Today is the day, the Netherlands is celebrating King Willem-Alexander’s birthday en masse. He’s already blowing out 57 candles. This year our royals celebrate King’s Day in Emmen. Below is an overview of all the places in Emmen where the king and his family will visit today.
The royal family will arrive at 11 a.m. and will be received by Mayor Eric van Oosterhout at Noorderplein. Children’s mayor Kirsten Alting (12) will also be present. Bouke Scholten, also known as the ‘Emmense Elvis’, will perform. The procession then moves to Noorderstraat. Here is a gallery of living statues that show the rich history of Emmen. For example, he depicts dolmen carvers and the stocking girl of Danlon. The dance square is also located here, where decades of dance history are shown by a dance couple from the local group ‘t Aol Volk and breakdancer AJ
The royal family then continues its way to the so-called ‘birthday square’, where Emmen residents sit who, like the king, have something to celebrate. This includes people from the city who have received a ribbon or who have the same birthday as the king. They sit on a large terrace while enjoying a local snack and drink. Afterwards, the king and his family are invited to take part in an interactive game about the region. This game is played by children and is led by Qmusic DJ Jorien Renkema and Radio 538 DJ Jordi Warners.
The procession then goes past the Rensenpark, where the Noorder Dierenpark used to be located. Of course, the royal family will also take a look at Wildlands, the current zoo. The royals will be welcomed there with a surprising program that fits in with the Wildlands tradition.
The walk ends at the ‘sing-along square’ where Emmen resident Daniël Lohues performs with a band. This will be followed by the mayor’s speech of thanks and the king will also give a speech. Reinout Douma and the Noordpool Orchestra conclude in style with the Wilhelmus, after which the royal family leaves Emmen.
