the house to bring fortune in the following year.

Everything you might need to know about the holiday can be found in this book

For Latvia’s neighbor to the north, Estonia, Mardipäev symbolizes the merging of Western European customs with local Balto-Finnic pagan traditions. Mardipäev marks the end of the period of All Souls in the Estonian popular calendar - the season when the souls of ancestors were worshiped, which lasted from November 1 to 11^th). On this day the end of the agrarian year & autumn is observed, and the beginning of the winter period is celebrated. Children disguise themselves as men and go from door to door singing songs and telling jokes to receive sweets, similar to the processions occurring in Austria, Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands, where children go through the streets with paper lanterns and candles.

Source here

Historically a widespread custom in Germany on Martinstag was to have a bonfire, called the Martinsfeuer. Still lit in a few cities and villages throughout Europe, it symbolizes the light that holiness brings to the darkness just as St. Martin brought hope to the poor through his good deeds. It is believed that the procession of lanterns replaced the large bonfires over time. Traditional foods include Martinsgans (St. Martin’s goose) and Martinshörnchen, a pastry shaped in the form of a croissant symbolizing the hooves of St. Martin's horse.

Source here

As we see with the German version, the day has blended the pagan with the Christian; the resulting variety of traditions is something we see across the continent. November 11^th is the feast day of St. Martin of Tours, honoring the friend of children and patron of the poor. In Slovakia, the Feast of St. Martin is like a 2^nd birthday for those named after the saint; they are given small presents or money. However it is also a day of foretelling the future, as if it snows then there will be snow on Christmas. This is a theme that repeats itself in the Czech Republic where the first half of November is the time when it often starts to snow. Czechs roast goose and drink Svatomartinské vino, a young wine from the recent harvest. Wine, a symbol of the harvest, is a recurring theme also; in Slovenia and Croatia the “must” (considered impure and sinful) is baptized and turned into wine, while in Austria Martinloben is celebrated as a harvest festival with wine tastings, art exhibitions and live music.

St. Martin, source here

In Denmark Mortensaften is celebrated with traditional dinners, most often goose as in many other countries on this day, such as Sweden, where the entire day of Mårtensafton is a celebration of the goose. Other Martin’s Day foods abound, such as the rogale croissants in Poland. In Portugal magusto (chestnuts roasted under the embers of the bonfire) and água-pé (an alcoholic beverage which is a byproduct of wine) are consumed, as St. Martin's Day is the celebration of the maturation of the year's wine. However in Spain the goose is replaced by pork, in that St. Martin's Day is the traditional day for slaughtering fattened pigs for the winter. In Switzerland the 5+ hour long Repas du Saint Martin includes all the parts of freshly butchered pigs, while the Auvergne region of France (our home while we lived in Clermont-Ferrand) traditionally hosts horse fairs instead of feasts on this day – bringing us back full circle to the Latvian association of Mārtiņi to horses; on Mārtiņi we pass from the influence of Ūsiņš, the horse deity of summer, to that of Mārtiņš, a winter deity.

The preparation of magusto in Portugal, source here

In the United Kingdom, St. Martin's Day is known as Martinmas, when historically cattle were slaughtered and preserved for the winter. However November 11^th in England is now better known for being Remembrance Day, commemorating the end of WWI and honoring those that serve in the military as Veteran’s Day (US) and Armistice Day do.

The American cemetery in Normandy, France

Whatever it may be that you observe, Martinmas or the Danish Mortensdag, Martinpäivä in Finland or the Feast of Saint Martin, I wish you a beautiful day. Although we will be honoring our veterans tomorrow, today we will celebrate Mārtiņi – the first of many, as now we are blessed with a Mārtiņš of our very own, little Vilis Mārtiņš!

The Mārtiņš symbol, source here

The Furman clock tower

Just five miles north of downtown Greenville is the campus of Furman University, which has been in that location since 1956. Previously it was located in Greenville; I wrote here how the West End sprung up around the university. The liberal arts college is SC’s oldest private university, and the very heart of the Furman campus is the clock tower, which is located on a small peninsula that juts out into 40-acre Swan Lake.

