Why I Love Queen's Day

It's been 2.5 years (whoa!) since I moved from Amsterdam to Hong Kong, but I've managed to go back 3x already, twice during Queen's Day if we count this current trip. What can I say, I miss the Netherlands big time and will jump at any opportunity to revisit my second home, ESPECIALLY when it coincides with what is arguably one of the world's biggest and best parties - QUEEN'S DAY, aka Koninginnedag (forget Will & Kate)!

For those unfamiliar with Queen's Day, it's basically the Dutch's national holiday every year on 30-April where everyone dresses in orange and floods into Amsterdam for an all-out street party. Before you dismiss it as JASP or 'just another street party,' here's what makes Q-Day so freakin' awesome:

DJs
Fans of house, electronica and trance music like me always have trouble deciding where to party on Queen's Night & Day, because the all of the world's top DJs including Armin van Buuren, Tiesto, Chuckie, Sander van Doorn and more will be spinning in various squares and open areas around Amsterdam, all for FREE!

Crazy Boat Parties
On Queen's Day, the canals are flooded with party boats that are blasting dance music and full of happy, drunk and dancing people. The boats are privately hired and cruise around Amsterdam all day long, allowing the party animals to hop on and off as they please (usually for pee breaks)!

Flea Markets Everywhere
Queen's Day is the only day of the year when the Dutch don't need a license to sell stuff on the streets, so anyone can set up shop as long as you mark your territory in tape at least a full week ahead. That means the streets are literally lined with everything from kids to seniors putting on dance shows, carnival games and selling home-baked goods, drinks, old clothing, books, and I've even been tried selling my crap on Q-Day twice! Hardly made any money, but it was fun while it lasted...

Turning Orange
As mentioned earlier, the colour to wear is orange and that means anything and everything orange you can get your hands on, including hats, scarves, shirts, pants, socks, wigs, etc. Of course, the more unique your item is, the more nods, attention and RESPECT you'll get compared to everyone else, so definitely try to stand out with your orange picks!

Oops, this is starting to sound like PR copy, so I'd better stop!! If you ever get a chance to visit Amsterdam during Queen's Day, be sure to do so. But now...it's time for me to go and get out there in all my oranginess!