RO: Ziua Regelui, pe 27 aprilie, este una dintre cele mai importante sarbatori olandeze si chiar daca anul acesta nu este la fel de festiva cum este de obicei, ne pare bine ca suntem aici si ca putem vedea atata entuziasm in jurul nostru. Ne-am trezit dimineata si deja se auzea forfota peste tot in cartier. Oamenii isi pregateau curtile pentru sarbatorit, atarnand ghirlande portocalii si scotand tot soiul de prajiturele care mai de care mai… portocalii, fiecare casa avea steagul Olandei atarnat deasupra usii, fiecare persoana era imbracata in portocaliu, peste tot baloane si muzica. Stiam de acum foarte multi ani cat de multa nebunie este de Ziua Regelui (de pe vremea cand se sarbatorea de fapt Ziua Reginei), cum canalele din Amsterdam sunt pline, pline de oameni sarbatorind si petrecand strada, la restaurante si terase si cata bucurie sincera aduce aceasta sarbatoare olandezilor.

EN: King’s Day, on 27th of April, is one of the most important Dutch celebrations and even though this year is not as festive as it used to be, we are happy to be here and to see so much enthusiasm all around us. We woke up in the morning and there was already hustle and bustle in our neighborhood. People were preparing their backyards for celebrating, hanging orange paper garlands and preparing all sort of orange cakes, each house had the Dutch flag hanged in front of their doors, every person was dressed in orange outfits and there were balloons and music all over. We knew about all the madness with King’s Day for a long time (since Queen’s Day was celebrated), we knew that the canals from Amsterdam were full, absolutely packed with people celebrating in the street, at the restaurants and at the terraces and we knew how much joy this day brings to the Dutch people.

RO: Iar inainte de toata situatia actuala cauzata de corona virus ne gandeam ca am vrea sa evitam aglomeratia si haosul din centrul marilor orase olandeze, atunci cand se serbeaza Ziua Regelui. Ei bine, dorinta ne-a fost mai mult decat indeplinita pentru ca toate evenimentele clasice care aveau loc de Ziua Regelui au fost anulate. Sarbatorirea se face intr-un mod restrans, respectand regulile de distantare (pozele din acest articol au fost facute cu un obiectiv tele, parem mult mai apropiati de oameni decat eram in realitate – de fapt, eram chiar departe de ei). Insa cei din cartier s-au strans in fata caselor, un grup destul de mare, cu multi adulti si foarte, foarte multi copii. Sunt permise chiar si vizitele in Olanda, cata vreme nu sunt mai mult de trei persoane invitate. Iar membrii unei familii pot iesi impreuna, in grup, indiferent cat de multi sunt. Masurile sunt mult mai putin restrictive si se pune foarte mult accent pe pastrarea distantei de 1,5m de alte persoane. Ce-i drept, oamenii nu se apropiau in cartier, stateau destul de distantati. Insa erau multi, o adunare destul de mare, la care nu am participat (desi ne-ar fi placut). Si nu ca am fi paranoici, dar daca ne gandim ca toata nebunia cu corona virus a inceput de la un carnaval din sudul tarii, e foarte probabil ca nici Ziua Regelui sa nu fie tocmai de mare folos in aceasta izolare, sau “lockdown inteligent” cum il numesc olandezii. In plus, oamenii considera ca virusul nu ii poate afecta pe cei mici si ca acestia nu pot transmite boala, motiv pentru care intalnirile pentru joaca au fost intotdeauna permise. Astfel ca acum, in cartierul nostru, s-a organizat chiar si o parada cu copiii imbracati in haine de sarbatoare, pe bicicleta, cu baloane si jucarii. Apoi s-au oprit cu totii in mijlocul cartierului, unde fiecare familie a scos in fata casei cate o masuta cu bunatati.