The original bell tower was built in 1854 on the old men’s campus, the bells ringing to signal the start of classes and to celebrate victories for the athletic teams. During the Civil War Furman was closed, but the bell in the "Old Main" tower rang after Confederate victories.

Photo credit: Lisa Sharpe

Once the university moved to its present location a new bell tower was built to the same specifications as the old tower, the sixty bells in the carillon cast in Holland to exactly match the original. To this day the tower's image appears on the school’s seal and official publications.

Photo credit: Lisa Sharpe

A month ago we visited the clock tower to snap some pictures of the boys for father’s day. As I’ve been informed by babycenter.com that the baby is now about the size of a head of romaine lettuce, I'm glad I also took the opportunity to get evidence of the bump, as I feel as if I should be documenting this pregnancy (although it's my third). Yes, I’m sure it’s not twins, no, I’m not “going to pop any day now.”

Photo credit: Lisa Sharpe

* According to the school's mythology, if you kiss your significant other at the tower you are destined to marry them – hence the phrase “bell tower serious.” Guess the tower can chalk up another one to its legend...

A Dutch Easter in the Upstate

In certain parts of the Netherlands an important Easter tradition is the lighting of a bonfire that has often been weeks or sometimes even months in the building. As darkness falls on Easter Sunday the paasvuur are lit, with entire villages coming out for the event.

Our friend Monique is from Overijssel, one of the Dutch provinces that celebrate Easter in this manner, and so it came about that our Easter celebrations this year included an egg hunt/bonfire. Late on a Saturday afternoon we headed out to the Piedmont for a fun evening with food, music and time spent with friends.

Once the dozens of eggs had been found by the eager little hunters (although I’m sure one or two will show up in the coming weeks…) we settled in to listen to some live tunes. Angela Easterling shared with us her lovely voice and musical talent, and the country/folk music kept us entertained until the sun set low in the sky and it was time to head out to the pasture to light the bonfire.

Monique explained that the paasvuur were community events where all generations came together to welcome spring and put the gloom of winter behind them. I found similarities to the Latvian summer solstice celebration Jāņi where bonfires also play an important part in the festivities. When looking into the origins of the seasonal celebrations by fire I noticed that although the bonfire probably has pagan roots, it was after Christianity came that it became a symbol of light and the Resurrection. The correlations between fire/light and rebirth /resurrection are strong in any case, and with the added connection to spring and the seasonal reawakening I grew to appreciate the beauty of keeping with this ancient tradition.

It was long after the stars came out and the fire started dying down that we started for home; pleasantly tired from the egg hunt, the smell of wood smoke in our hair and fingers sticky from the many s’mores consumed. The evening was a great reminder that sharing culture and traditions with others only makes us all richer for the experience – thank you to Monique and family for opening their home to us and bringing a little of the Netherlands to South Carolina!

A new King and Queen!

The biggest birthday party in the world is underway in the Netherlands right now. With Queen’s Night (April 29^th) leading up to Queen's day, Queensday or Koninginnedag, it is a national holiday that celebrates the birthday of the Queen of the Netherlands. Actually, a former Queen’s birthday, as Queen Beatrix’s birthday is really on January 31^st and the date chosen is rather Her Majesties mother’s Juliana’s birthday so as to celebrate during the spring. This rather confusing birthday tradition will end this year because next year it will be King’s Day that will be celebrated, and the date will be the 27^th of April. Maybe you ask yourself why?

The orange revelers take to the canals

 

 

The change is occurring because this Queen’s Day in 2013 marks the official abdication of Queen Beatrix and investiture of the new king and queen of the Netherlands.  The new King Willem-Alexander’s birthday is on April 27^th, hence the new King’s Day starting in 2014. (And actually, 2014 will immediately be an exception because April 27^th falls on a Sunday so it will be held the day before, April 26^th, but after that King's Day will be on April 27^th.)

