A Holland Christmas
(Zalig Kerstfeest)
Click here to hear Jolly Old St. Nicholas
Picture taken from:http://www.cvc.org/christmas/nland.html
The Dutch, or the people from Holland, start their Christmas celebration sometime in the middle of November. Saint Nicholas, or Sinter Klaas, as he is known in Holland, is the main part of their celebration. Sinter Klaas and his helper Zwarte Peiten, or Black Petehand out the presents to the children.
On December 5th, the children put out their wooden shoes and fill them with carrots and hay. They do this to feed Sinter Klaas's horse. Sinter Klaas and Black Pete take the carrots and hay for the horse, and then fill the shoes with presents. On the morning of December 6th, the children find the presents in their shoes.
The farmers in Holland blow long horns at sunset each evening during the Christmas period. The horns are blown over water wells which makes the sound really loud. The horns are blown to annouce the birth of Christ.
A popular decoration in the Netherlands is the so-called "advent-star", a starshaped light, to be hung in the window.
A popular dish to serve at christmas is called Oliebollen. For the recipe: http://www.dnc.net/users/king/recipe/olie.htm
For more information:
http://www.santas.net/dutchchristmas.htm
http://achristmas.com/netherlands.html
http://www.cvc.org/christmas/nland.htm
