King Willem Alexander birthday celebrated

Islamabad
To celebrate the birthday of King Willem Alexander of the Kingdom of The Netherlands, ambassador of the Kingdom, Marcel de Vink hosted a reception at the Serena Hotel. The event was attended by a large number of diplomats and their spouses; officers from the Diplomatic Defence Corps accompanied by their wives and Pakistani singles/couples from different walks of life.
A festive atmosphere had been created in the Shishmahal hall, with dozens of orange balloons; large paper tulips placed in places and drapes hanging from the ceiling — orange is the national colour of the kingdom. The replica of a windmill stood on one side and of course photographs of the monarch were to be seen, along with pictures of scenic sights, while a large image of people celebrating in The Hague formed the backdrop for the stage. The Netherlands is famous for its raw herring, optionally served together with chopped raw onions and gherkins and this was available at a canopied stall set-up off centre. I was told the herring should be eaten by lifting the herring high up into the air by its tail and then biting into it upwards - which some guests were seen trying to do! Dinner was served. Dutch companies doing business in Pakistan had set up stalls in the outer foyer to disperse information and a well known ice-cream company also gave away free samples of its product.
To give the celebration more of a lively touch, members of the embassy performed a lively dance number to a modern beat — Bollywood style! Guests who had circled the group clapped along and enjoyed the performance, giving a round of applause to the dancers for their effort. Soft, recorded music was played throughout the evening.
Earlier, the national anthems of Pakistan and The Netherlands were played and the host addressed the audience. After extending a warm welcome he explained that the monarch’s birthday has been celebrated in the Netherlands for many years, with parties, street markets, concerts and special events and all the citizens took part wholeheartedly. He then went on to speak of the bilateral relations between his country and Pakistan, which have been ‘very good,’ emphasizing that the many positive results of the past year would not have been possible without the countless friends of The Netherlands in Pakistan — from the world of politics and trade to the worlds of culture and development. Adding that King’s Day is also a moment to look forward, he said, “aspirations for the ties between our two countries remain high,” and named some of the areas of interest, especially horticulture; energy and water management.
He concluded by saying The Netherlands would also engage with civil society and the government in the areas of wom-en’s empowerment; human and labour rights in the context of GSP; thanked his embassy colleagues and staff members for their effort to make the celebration a success and hoped everyone would enjoy the evening.