Sinterklaas is here!

The Zwarte Piets on jet skis went up and down the canal. Their antics made the crowd laugh, especially at the expense of others, as they splashed water onto the people as they waited on the banks of the Schie canal. The children squealed every time one of them would pass, waving to them and catching candy and other treats that they threw. The wait was not long before the Sinterklaas arrived on his boat.



The celebration of Sinterklaas is popular in the ‘Low countries’ of Belgium and the Netherlands, as well as parts of Germany and Northern France. The patron saint of children, sailors and the city of Amsterdam, Sinterklaas is celebrated on the eve of 5th of December and the morning of the 6th in the Netherlands.



Sinterklaas arrived on his white  horse flanked by two  police officers on their own brown horses. Flanked by the Zwarte Piet and led by a groups of school children, the parade moved slowly as they spread pepernoten and joy to everyone present. Bharadwaj Rangarajan, a first year master student at the TU Delft attended after hearing about the event on Facebook. “It was heartwarming to see little kids jump with joy when they meet Sinterklaas  and the Pieten!”



The parade met with a huge crowd in the square in front of the Nieuw Kerk before leaving for the Beestenmarkt, the location of the annual end party of the arrival of Sinterklaas. The Pieten had organised fun dances and events at the Beestenmarkt, chiefly for toddlers, though one could observe some over grown kids participate as well.



The annual tradition of Sinterklaas’s visit to the TU Delft takes place on the 1st of December this year, as he joins in for the celebrations at the Aula Congress. The Pieten and other performers set up a variety of shows for the children and adults alike, before the children get to meet Sint Nicolaas in person. The afternoon is set aside for a circus workshop where children try their hand at plate spinning and juggling.