Netherlands King's Day April 2025

Villa Kleineh, in the Kaivopuisto area of Helsinki, was constructed in 1840. After being in private ownership for about 150 years, it was purchased and meticulously restored by the Netherlands government in 2000, as a residence for the Netherlands Ambassador to Finland.

When I moved to Finland in the early 1980’s, and for four years with my growing Finnish family, we were fortunate to live in the second-floor apartment of Villa Kleineh.

My wife, Harriet, and I are grateful to be invited to the Netherland’s King’s Day Reception every year. As in the past, upon entering the residence yesterday, we appreciated the Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands Mr. Govert Jan Bijl de Vroe and Mrs. Loes Bilj de Vroe saying “welcome home!”

It is also fun that our children, Charly Salonius-Pasternak and Alexandra Pasternak-Jackson, are invited to the event in their own professional capacities, inevitably leading to a family photo opportunity.