“I SEE YOUR REINDEER AND I RAISE YOU ONE SHIP AND A WHITE HORSE”

As we come into the Christmas season, most of you will discover that there is no Santa Claus! I know, it was a tough one for me to handle… when I was eleven. However, to go through that trauma again was just too much. Hearing about this Sinterklaas guy I thought, ‘lucky kids, two days of toys, presents and more toys.’ Quite the contrary, here in Belgium and the Netherlands Sinterklaas is the main distributor of presents to little children.

Like Santa, the type of gift he brings is determined by whether the child is naughty or nice. Sinterklaas also has the aid of helpers, not elves but ‘Zwarte Pieten’, wearing brightly coloured clothes and are adorned with gold earings, feathers and hats. Although a colourful character, history has depicted ‘Black Piet’ to be quite a controversial one. Some consider the mention of his colouring a reference to old-fashioned racism while others believe it to be the consequence of sliding down soot filled chimneys. Nevertheless, Black Piet travels with Sinterklaas by ship from the coast of Spain, a little warmer than the North Pole, every year on the 6th of December, to bring excitement and magic to children. Not forgetting the most important things like sweets, chocolate and presents.

Unlike Santa, Sinterklaas rides on a white horse, as opposed to a slight pulled by reindeers. But what they do have in common is their white beards, the element of surprise and they both look good in red... This season of Sinterklaas and Santa Claus comes from the Dutch legend of Saint Nicholas, a Greek bishop of Myra in present-day Turkey who became the patron saint of children.

So who is the real Saint Nicholas? The answer is quite obvious, they both are. Both icons represent the spirit of Saint Nicholas, caring for children and giving them joy and something to look forward to. So whether you had (or still have) a Santy or a Sinte to believe in you always have magic. |