People posing for pictures with 2 Zwarte Piets.
Zwarte Piet giving candy to a kid.
A store-front display featuring Zwarte Piet.
Sinter Klaas day is December 6, but Sinter Klaas comes to town on November 15th so he has lots of time to whip the kids into frenzy. Sinter Klaas lives in Spain. I don’t know why Spain, but it makes as much sense as the North Pole, I suppose. He arrives by boat, and once he’s in the Netherlands, he travels by train or by horse depending on where you live. Instead of elves he has a helper named Zwarte Piet.
Zwarte Piet has lately become a controversial character in the Sinter Klaas tradition. In the past, Zwarte Piet was Sinter Klaas’ Moroccan slave. Zwarte Piet was in charge of the Naughty Book and would kidnap bad children and take them back to Spain. You can see that with 21st century sensibilities, this wouldn’t go over big. He has now morphed into a Santa’s helper, like the elves, and he helps deliver the candy and gifts for Sinter Klaas.
But, you’ve probably already realized that zwarte means black. And being Moroccan, Zwarte Piet is black. Since they don’t have many black people here in the Netherlands, the pale-skinned Dutch people wear black make-up to play the part of Zwarte Piet. This is where the real controversy comes in. People from America with their ideas about political correctness really don’t like white people putting shoe polish on their faces to portray Santa’s slave. The Dutch people are downplaying the slave part, but see no problem with the black make-up. It’s their tradition and it’s not meant to offend. In all reality, Santa’s elves are probably degrading to all the midgets in the US.
Controversy aside, Dennis and I went into town on Saturday evening to see the festival for the arrival of Sinter Klaas. All day on Saturday, you could feel the excitement in the air. The kids were pretty wound up! They had some special booths set up down town selling oliebollen (literally oil-balls, but really just donuts), and poffertjes which are mini pancakes served with powdered sugar and butter. They also had a blow-up jumping thing (does anyone know the proper name for these things?) and a carousel swing. Near the town hall, they were setting up the main stage where they would perform all the Sinter Klaas songs.
At 5:00, everyone gathered around the stage. The children had hats that they made in school. Some had tall red Sinter Klaas hats (like the red hats that cardinals wear), and other kids had beret style Zwarte Piet hats. Some of the kids even had on the black face make-up to look like Zwarte Piet. There was a fleet of Zwarte Piets distributing bags of candy to the kids. The kids would yell to get Piet’s attention. So, you can imagine a group of kids all hopped up on candy yelling, “Piet, Piet, Piet!” All the while, the children’s choir on stage blasted what we can only assume are Christmas tunes. It was complete bedlam!
I tried to get a few pictures (without being creepy), but it was dark and starting to rain. Hopefully I can get some better pictures over the next few weeks. Since it was raining, Dennis and left before Sinter Klaas actually showed up. So, I don't have any pictures of Sinter Klaas, either. He is normally dressed in a red robe and tall hat like a Catholic cardinal. If we wanted to, we could visit the place where Sinter Klaas lives while he's in the Netherlands. He stays at the museum in Naarden vesting so it's really close! But I'm not sure I want to pay 4 euros to see his bed.
Zwarte Piet has lately become a controversial character in the Sinter Klaas tradition. In the past, Zwarte Piet was Sinter Klaas’ Moroccan slave. Zwarte Piet was in charge of the Naughty Book and would kidnap bad children and take them back to Spain. You can see that with 21st century sensibilities, this wouldn’t go over big. He has now morphed into a Santa’s helper, like the elves, and he helps deliver the candy and gifts for Sinter Klaas.
But, you’ve probably already realized that zwarte means black. And being Moroccan, Zwarte Piet is black. Since they don’t have many black people here in the Netherlands, the pale-skinned Dutch people wear black make-up to play the part of Zwarte Piet. This is where the real controversy comes in. People from America with their ideas about political correctness really don’t like white people putting shoe polish on their faces to portray Santa’s slave. The Dutch people are downplaying the slave part, but see no problem with the black make-up. It’s their tradition and it’s not meant to offend. In all reality, Santa’s elves are probably degrading to all the midgets in the US.
Controversy aside, Dennis and I went into town on Saturday evening to see the festival for the arrival of Sinter Klaas. All day on Saturday, you could feel the excitement in the air. The kids were pretty wound up! They had some special booths set up down town selling oliebollen (literally oil-balls, but really just donuts), and poffertjes which are mini pancakes served with powdered sugar and butter. They also had a blow-up jumping thing (does anyone know the proper name for these things?) and a carousel swing. Near the town hall, they were setting up the main stage where they would perform all the Sinter Klaas songs.
At 5:00, everyone gathered around the stage. The children had hats that they made in school. Some had tall red Sinter Klaas hats (like the red hats that cardinals wear), and other kids had beret style Zwarte Piet hats. Some of the kids even had on the black face make-up to look like Zwarte Piet. There was a fleet of Zwarte Piets distributing bags of candy to the kids. The kids would yell to get Piet’s attention. So, you can imagine a group of kids all hopped up on candy yelling, “Piet, Piet, Piet!” All the while, the children’s choir on stage blasted what we can only assume are Christmas tunes. It was complete bedlam!
I tried to get a few pictures (without being creepy), but it was dark and starting to rain. Hopefully I can get some better pictures over the next few weeks. Since it was raining, Dennis and left before Sinter Klaas actually showed up. So, I don't have any pictures of Sinter Klaas, either. He is normally dressed in a red robe and tall hat like a Catholic cardinal. If we wanted to, we could visit the place where Sinter Klaas lives while he's in the Netherlands. He stays at the museum in Naarden vesting so it's really close! But I'm not sure I want to pay 4 euros to see his bed.
From the people at work, I learned a little more about Sinter Klaas and how things work. A lot of the tradition depends on your family, a lot like Christmas traditions in the US. The basic deal is that kids can put out their shoes near the chimney on December 6th and Sinter Klaas delivers a gift. Many kids will put a carrot in their shoe for Sinter Klaas’ horse. So, why does Sinter Klaas come to town several weeks before Sinter Klaas day? As the holiday has become more commercialized, it gives the kids more opportunities to get gifts. Some lucky, spoiled kids leave their shoes out EVERY night from Nov. 15th until Dec. 6th! Other kids are only allowed to put their shoes out on SATURDAY nights until Sinter Klaas day. The kids also get loads of gifts from grandparents and other family members. Some families also give gifts again on Christmas. So, like the US families can get really carried away, or they can keep it a bit more low-key. But it sounds like the gift-giving is generally more low-key than what we’re used to seeing in the US.
2 comments:
I remember when I was in 2nd grade and ST Nick came for us but not for a family that moved in down the street. Apparently, the kids got stuff the next day as St. Nick "lost their new address". As the story goes the parents didn't know about ST Nick because it wasn't a thing that was done where they came from. ST Nick never brought us toys. We would get a basket of fruit, nuts, and a pair of pajamas. I wonder if he comes around here? I hope so!
Austin and Kevin just loved this blog! I don't think they realized that Santa Claus and our traditions aren't universal throughout the world. Hopefully, we won't have to start celebrating by giving gifts for so many days! I'm good with just one day!
Susan
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