Mikuláš (Saint Nicholas Day)

Mikuláš, or otherwise known as Saint Nicholas Day, is a long-standing Czech tradition and holiday. As described by Czech's, "The charming tradition of St. Nicholas falls on the eve of St. Nicholas Day, December 5th. If you find yourself in Czech on that evening, you may run into a group of strange characters: St. Nicholas (Mikuláš), the Angel (anděl) who represents the Good, and the Devil (čert) representing the Evil. All wear costumes. Mikuláš looks a bit like Santa Clause whose origin was supposedly inspired by St. Nicholas. All three characters walk the streets, stopping children and asking them if they were good in the past year. Most kids say yes and sing a song or recite a short poem. They are then rewarded with sweets, candy or other treats, which are handed out by the Angel. Bad kids would be put in the Devil's sack and taken to hell, or would only get a sack of potatoes or coal instead of candy - of course this does not really happen!"

To this day, my family and I celebrate this holiday by making Mikuláš figures out of a sweet buttery bread. Each year when we visit Czech, we make a point of purchasing the proper spice used in flavoring this delicious bread- Czech cloves. Not only do the cloves act as a flavoring agent, but they also are used to decorate the famous figure, St. Nick. Happy Mikuláš!