Ho ho, you should absolutely not compare a cross of the Elfstedentocht with a ribbon. Jan Groos, head of the awards department of the Royal Mint in Houten, is unrelenting. Do you know what it takes before someone gets a ribbon? Groos sums up: someone must be recommended by family and friends, for example because of years of volunteer work. The application is then successively assessed by the mayor, the province and the Chancellery of the Netherlands Order. Only when they all agree does King Willem-Alexander sign the charter and the ribbon can be awarded.
Ribbon rain in the Netherlands? It always starts in Houten