King Willem Alexander and Queen Beatrix, source here

 

We were lucky enough to attend the giant birthday party in Amsterdam last year, and even with the children along it was absolutely a blast. The memories from those few days in the Netherlands are at the top of our expat travel experience, as in the same week we managed to fit in the famous tulip fields in the Haarlem area, Madurodam, the windmills and the dikes. A trip of a lifetime, considering Mikus was only 3 months old and Lauris was set to turn two in a few weeks.

 

Back to Queen’s Day! In honor of the Queen and the royal family (House of Orange) the city turns orange for a day. From clothes to food to decorations, the streets and canals become a wave of orange. The party has to be experienced to be believed!

 

The official events taking place this year include the official abdication at the Royal Palace on Dam Square, followed by the inauguration of His Royal Highness the Prince of Orange and Her Royal Highness Princess Máxima of the Netherlands as the new king and queen at De Nieuwe Kerk. Large screens are set up across the city so that locals and visitors can all take part in the official program, which will include the official addresses and a Royal boat parade as well as a private reception for the new Royals.

 

Congratulations to the new King and Queen! We’ll be wearing orange today in your honor!!!

Netherlands be dammed!

After a day spent in a miniature Holland and amongst the windmills we were off to explore the Delta region of the Netherlands. The Rhine, Maas and Scheldt estuaries form a complicated network of islands, headlands and channels which would all be several meters underwater during a storm surge (as well as a good part of the rest of the Netherlands) if not for the Oosterschelde storm surge barrier.



The Haringvlietgates - facing inward, towards land



During normal tides the islands and peninsulas are protected by high dunes, and the banks of the rivers are strengthened by dikes, but during a storm water levels and high tides can drastically change. The 1421 St. Elizabeth day floods that gave Kinderdijk its name killed 10,000 people when six villages were completely inundated. More recently 1,835 people died and 500,000 were left homeless in 1953, when on January 31^st low atmospheric pressure and high tides caused the dikes to fail in multiple places.

Because of these tragedies four main dams were built to close off the inlets of the North Sea. To allow ship traffic to continue as normal, two have locks. Initially four secondary dams were built to provide protection during the construction of the main dams. The “Delta Plan” was finally finished forty years later, in 1997.

The Haringvlietgates, facing seaward

The dams accomplish the following: they shorten the coastline by about 435 miles, they form several freshwater lakes, they limit the risk of flooding, they reduce saltwater seepage into the water table and they increase recreation and development in the area. I’m curious as to the effect on wildlife, would the change from saltwater inlet to freshwater lake not drastically alter the estuary habitat, especially for plant life and amphibian species?

Inside the Haringvlietgates

We stopped to take a tour of the Haringvlietgates, the largest floodgates in the world. In addition to functioning as part of the Oosterscheldedam, they also hold saltwater out. During high tide they close, but at low tide they allow the flow of freshwater out. 60% of the Maas and Rhine rivers flows through its gates. These were in the process of being closed as we toured, but the movement was not detectable as they close at a rate of 1 cm/second. The tour took us through the interior of the structure under the freeway that runs on the top, and we saw the giant hydraulic mechanism that powers the gates and enjoyed a good view of this awesome man-made structure. If traveling in the area and curious about the dikes, I would suggest a stop at Expo Haringvliet. A quirky alternative to the commercialized Waterland Neeltje Jans farther south, the eccentric roadside stop has an attached museum, restaurant, children’s playground and petting zoo.

I think all three need a haircut, wearing a hat is only a temporary fix!

The drive south along the coast was more of the same, giant dams and bridges keeping the Netherlands above water. We took a slight detour to the town of Veere, a sailing center and resort. Historically a fishing village as the Veerse Meer was connected to the sea before the dam was built, the town has luckily survived the change and seemed to be full of character and charm. The old town hall was worth a look with the elaborate decoration and carillon of 48 bells.

