it is gingerbread. in france, we call it pain d'épices. since it is made in germany, they call it schoko-lebkuchen. now, there are so many gingerbread cookies in the supermarket for st. nicholas day.
st. nicholas? the saint who is recognized as protector of the children. for many, he is the santa claus. in france, st. nicholas comes primarily in alsace, lorraine, nord-pas-de-calais and brittany (northern france). the whole family gets ready for the saint's arrival on december 06 with grandparents telling stories of the saint.
bakeries and supermarkets are filled with special gingerbread cookies like we bought or shaped like st. nicholas. at the school, children learn st. nicholas songs and poems. they draw and pint st. nicholas pictures.
on the eve of the saint's day, children put their shoes near the chimney and sing a song to st. nicholas before going off to bed. in the morning, the shoes are overflowing with special st. nicholas sweet treats -- chocolates and special cookies.
bernard told me when he was a child, his grandmother would give him coin-chocolates for st. nicholas day. this coming st. nicholas, i've already prepared something for océane.
perhaps, on st. nicholas day, we can treat ourselves a chocolate or gingerbread to remember how good it is to be a child and how eager we used to wait for santa claus.
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