By Ina Schebler
— King’s Day seems to be all about going out on the street, feeling one with the orange masses and being overwhelmed by music, party and action. However, a day like that also provides opportunities for those of us who prefer to spend it in a more calm manner.
1) Eat some orange carrot soup
While people dress in orange, you can eat orange. Make yourself comfortable at home and enjoy a delicious treat!
Ingredients:
1 garlic clove
1 onion
1.5 kg carrots
2 oranges
250 ml cream
500 ml veggie-stock
salt, pepper, thyme
olive oil
Fry the garlic and onion with olive oil and add the sliced carrots. Add half a liter of vegetable stock and cook it until the carrots are soft. Add the juice of the two oranges plus the cream, and mash it all up. In the end, add salt, pepper and herbs to taste.
The recipe is for four people, in case you decide to share it with friends who prefer to stay at home as well. Alternatively you can cook it on King’s Night and then eat soup for breakfast, lunch and dinner on King’s Day.
2) Follow the Webcams
People suffering from FOMO (Fear of missing out) have a hard time on King’s Day. There is just too much going on in Amsterdam. You can, of course, decide to spend the whole day running from one place to the next, but there is a more convenient solution to see what is going on in ten places at the same time.
Click here and check out what is going on across the city. You will be able to follow the events from perspectives you would not usually get if you were squashed between thousands of people.
3) Pet a ginger cat
Are there any creatures more gezellig than cats? Why not spend this special day petting kitties, and preferably in line with the motto of the day, ones with orange fur. If you do not happen to have one at home yet, you can visit De Poezen Boot. The animals living there are not just random hydrophobic cats. In fact, they have adapted to the Dutch spirit and live on a houseboat. The cat sanctuary is open from 1pm till 3pm.
4) Visit Doodstil
Doodstil is best translated as “dead-quiet” or “stock-still,” so if a village with that name is not calm on King’s Day, then what other place could be? It is situated around 200 kilometers east of Amsterdam and has just over 100 inhabitants. Unfortunately, there is no bus stop nor train station. If you want to get there by public transport, you will have to walk the last bit from the neighboring village of Zandeweer.
Click here.
The Herring 