Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Willem- Alexander & Maxima in Albany

The Crown Prince of the Netherlands and Princess Maxima will visit Albany, New York, this afternoon for events in celebration of New York's 400th anniversary, Albany, which is the capital of the state, was originally known as Fort Orange.
The Prince and Princess will be visiting the State Museum, where they will see the exhibit, "1609," which celebrates 400 years of cultural connections between the United States and the Netherlands.
The exhibit will not be open to the public during the prince and princess' tour, although one will be able to catch a glimpse of them in the Museum's lobby. According to the Albany Times-Union, "the prince and princess will join Frans Timmermans, the Dutch minister for European Affairs and International Cultural Policy, for the announcement of a major financial gift to extend the work of the New Netherland Project at the State Library."
(I received my MLS from the State University of New York at Albany, and did an internship at the State Library.)
The royal couple are also expected to meet privately with New York State Governor David Patterson and the mayor of Albany, Jerry Jennings.

Earlier today, the royal couple were welcomed to New York City by Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. The Dutch royal couple visited the Intrepid, a World War II carrier that is now a museum. In a speech, the Prince said: :In good times and bad, we have seen that great things can be achieved by people who are free to shape their own destinies and who respect the freedom of others to do the same. There is no city on earth that exemplifies this more than New York.
"These are challenging times, certainly for the financial capital of the world. But there is no doubt in my mind that New York will emerge from this crisis stronger than before, simply because New Yorkers are hard-working optimists who have always been able to find new opportunities We, the Dutch, share this attitude and we see a prosperous and sustainable future before us"

Also on the agenda today is a visit to U.S. Military Academy at West Point.
http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=839450

It is no surprise that the visit is getting more attention in the Netherlands than in the New York City newspapers.
,

No comments: