Oh come look at it...

It's all over again; Christmas Eve! An evening full of fun, chatting and very happy children. Making presents, long poems and as a big surprise the visit of St. Nicholas. An evening that many children have been looking forward to for weeks, sometimes even months. In this blog Ineke Janssen is going to tell you about her family's Sinterklaas weekend. They celebrated this year's Saint Nicholas Day in a very special place....

Hello all!!! I am Ineke and I am a mother of two little boys aged five and seven. This year we celebrated St. Nicholas in our vacation home in Moreira. This is a cozy old Spanish fishing village on the Costa Blanca. We are usually here two or three times a year. Lately we haven't been able to do much in the Netherlands because of the circumstances we all have to live with. It therefore seemed very nice for me and my boyfriend to go away for a few weeks in December for a change. This is something we normally never do. In recent years we have always celebrated Sinterklaas with the whole family in the Netherlands. This was unfortunately not possible due to the measures last Sinterklaas, so we decided to take a break. 

Last Friday, Dec. 3, the four of us flew to Alicante. The trip went smoothly. From the airport we drove a rented car to our cottage in Moreira. Just under an hour's drive through the mountains and along the coast of the Costa Blanca. This feels like coming home! The sun is shining and with a pleasant temperature of fifteen degrees you won't hear us complain.

Once on the road, my sons started asking questions about Sinterklaas. They thought it was weird that we were going to Spain, while Sinterklaas is actually going from Spain to the Netherlands. Explain that! They also wondered how the helpers can come and bring their presents all the way to Spain. Of course, this is not a problem, since plenty of the pete's stayed in Spain especially for the children. They were very happy about this, because of course they are secretly looking forward to the presents.

After a quiet day of relaxing in the house, it was finally here. December 5. Our sons woke up early and went as quickly as they could to the living room, where they found a trail of peppercorns and candy. The trail they followed to their little shoes full of presents and treats. They were overjoyed that the little pete had come by. Full of joy and satisfaction, they went off to play all day with their new toys. Not knowing that Saint and the Piets would come by again tonight. After dinner it was time for the poems Sinterklaas had written for everyone. In the middle of my youngest son's poem, he was interrupted by loud banging on the front door. Of course our little ones sprinted as fast as they could to the door to catch a glimpse of Saint Nicholas and his helpers, but it was in vain. What they did find was a big bag full of presents. Delighted and surprised, we began our Saint's Day in wonderful Spain!

It was a very successful day and our little ones loved it. I fear that we will now have to host Sinterklaas' visit in Spain every year, which of course mom and dad don't mind at all! All in all, I would definitely recommend celebrating the holidays perhaps in a different place for a change. Definitely worth a try!