More than a million people hit the streets of Amsterdam Saturday to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Queen Beatrix's coronation as Dutch ruler. While the queen was visiting well-organized festivities in The Hague -- where both houses of parliament met in a special ceremony in the 13th-century Hall of Knights -- Amsterdam was the party's center for the bulk of her subjects. Seas of orange-clad partygoers blocked major intersections around central squares so severely that even bikes could not pass. Queen Beatrix has won her people's respect with a modern, businesslike approach to the monarchy. Especially at times of national crisis, Beatrix has been able to help heal the nation's wounds with visits to disaster sites such as the fireworks explosion that killed 22 in the eastern city of Enschede in 2002.
