St. Nikolaus
Every 6th of December Austrian children get equally nervous and excited. It is the day of Saint Nikolaus. According to tradition, Nikolaus was a beneficiary of children, and today adults dress up as Nikolaus in a red bishop’s coat and a white wig and beard with a mitra and a crook (Nikolaus looks a lot like Santa!).
They go from house to house to visit children. The dressed up Nikolauses carry with them a golden book. The golden book contains all the good and bad things the kid did over the past year (info provided by the parents of course) and accordingly the Nikolauses praise or tell off the kids. Nikolaus also brings a stocking with him, which is usually filled with nuts, oranges, apples, chocolate, candy and maybe some small presents. Thus, Nikolaus is a very welcome guest. However, in this neck of the woods, if a kid hadn’t been very good over the year, Nikolaus might bring some friends with him, the Krampusse. A Krampus is a very scary creature totally covered in fur, with big horns and an ugly face.
The Krampusse also carry birches with them. Today the Krampusse don’t really visit kids at home anymore, instead they have become the source of adult entertainment. Most towns have Krampus parades, and the people dressing up as Krampusse take pride in their marvellously detailed costumes. The masks covering their faces are mostly hand carved out of heavy wood, and are true pieces of art that can scare even the toughest guys. Fortunately, both the boy and I were good this year, and were only visited by Nikolaus, who brought this with him:
The loot:
Have a great Saint Nikolaus day!
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What a great description of the day and everything encompassed by it! I’m also very jealous of your loot!