ALAPPUZHA: King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands were accorded a rousing reception in Alappuzha on Friday. The royal couple enjoyed the beauty and backwaters of Kuttanad and a houseboat cruise.
The royals and their team members who arrived with Education Minister C Raveendranath from Kochi were received by Additional Chief Secretary Vishwas Metha and District Collector Adeela Abdulla at the Punnamada Finishing Point. District police chief K M Tomy and Alappuzha municipal chairman Ellickal Kunjumon were also present.
A group of young women in traditional dresses, holding ‘thalam’, stood in line at the reception point. Traditional artists performed the Ambalappuzha Vela Kali and students recited the evergreen Vanchipattu.
The king and queen then went on a houseboat cruise from the boat race Finishing Point to SN Jetty covering 2.5km. They got down at SN Jetty in Kuttanad and visited paddy fields in Mullackal village. Collector Adeela Abdulla explained to them how the flood had affected paddy cultivation and the normal lives of people in Kuttanad and how they had bounced back. The couple posed for a photoshoot with green paddy fields forming the backdrop.