And you thought Halloween was bad... Say hello to St. Mikulas
Halloween is ghouls, goblins, ghosts, witches, and candy. It's a fun holiday where no one takes anything seriously and life is fun and exciting for a day. Maybe it's scary, but definitely the tradition brings no scary, livid moments to the table.
Well... that all changes with the Czech Holiday of St. Mikulas Day. Welcome to December 5th, the day that the world will soon come to dread. So, on this day is the day that St. Nicholas comes and visits all the children. Were you a good boy or girl this year? St. Nicholas knows. He will decide what your present should be. Does St. Mikulas come alone? Does he have reindeer or elves you may wonder? Neither, but he doesn't come alone. From a devoutly atheistic nation, Mikulas is assisted by none other than a some angels and devils (apparently they cooperate fairly well on this day). St. Mikulas knows all. Were you good? If so, the you will get many treats of candy from the angels. If you were bad, you will most likely get some coal, maybe some other nasty gifts like walnuts or peanuts. And perhaps if you are really bad, you must recite some poetry or even some song. Now, of course you don't have to recite these stupid stanzas, but there would have to be some repercussion, yea? Well, of course. I'll tell you what it is in the words of a Czech mother to her son... "Now Karel, if you are a bad boy, you will have to recite some poetry or a song to the devil or he is going to come and take you STRAIGHT TO HELL!!!" Nonetheless, children are literally scared to death for this holiday that the devil is going to come and take them to hell forever. Pretty intense you may thank.
Now let me tell you what happens at school, and tell me if this would be acceptable in American schools. First, what I heard from the elementary schools. The oldest students come around and are dressed up as angels and devils, and all the littler students are terrified and in their classrooms crying and terrified for their very souls. And in the high schools (this is what I know more since I experienced it first hand), it is pretty much pure chaos. Classes go on normal for the beginning of the day, then all the seniors get a few hours free to prepare for the madness. They are all dressing up as angels and devils. Then the madness begins. I was walking to lunch, and they struck first blood. They come up to me, marking on my face with coal, but the worst is all the girls are armed with lipstick (no, they didn't kiss me). They dis mark lipstick all over my face (which tool forever to get off later, and to get out of my beard). Then comes the spraying of perfume. The whole schoolrooms reek of perfume by the end of the day. The next few hours of class are really nothing because the seniors are coming into all the classrooms performing their horror. They come in and read names of the bad kids and make them recite something. If they don't, they take them away. THey mark over all the students and are continuously throwing peanuts and walknuts. So, in my later classes, the rooms smelled, we all looked like we had our faces all cut up, and the floor was cracking from all the peanuts and walnuts that I would continuously step on. Oh yea, they also had some kind of Crisco that they would smear over our arms. It was pretty outrageous and disgusting. But overall, a good experience and fun, fun, fun.
Moral of the story: Life is good in the Czech Republic.
Well... that all changes with the Czech Holiday of St. Mikulas Day. Welcome to December 5th, the day that the world will soon come to dread. So, on this day is the day that St. Nicholas comes and visits all the children. Were you a good boy or girl this year? St. Nicholas knows. He will decide what your present should be. Does St. Mikulas come alone? Does he have reindeer or elves you may wonder? Neither, but he doesn't come alone. From a devoutly atheistic nation, Mikulas is assisted by none other than a some angels and devils (apparently they cooperate fairly well on this day). St. Mikulas knows all. Were you good? If so, the you will get many treats of candy from the angels. If you were bad, you will most likely get some coal, maybe some other nasty gifts like walnuts or peanuts. And perhaps if you are really bad, you must recite some poetry or even some song. Now, of course you don't have to recite these stupid stanzas, but there would have to be some repercussion, yea? Well, of course. I'll tell you what it is in the words of a Czech mother to her son... "Now Karel, if you are a bad boy, you will have to recite some poetry or a song to the devil or he is going to come and take you STRAIGHT TO HELL!!!" Nonetheless, children are literally scared to death for this holiday that the devil is going to come and take them to hell forever. Pretty intense you may thank.
Now let me tell you what happens at school, and tell me if this would be acceptable in American schools. First, what I heard from the elementary schools. The oldest students come around and are dressed up as angels and devils, and all the littler students are terrified and in their classrooms crying and terrified for their very souls. And in the high schools (this is what I know more since I experienced it first hand), it is pretty much pure chaos. Classes go on normal for the beginning of the day, then all the seniors get a few hours free to prepare for the madness. They are all dressing up as angels and devils. Then the madness begins. I was walking to lunch, and they struck first blood. They come up to me, marking on my face with coal, but the worst is all the girls are armed with lipstick (no, they didn't kiss me). They dis mark lipstick all over my face (which tool forever to get off later, and to get out of my beard). Then comes the spraying of perfume. The whole schoolrooms reek of perfume by the end of the day. The next few hours of class are really nothing because the seniors are coming into all the classrooms performing their horror. They come in and read names of the bad kids and make them recite something. If they don't, they take them away. THey mark over all the students and are continuously throwing peanuts and walknuts. So, in my later classes, the rooms smelled, we all looked like we had our faces all cut up, and the floor was cracking from all the peanuts and walnuts that I would continuously step on. Oh yea, they also had some kind of Crisco that they would smear over our arms. It was pretty outrageous and disgusting. But overall, a good experience and fun, fun, fun.
Moral of the story: Life is good in the Czech Republic.
posted by Zach Barnes at 11:21 AM
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