Finally we crossed the Westerschelde, a saltwater inlet that remains undammed. Not long after we were over the border leaving the old windmills, tulips and storm barriers behind for a taste of Belgian chocolate, moules and waffles and a glimpse of Brugge and Brussels…

The Kinderdijk windmills

Tulips and windmills – the things most associated with Holland (of course, the wooden clogs come a close third). We had spent a day in the tulip fields and Keukenhof, and had seen quite a few windmills from the windows of the car, but I wanted a genuine windmill experience. After our stop in Madurodam we planned to stop in Rotterdam overnight, and so it happened that we were able to visit the Kinderdijk windmills, just a short distance southeast of the city.

The small town of Kinderdijk is named after the crib with a crying baby and cat that supposedly washed up during the floods of 1421. (A literal translation would be “children’s dike.”) Nearby are the Nederwaard pumping station and 19 windmills. Because of their number and size they were designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1997, although they last pumped water in 1950.

From the informative placards on site –

A windmill turns counterclockwise. The energy source (wind) is caught on the stock, which is turned to face the wind by turning the entire cap in the direction of the wind. In order to catch more wind, the frames are slightly bent and fitted with wind plates and sail cloths. The wind force is conveyed via the axle of the stock to a large wheel with protruding cogs. The teeth of the wheel drive a vertical axle (the upright shaft). At the bottom of that shaft a large wheel in turn drives a scoop wheel of the mill. The scoop wheel conveys the water to the catch-water basin. The turning mill is stopped by means of a brake mechanism, known in Dutch as the vang.

I was fascinated to learn that the position of the sails can indicate a certain situation or event This is shown in these pictures. The working position (A) is used when the mill is stationary for a short time; the resting position (B) when no milling is to take place for some time. The celebration position (C) indicates that a pleasant event has occurred, such as a birth. The position of sorrow (D) designates a death.

We had the dike almost all to ourselves, and although the clouds and wind made the experience a little cooler, the weather contributed to the beauty of the marshland surrounding these beautiful historical national icons. As dusk was approaching and our energy levels waned we walked back to the car and returned to Rotterdam.

Other than the view from the hotel room of the port (one of the world’s largest) and downtown, we saw very little of Rotterdam as it was only a stopping point on our way from Amsterdam to Brussels. We arrived late, and as Lauris watched the elevated trains stopping at the station just next to the hotel I caught the tail end of a few favorite TV shows (in English!) that I hadn’t seen in over a year. Maybe not the most interesting things in Rotterdam, but it was definitely a relaxing evening that allowed us to replenish our energy stores in preparation for tomorrows drive which would take us across the Storm Surge Barrier back into Belgium, to Brugge and Brussels.

Madurodam, the Netherlands

We were sad to leave Amsterdam, but had a busy day planned; first stop, Madurodam.

Den Haag is officially known as ‘s-Gravenhage and is a provincial capital, home to the Dutch government and Parliament. Only an hour by car, but completely different in character: less densely populated, modern architecture and the atmosphere of a coastal town. We were in town to see the miniature town of Madurodam, a microcosm of the Netherlands.

The miniature town was built in 1952, but new sections are constantly being added. The most famous buildings and monuments in Holland, as well as the bulb fields, windmills and port combined with the moving trains, boats and vehicles make this an educational yet fun destination for children.

At €14.50 a ticket (plus parking), entry is expensive so plan on spending more than a few hours to get your money’s worth. It might be worth planning on early arrival to beat the crowds, as the activities had quite a queue. Most of the interactive exhibits utilize water, such as the hands-on demonstration of the locks and pumping water to create the seawall, so sleeves may get a little wet, but little handheld scanners are handed out for guests to have a dry learning experience as well. A giant pod in the center contains video screens, and after scanning various points in the park customized, informative videos are available for viewing.

We enjoyed the educational aspect of the park, but mostly marveled at the detail. A few buildings we had seen during our stay in Amsterdam had diminutive versions in the park, and it was fun trying to place the scenes we were seeing within our experience so far. The tiny landscaping was partly done with living plants, the bulb fields had mini tulips (although not living), and very small tourist boats cruised the canals. Lauris found the trains (especially the high speed train), ships and cars to be the most interesting, but would have spent the entire day playing with water had it not been so chilly.