EN: And before everything that is now going on due to corona virus we were thinking that we would like to avoid the crowds and the chaos from the big Dutch cities, so typical when King’s Day is celebrated. Oh well, our wish was more than fulfilled as all the normal events that were scheduled for King’s Day were now canceled. Celebration is limited, following the social distancing rules (the pictures in this article were taken with tele photo lens, we seem way more closed to the people than we actually were in reality – in fact we were quite far from them). But people from our neighborhood gathered in front of the houses, quite a big group, with many adults and many children. In The Netherlands visits are permitted, as long as they don’t exceed three persons visiting. And the members of a family can go out together, no matter how many they are. The measures are less restrictive here and the most important thing seems to be keeping the 1,5m distance from other people. To be honest, people in the neighborhood were not getting close to each other, they were actually keeping the distance. But there were many people, quite a big gathering and we did not participate (even though we would have wanted to). And we’re not being paranoid, but if we think that the entire corona madness started after a carnival in the southern part of the country, King’s Day might not be quite great for this isolation, or “intelligent lockdown” as the Dutch people call it. Besides, people here think that the virus can’t affect the little ones and that they cannot spread the virus, so playdates have always been allowed. So now, there was a children parade in our neighborhood, all dressed up, riding their bikes, with balloons and toys. They all stopped in the middle of the neighborhood, where every family had a table with all sort of goodies in front of their houses.


RO: Nu stiam ca pe langa outfitul portocaliu (care este cumva obligatoriu, iar daca exista si accesorii precum peruci portocalii, bretele portocalii sau chiar si pictat pe fata in portocaliu sau macar cu steagul Olandei, cu atat mai bine!), exista si anumite mancaruri specifice de Ziua Regelui. Dar cu aceasta ocazie am aflat 🙂 Cel mai cautat desert de Ziua Regelui este prajitura numita tompouce (ne-au spus vecinii ca la Hema ar fi cele mai delicioase :D).

EN: We didn’t know that besides the orange outfit (which is quite mandatory, and is even better if there are accessories included, like orange wigs, orange shoulder straps or even orange face paintings or at least with the Dutch flag), there are also some specific foods for King’s Day. But thanks to this day we found out 🙂 Most famous dessert for King’s Day is the cake called tompouce (our neighbours told us that the ones from Hema are the best :D).

RO: Si uite asa aproape ca trece si a doua luna in izolare 🙂 Am sarbatorit Pastele, acum si Ziua Regelui, despre care olandezii spun ca ar fi cea mai mare petrecere aniversara din lume (si chiar asa o fi fost pana anul acesta :D). Stim ca situatia in Romania este diferita, insa aici incepem sa simtim o relaxare generala referitoare la corona virus. Oamenii incep sa iasa din case cu mai multa indrazneala, vedem in jurul nostru vecini care organizeaza mici petreceri in weekenduri sau mici adunari, si ori de cate ori vorbim cu ei, pare ca nu sunt catusi de putin stresati de toata aceasta situatie. Vad lucrurile cu detasare si doar asteapta ridicarea restrictiilor. Am incetat sa ne mai uitam la numere si statistici, insa situatia pare sa fie sub control. Noile masuri au prelungit restrictiile pana la 1 iunie (evenimentele sunt totusi anulate pana la 1 septembrie) iar de pe 11 mai incep sa se redeschida usor, usor, scolile si gradinitele. Iar toata aceasta relaxare a olandezilor ne linisteste si pe noi, asa ca ne bucuram ca in aceasta perioada dificila suntem inca in Olanda.

EN: And that’s how our second month in isolation is almost over 🙂 We celebrated Easter, now King’s Day, the celebration that the Dutch people call it the biggest birthdya party in the world (and it probably was until this yeat :D). We know that things are different in Romania, but here we’re starting to feel a general relaxation in what concerns corona virus. People are starting to go out more, we see around us neighbors that are organizing small parties and gatherings during the weekend and every time to talk to them, they don’t seem stressed at all. They are pragmatic and they just wait for the restrictions to be cancelled. We stopped looking at numbers and statistics, but the situation seems to be under control. The new measures are extended until 1st of June (events are cancelled until 1st of September) and starting 11th of May schools and daycare will start to reopen. And all this Dutch relaxation makes us feel relaxed as well, and we’re happy that during this difficult times we are still in The Netherlands.