Friday, December 12, 2008
Sinterklaas, episode V: De Sint strikes back
The main aspect of the Pakjesavond, the evening of December 5th when Sinterklaas brings presents to Dutch children, is of course receiving presents.
Usually the kids find their presents the morning after, left by Sinterklaas and Zwarte Piet.
The presents are accompainied by a simple poem, called Sinterklaasgedicht, that says something about the behaviour of the child during the past year and it gives some hints to the nature of the present.
When children grow older and they quit believing in Sinterklaas, the tradition of the Pakjesavond resists and it becomes a party within friends where everybody brings a present for another person.
Usually people draw a lottery (lootje) and they pick the name of the person they will but a small present.
They also write a poem to accompain to present. Usually these poems are more ironic and teasing to the person who receives the present.
In this last case, gifts are usually creatively wrapped in weird shaped boxes the "children" have to make by themselves. Funny situations usually come out also from the un-wrapping procedure, since all kind of tricks and jokes may be used.
Sticky situations may arise: common ingredients for the filling of the gift-box may be saw dust, syrup, hair gel and cotton balls, news paper and peanut butter...
Someone told me that's also traditional to "wrap" the present within a sticky dough made of gingerbread and water and that's what I've done this year for the present I made.
So yes, we had our Sinterklaas dinner with presents, poems and all the other things and it was pretty funny (it was my first Sinterklaas in Holland, since the last two years I was defrosting in the US).
(Even if you know I'm kind of annoying about traditions.)
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4 comments:
ma i vostri poemi se pol render pubblici?
mz
ma la vignetta del post precedente raffigurava Sinterklaas che va a letto con Zwarte Piet?
shotacon!
mz
SSiii..vogliamo i poemetti, a gran richiesta..
per quanto riguarda la vignetta:
Si, ma in mezzo c'e` una ragazza il nome della quale i nostri due eroi non sono riusciti a scoprire, nonostante i bagordi.
Per le poesie non saprei.
In teoria non si rivelano.
(aka: l'ho persa)
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