The friends who had recommended a stop at Madurodam had correctly predicted Lauris’s enjoyment of the location, however I would suggest combining the trip with a day of sightseeing in the Hague. We planned on heading out after this first stop mostly because we knew the boys wouldn’t have patience with the museums we were most interested in seeing, but also because of our tight schedule. A return trip would most definitely include a stop at Mauritshuis, the museum that houses the royal painting collection which includes quite a few famous works by Rembrandt and Vermeer.

We timed our departure to coincide with nap-time, and with both boys asleep in the car we made the hour-long drive to the Kinderdijk windmills.

Amsterdam

Despite having spent the entire day in Amsterdam on Queen’s Day, I still felt as though I saw the city without seeing the city; I gained a feel for the people, the culture and the love of a good party without seeing any of the sights due to the large quantities of orange accessories, confetti bombs, vendors and trash commandeering my attention.

With our two days sightseeing in Amsterdam sandwiching a day in the bulb fields, I had a short break from the city to process all that we had seen on Queen's day. So it was with a feeling that I was seeing it for the first time that I returned to hit the main sights we had left unseen two days previous. Roberts lived in the city for a short while, so he had favorite places, preferred routes to get there and beloved views of certain canals he wanted to show me, but he had also seen a majority of the must-see sights. Therefore it was with only Mikus as company that I braved the line for the Van Gogh Museum after the stroll through a shockingly empty Vondelpark (shocking because the last time I was there it was shoulder-to-shoulder full!).

I’m not usually a big fan of museums, as I would much rather experience a city and its history through walking the streets, photographing the monuments and being there. The Van Gogh Museum turned out to be a noteworthy exception. I have never seen a print or reproduction of Sunflowers that will replace the feeling I had standing in front of the original. Although my favorite, Blossoming Almond Tree, was on tour elsewhere in the world, other celebrated canvases such as The Starry Night and Irises were on display. The special exhibit currently showing is “Dreams of Nature: Symbolism from Van Gogh to Kandinsky” and I was happy to see a few works by Munch in addition to Van Gogh’s Wheatfield with Reaper. In the courtyard between the two buildings they had recreated this painting using only stones and the resemblance was striking. This exhibit is only there through June 17^th.

Having rejoined Lauris and Roberts, we headed from the museum district through the South Canal Belt to the floating flower market. After finding a crêperie with outside seating, we made ourselves comfortable and enjoyed the scene during lunch. The bloemenmarkt has been a floating market since 1862 and had the selection of an enormous plant nursery. I couldn’t resist buying some interesting bulbs (although not quite the right season, I hope they bloom!) before venturing further into the old city center.

We found our way to Begijnhof, the Beguine convent that was founded in the 14^th century and is a bizarre pocket of tranquility in the heart of the city. The city’s oldest house with its wooden façade faces the church and grassy area. Although it dates back to the 15^th century, the majority of houses are from the 17^th and 18^th.

Just a little ways north we emerged from the main shopping artery (Kalverstraat) back into the Dam, which seemed utterly empty without the sea of orange and storeys-high carnival rides. I was amazed that the city had succeeded in picking up the majority of the trash; the Royal Palace and the Nieuwe Kerk were once again the focal points in this main square. The Protestant New Church is where Queen Beatrix and all the country’s sovereigns are crowned (Queen Beatrix’s coronation was April 30^th, 1980). The town hall (1650s) became the Royal Palace in 1808 during the reign of Louis Bonaparte, and behind it is the beautiful Magna Plaza building, which was a post office but now houses a shopping center.

The Oude Kerk (built in 1306 and the oldest in the city) is not too far east, right in the middle of the Walletjes, or red light district. The word means “small walls” and refers to the extremely narrow streets that radiate out around the church.

We spent a quiet hour sitting canal side, enjoying some snacks and a rest from the walking. The canals each had their own, distinct personality, and this one was quiet, shaded by the leaves of giant poplars with the tall, thin buildings colorfully standing guard.

