St. Nicholas Day
In Slovakia, St. Nicholas Day is celebrated on December 6th. According to tradition, children must be good and shine their boots the day before and put them in the window so that St. Nicholas will reward them with sweets. St. Nicholas visits the children accompanied by an angel and a devil. According to tradition, St. Nicholas gives presents to good children, but naughty children do not receive sweets, only coal according tothe tradition. However such punishment not use to happen.
Also connected to St. Nicholas Day is the belief that the weather on St. Nicholas Day predicts what the weather will be like on Christmas Eve.
Christmas preparations
The beginning of the Christmas season in Slovakia also begins with the Advent celebration. This is when the Christmas decoration of the house begins. Every Sunday a candle is lit on the Advent wreath. According to tradition, fasting precedes the big Christmas Eve feast on December 24th, and dinner could only begin at the same time as the first star appeared. Children were told that whoever could go the whole day without eating would see a golden star or a golden pig. Before Christmas dinner, it is traditional to break a honey-covered wafer (vianočný oblátka), which symbolizes that we will be as good and healthy as honey all year long.
“Christmas is a season for kindling the fire for hospitality in the hall, the genial flame of charity in the heart.”
– Washington Irving
The festive dinner
Festive dishes include cabbage soup (kapustnica), roasted trout, fried carp, potato salad (zemiakový šalat). Fish soup is more typical in the southern areas, where Hungarians are the majority. In the eastern areas, dishes related to Ukrainian and Russian cuisine, such as sour soup and pirog. The most common Christmas cakes are gingerbread, linzer cakes and Christmas cake (vianočka). One of the oldest Slovak Christmas dishes is bobáľky, which is still popular today. Bobáľky is small rolls made of sourdough, which are baked in the oven and then served with butter, poppy seeds, nuts or cottage cheese.
Typical Christmas drinks are hot chocolate, mulled wine, punch and eggnog. In many families, it is customary to put out an extra plate for an occasional guest or a traveler. Superstitious customs are also observed in many places. The coin under the tablecloth ensures prosperity and the garlic on the table symbolizes the health of the family. The legs of the table are tied with a chain so that the family is always together. On Christmas Eve, after dinner, baby Jesus brings the gifts. This is the evening when the gifts are opened, when the family sings together by the Christmas tree. For Christians, Christmas Eve ends with the Midnight Mass. This night mass is one of the two greatest night celebrations of the Catholic church year.
The Christmas Market
Every December, the magical Bratislava Christmas Market opens its doors in the main squares of Bratislava, such as Hlavné námestie, Františkánske námestie and Hviezdoslavovo námestie. The pedestrian streets of the Old Town are filled with Christmas spirit. Christmas music is played everywhere and the scent of Christmas mulled wine and punch wafts through the air. The market is characterized by a large number of handicrafts, good food and a wide selection of hot drinks. The many Christmas trees and Christmas decorations and lighting make the atmosphere of the city feel like you are walking through a magical place in a fantasy fairy tale.
“The spirit of Christmas is the spirit of love and of generosity and of goodness. It illuminates the picture window of the soul, and we look out upon the world’s busy life and become more interested in people than in things.”
– Thomas S. Monson