French 

Joyeux Noël a tous!

Did you know that in France families celebrate a special holiday on December 6th?

It is a special day to celebrate St Nicholas, a kind man who lived a long time ago and was believed to have performed many special generous deeds, giving up his money to help the poor.

Widely celebrated in Europe, St. Nicholas' feast day, is kept alive by retelling the stories of his goodness and generosity. In Germany and Poland, boys dress up as bishops begging alms for the poor—and sometimes for themselves! In the Netherlands and Belgium, St. Nicholas arrives on a steamship from Spain to ride a white horse on his gift-giving rounds.

December 6th is still the main day for gift giving and merrymaking in much of Europe. For example, in the Netherlands St. Nicholas is celebrated on the 5th, the eve of the day, by sharing candies (thrown in the door), chocolate initial letters, small gifts, and riddles. Dutch children leave carrots and hay in their shoes for the saint's horse, hoping Saint Nicholas will exchange them for small gifts. 

In France, during the night of December 5th to 6th, St. Nicholas comes down from the sky and enters the houses through the chimneys to distribute sweets to the good children (chocolates, apples, candies, dried fruits, gingerbread). In return, the children leave a glass of milk for him, before bedtime. St. Nicholas historically travels with his donkey. For this reason, little children also leave food for the donkey (hay, grain or carrots). 

During the first weekend of December, many parades celebrating the arrival of Saint Nicholas are organized in the cities. The bishop, accompanied by his donkey, parade in the streets on different floats and distribute sweets.

The parades organized for St. Nicholas are particularly magical in the French region of Lorraine, because he is the patron saint of this region. In the cities of Nancy and Metz, the parades even end with a fireworks display.

The Saint Nicholas brioche

In some regions, buns in the shape of little men are prepared by bakers on the day of the celebration of Saint Nicholas. These buns usually accompany hot chocolate for children's snack. They can be decorated with raisins or chocolate chips. Depending on the region, these little buns have a different name: "Mannele" in Alsace (which means "little man"), "Jean-Bonhomme" in Lorraine and Franche-Comté, "Boxemännchen" in Luxembourg and "Grittibänz" in Switzerland.

Joyeux Noël and a Bonne Année 2024!

Bonnes vacances tout le monde!

Have a great and safe holiday!

Madame Higgins