Tonight, the Dutch will celebrate Sinterklaasavond (St Nicholas Eve), also known as Pakjesavond (Presents Eve)! Sinterklaas is a traditional figure based on St Nicholas. He is said to ride his white-grey horse over the rooftops at night, delivering gifts through the chimney to well-behaved children. When the presents arrive, the living room is decked out with them, just like on Christmas Day in English-speaking countries. Gifts are usually accompanied by poems from Sinterklaas, bearing a personal message for the receiver. It is usually a humorous poem which often teases the recipient for their well-known bad habits. Traditional Sinterklaas treats include pepernoten (spicy biscuits), speculaas (brown sugar biscuits), banketstaaf (pastry filled with almond paste), marzipan figures and large chocolate letters of childrens initials. ♫ Zie de maan schijnt door de bomen. Makkers staakt uw wild geraas. ‘t Heerlijk avondje is gekomen, ‘t avondje van Sinterklaas! ♫ ♫ Look how the moon shines through the trees. Fellows, stop your wild noise. The divine evening has arrived, the evening of Santa Claus!♫
Posted on: Fri, 05 Dec 2014 10:06:33 +0000
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