Today was not the typical day in the life of the van den Berg family. Oma and Opa babysat Max so that Bas and I could attend a special event at our church celebrating 400 years of the English Reformed Church in Amsterdam. Our church dates back to the 1300's but it was only in the 1600's that the church was handed over to the English speaking population of the city. It is set in the middle of the Begijnhof (which the picture shows) and is truely beauitful.
To mark the occasion, a service was held at the church today and in attendance was Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands and Queen Elizabeth of England and her husband The Duke of Edinburgh. It was quite an event and we felt privileged to be able to attend.
It was also interesting to hear some more history of the church that we hadn't heard before, such as that Vincent van Gogh would come to our church when he was seeking peace. Also the pilgrims after having left England and before going to America, worshipped at this church in Amsterdam.
The service ended with the singing of the English national anthem"God Save the Queen" (to the English contingent reading this...Wool...does the Queen sing this song herself?) and the Dutch "Wilhelmus". I must admit, I like the English one better. It's a bit more dramatic.
A day like today makes me realize how unique a life I have living here in Amsterdam. Sorry I don't have any money shots of the royalty but security was tight and cameras were a definite no-no.
2 comments:
Oh, you don't even know how jealous my mother is. She would have moved the earth and sky to attend such an event. Even though I'm not an official on the subject, but I suspect the Queen does sing along. I mean if the song was about you,wouldn't you?... Such an exciting life you lead.
Sara- a.k.a Wool
Hi Splash. Love the pictures! So neat to see that old church. It's been a long time since I've been there. Will have to talk Arnold when we visit (hopefully next year!) Thanks for the pic of the two of you! Now I know what Bas looks like! --Dree
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