Queen's Day Children

Last Saturday was Queen's Day. There was all the usual madness taking place in Amsterdam - hordes of orange-clad people suddenly filled the city, looking for the opportunity to buy junk from a pavement store, drink copious biertjes or to wear a very silly inflatable crown. This year I found myself in Vondelpark having a lovely time amongst the Queen's Day Children.

I'm sure if you're six years old then Vondelpark can be a magical playground the whole year round, but on Queen's Day it excels itself. For one day a year, the children take over and show off their various skills for some small change. Proud parents stand by as little Henk or Anja screach away on the violin or perform the actions to 'I'm a Barbie Girl' for the amusement of the public. Some kids show great initiative with their chosen skill - one cute little boy managed to stand statue-still with his right arm in the air for 10 minutes at a time. Another little girl stood on her head until she nearly threw up her candyfloss. Some just choose to dress up or display elaborate face paintings. All seriously cute and a pleasant antidote to their not-so cute drunk adult friends outside the park walls.