We passed the Anne Frank House on our way west, reminding us of a darker history than that which is visible on the surface in this city. It is good to remember, but nice to have such beautiful canals to soften the tragedy for me on such a whirlwind trip. I had steeled myself for the sadness before our time in Normandy, but the grief flowing just looking at the unassuming house from beside the Prinsen Gracht canal caught me unawares.

We met the friend that had opened up her flat to us on Queen’s Day for a much needed break that crazy day, and headed to a local favorite for dinner. According to Jill the Café de Oranjerie is “about as Dutch as it gets.” We had bitterballen, something Roberts fondly remembered from his time in Amsterdam which turned out to be breaded and fried meatballs, and kip sate met frites, chicken with peanut sauce and fries.

A short walk to the tram stop was the last of the walking that day, and it was good because we were all beat! Our final evening in Amsterdam before departing south to Den Haag and Rotterdam couldn’t have been any better, and I’ve added Amsterdam to the list of cities that I hope to return to some day as we left the famous Rijksmuseum unseen and dozens of canals unexplored. Maybe next time a different view, from perhaps a canal tour by boat?

The tulips

It was tempting to laze around the morning after an extremely long day, but we couldn’t let Queen’s Day keep us from the main motivation behind this trip: tulips. The weather forecast was just as uninspiring as our sore calve muscles, but we packed up some raingear and headed west.

I had decided to start our tulip tour in Haarlem. It's the capital of the province of Noord-Holland, and in addition it is the center of a large bulb-growing region. We were scarcely outside of town limits when we saw the first flashes of color. Bulbs have been grown in this region for hundreds of years, as the sandy, well-drained soils are conducive to their growth and the tulips thrive in climates with long, cool springs and dry summers.

It was once we got closer to Lisse that we really saw the bulb growing fields in all their glory. The stems are cut off soon after blossoming in order to strengthen the bulb which will then be sold for planting in the autumn. Our timing was perfect; we might have even been on the tail-end of the season, as we could see fields where the bulbs had already been harvested.

Today bulbs cover about 36,000 acres in the Netherlands, and more than a half billion euros’ worth of bulbs are exported all over the world each year.

The second half of the day was spent at the Keukenhof gardens, which very well may be the most famous gardens in the world. What started as an exhibition site for a group of bulb growers has developed into a national showcase that attracts over 900,000 visitors a year. Open only March 22^nd to May 20^th this year, but with three layers of bulbs planted on top of one another, it's guaranteed something is blooming in every bed the whole time.

Fountains, ponds, themed gardens and art are scattered throughout, and the Groningen windmill on the north edge has a good view of the surrounding bulb fields.

The gardens were extraordinarily beautiful, and the cost of entry reasonable (at €14.50), but it was crowded. Being that it was considered the peak of tulip season, the day after Queen’s Day and it wasn’t raining (although it was overcast and cold the entire day), I thought it understandable that it was hard to get a picture without other visitors in it. Although, we did discover that the park really emptied out about ½ an hour before closing time (which is 1930), and nobody was actively herding us out even when the park was officially closed. I believe this is also when the park was at its most beautiful, and we really lucked out when the sun poked out from behind the clouds as it was setting. The atmosphere is probably similar right when the gardens open at 8am with fewer people and the morning light.

Our loop back home led us past a pancake house just in time for dinner. That evening we arrived at the hotel late, but extremely satisfied with a lovely day spent in the flower fields. It was bedtime for everyone, as the following day we hoped to explore Amsterdam without the distraction of a million people celebrating the Queen's birthday.

Queen's Day in Amsterdam

I’ve been in New Orleans for Marti Gras, experienced Chicago after a Bulls 3-peat, and I’ve seen NYC on New Year’s Eve, but nothing had prepared me for Amsterdam on Queen’s Day!

Happy birthday to the Queen!

