Orange Ball attracts new members for De Nederlandse Club<\/p>\n
Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Dutch-speaking newcomers should not be too worried now when they
\nwant to settle in the country, especially Jakarta. De Nederlandse
\nClub will be there ready to help.<\/p>\n
The club, established five years ago by a number of Dutch
\npeople living here, indeed aims to help Dutch-speaking people,
\nespecially newcomers, to interact with each other.<\/p>\n
"This is the way to meet people," Joost de Raad, the president
\nof De Nederlandse Club, told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
De Raad said he benefited from the help of the club to settle
\ndown when he arrived here in 2003. He found the club by browsing
\nthe Internet.<\/p>\n
As most of its members are Dutch families, the club organizes
\na number of family-related events. They include sports activities
\nlike ice skating and tennis tournaments, a monthly coffee morning
\nevent for ladies, wine tasting, Easter and Christmas parties.<\/p>\n
There are also some events to raise donations to fund charity
\nprojects involving children and seniors in Greater Jakarta.<\/p>\n
One such event is the Orange Ball, which is often the
\nhighlight of the Club's events each year. De Raad said that the
\nevent has traditionally attracted more members.<\/p>\n
"At the Orange Ball, everybody dresses up, the venues are
\ncomfortable, we chat, eat, drink and enjoy music from Dutch
\nartists. It usually ends around 2 a.m.," he said.<\/p>\n
The Orange Ball is an annual event for the Dutch to celebrate
\nthe anniversary of the Queen on April 30th. Everywhere in the
\nNetherlands, people dance, drink, eat and enjoy music on that
\ndate.<\/p>\n
Orange has become the national color of the Netherlands, whose
\nroyal family is known as the Orange Family.<\/p>\n
In addition to the various events, the Club also provides the
\nlatest information concerning the Dutch community here through
\nits website, www.dnc.or.id, or its magazine, which is published
\nfive or six times a year.<\/p>\n
"The information ranges from that involving the events to that
\nfrom the (Dutch) Embassy," said De Raad, who assumed his
\nchairmanship post last August.<\/p>\n
Security advice from the embassy has drawn much attention
\nlately, especially after the J.W. Marriot Hotel bombing in August
\n2003 that killed Dutchman Hans Winkelmolen, president of PT
\nRabobank Duta Indonesia, a subsidiary of the Dutch co-operative
\nbank Rabobank.<\/p>\n
After the incident, De Raad said that many Dutch people had
\npreferred to stay home rather come to the club.<\/p>\n
"It has started to get back to normal now," said De Raad,
\nadding that many are now undeterred by bombs or threats and it
\ndoes not prevent them from mingling with other people.<\/p>",
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