Sinterklaas is coming to town....

This week’s blog was going to be all about the series of fortunate, and unfortunate events that have occurred over the last seven days – finding some new friends, followed by the episode of the exploding boiler and the fact that we rose to the dizzy heights of fifth place in the quiz (Mr T and I realise our sheltered upbringings are proving something of a handicap in the quiz following our failure to recognise the anal ring (??) in last week’s picture round, although we correctly identified the contraceptive coil the week before.....)

However, all of these events have now paled into insignificance by this afternoon's arrival of Sinterklaas in Haarlem.  It is Dutch tradition that Sinterklaas – St Nicholas – arrives each year from Spain in a boat, together with his helper Zwarte Piet, in preparation for two weeks of festivities that lead up to St Nicolas Day on 5 December.  After Sinter  disembarks from his galleon he rides through the streets on a white horse, accompanied by several Piets who hand out sweets and the traditional spiced biscuits pepernoten to the eagerly waiting crowd.

In what is presumably an effort to placate the PR brigade, Sinter’s helper, ‘Black Pete’ is sometimes referred to as a chimney sweep, however there was nothing chimney sweep like about any of the Zwarte Piets who arrived in Haarlem.

‘Imagine a scene from the Black & White minstrel show’ one of my new English friends warned. Despite this, the last thing I expected to see on a cold, damp November day in Holland was a large brightly coloured steam boat, full of cheery singing, dancing, trombone playing men and women with blacked faces and wearing curly black wigs winding its way up the River Sparne. I think it’s one of the most bizarre things I’ve ever seen, and that says a lot, for someone who spent three years living in Los Angeles!

Sinterklaas, a papal sort of figure, waved to the crowd from beneath his brightly coloured umbrella as the procession then moved from the canal through the streets of Haarlem to the Grote Markt, an occasion that would have seemed more at home in the sunny streets of New Orleans than as a prelude to winter/Christmas festivities. 

Is it racist? I don't know.  It was certainly bizarre. However, each to their own. The Dutch probably think the British tradition of Guy Fawkes night is pretty nuts. What? You burn effigies of the man who tried to blow up the houses of Parliament four hundred years ago on a bonfire and then celebrate with fireworks? Yes, and why not? Any excuse for a party!.

Everyone we saw on the streets of Haarlem today seemed pretty happy to cheer along the Zwarte Piets, although, while researching a bit of the history for this post I did see an article that apparently 60 anti-Piet protestors have been arrested in the Dutch town of Gouda. Perhaps it's time to throw Piet, or at least his wig and make-up, on a bonfire too.