We arrived in Amsterdam from Luxembourg via the Hautes Fagnes on Queen’s Night, or the evening before Koninginnedag, Queen’s Day. A national holiday in the Netherlands, the day celebrates the birthday of the Queen of the Netherlands (Queen Juliana’s birthday actually, the mother of the current Queen Beatrix, whose birthday is really on January 31^st: but who wants to celebrate during the winter?). The royal family is the House of Orange, and so the color orange has become the national color and on Queen’s day was to be seen everywhere; I was somewhat surprised the canals weren’t dyed similar to the Chicago River on St. Patrick’s day!

We didn’t join in the party that evening, instead we donned our orange apparel the following morning and headed into the city through Vondelpark. Queen’s day turns the city into one giant flea market as you can sell almost anything almost anywhere, but in Vondelpark the selling was reserved for the children. The entire 120 acre park was full of them; they were selling their toys, selling refreshments and snacks, playing instruments ranging from tubas to drums, offering face painting, games of luck, games of skill, everything you can imagine! Lauris had his portrait drawn by a lovely young artist for only one euro, and in our enthusiasm over a particular toy piece of construction equipment, we forgot we were walking around the city for the rest of the day and purchased a giant Liebherr 574 for santimes! It was truly fantastic, for some children their creativity must have truly paid off. We saw homemade arcade games, handmade jewelry, gymnasts performing, a dozen recorder players, and everywhere there was a sea of orange flowing on the paths.

Lauris sitting for his portrait

Upon reaching the east gates the children were replaced with a bit of an older crowd; the vendors were now selling beer, and the flute players were replaced by DJs spinning to crowded streets. Confetti bombs were going off, and music was blasting from speakers everywhere.

The canals were full of party barges, cruising to their own music with tightly packed dancers cheering every bridge they passed under. The banks of the canals were lined with revelers as well, but it seemed that the majority of people were on the move, via foot or boat as even the main mode of transport, the bicycle, wouldn’t get very far that day.

We wound our way through the city in an orange river and with the excitement of the day I forgot about being a tourist. My first glimpse of the Dam, Amsterdam’s main square, was not of the Royal Palace and Nieuwe Kerk, but of the carnival with screaming people aboard theme park worthy rides. Thankfully we were staying for a few days, and I would get a chance to see the sights on a different day.

As the day wore on the festivities slightly shifted from an enthusiastic party scene to a more… well, intoxicated one. The alcohol was flowing freely, and more and more trash was being thrown on the streets and in the canals. The public urinals (and don’t get me started on that, there were free urinals everywhere, but the use of a toilet cost between 1 euro and the price of a meal) started overflowing straight into the canals. The pickpockets came out to work, the number of slurring college students increased exponentially, and we even saw a man tossed into a canal after picking a fight with an entire boat of people. Of course, there were people that went swimming voluntarily as well. After a certain time the city was no place for children. Luckily a couple of friends had invited us to visit them, and after a quiet rest for mom and kids while dad checked out the canal-side party scene on Prinsengracht canal, we started the long trek back to the hotel.

The kids in Vondelpark were having a blast

Somewhere on quieter streets we passed a crowded tapas restaurant, and our stomachs immediately started growling. It looked like an awesome place, and judging by the crowd the food must have been great as well so Roberts ducked in to check if there was room for us. He emerged shaking his head, and just as we had decided to try our luck elsewhere a waitress came running after us. She set us up with a glass of wine outside at a table watching the cyclists zoom by, and before long she was ushering us inside to seat us in the hubbub for some of the best food I had on the trip. The place, Café Dos, and even though it wasn’t local food I would recommend it to anyone in the area… 

And for one euro you, too, can have an egg to throw at these enterprising young chaps!

And so ended our Queen’s Day experience. Our walk home brought us past a wine store whose purveyor sold us a bottle of Moselle wine before closing up, and we crossed canal after canal in the fading light until finally falling into bed. It could have been a dream, as the whole experience was so unreal! Though the next morning we did have an orange hat and lei, and a Liebherr 574 road loader to remind us of our adventure in Amsterdam on Queen’s Day…