Monday, November 23

Fête Saint -Nicholas

Thank you for all the birthday wishes! It was a really great day.

As I mentioned in my last post we went on the St. Nicholas Train yesterday afternoon. It was suggested by some fellow expats as a fun thing to do with the kiddos. But other than being "fun" we really didn't know what this St. Nicolas Train experience would entail.

We boarded a train, headed by a steam engine in Petange, Luxembourg. We weren't sure if the train ride was the experience or if there was a destination. After a 20 minute train ride we stopped at an old train station and we all got off the train. As we walked to the station we could see St. Nicolas himself emerge from the train.
The station was filled with large tables and benches, bratwurst vendors and a beverage counter where coffee, beer, cremant, and juice were available for purchase. At the far end, St. Nicolas had his own private grotto to greet children. There was also a miniature train set up for viewing. And it was a mad house. Did I mention that? It was packed with families who had arrived on the previous train. And a train load of families from the train we'd arrived on.
We grabbed a table and then made a mad dash to the queue to visit St. Nicolas. As you can see only 1 child was willing to visit. This was due to St. Nicolas' helpers, Black Peter(s). They were quite terrifying and Audrey wanted nothing to do with them. {More on Black Peter in my next post.} Eva was more than willing after she saw the goodie bag she would receive from St. Nicholas. I told the girls it was more like a shopping bag of treats not a goodie bag. Sheesh.

After greeting St. Nicholas we visited with friends while the girls consumed mass quanitites of chocolate. Then we got on the train and returned to Petange. It was a great experience. Something new. Something that was carried out in a way that wouldn't be found in the U.S. I loved it. The girls did too!

7 comments:

poppyart said...

a belated happy birthday. your pictures are looking fab! i'm afraid the idea of a bratwurst take away on a station platform really takes my fancy!

Jessica said...

Whoa! I cant wait to hear about the Black Peters. No wonder why only of your daughters wanted to visit Santa. Good Luck with the Thanksgiving Dinner, I am sure it will be perfect.

Monkey's Mama said...

that is one hefty goodie bag!!

Potters said...

I love this - I'm very intrigued. Sounds so fun. And that stash of candy is quite the swag bag for a kid!

Mama Llama said...

Eek! I looked at your flickr pictures of the Black Peters, and I'd have been scared, too. When I was a child, Zwarte Piet was more like a man in black face makeup. When did he transition to this?

Annabel, Mikko, Marcelle and Eric said...

Isn't it hilarious about the black Peters? I love discovering traditions when abroad...We're currently in Vienna, I love Vienna, you need to come here during the holiday season, it is quite simply amazing...Talk about going off track...What I wanted to say was that we keep seeing a little demon here alongside Santa, now I know it has something to do with the "you better be good", but it's still really rather fascinating to see this little devil (in black or in red) depicted on Christmas cookies and decorations! Hope you have a very successful Thanksgiving dinner! We had ours hosted by our dear American friends last Saturday... HAppy Thanksgiving!!

Thea said...

Great posting! St. Nicolas is a tradion you can continue when you return to the US. Our kids love getting ready for his visit.

We loved the Zwarte Piets in Amsterdam. They are much more cartoonish than the ones you showed - they dress in page clothing and blackface, and dance around Sinterklaas throwing pepparknoten (gingerbread cookies) and candies.
Thea

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