THE FEAST OF ST. NICOLÁS (SV. MIKULÁŠ).

The feast of St. Nicholas is celebrated on December 6. It is connected with the tradition of giving, especially to children, small gifts, sweets and fruit. The tradition of Sv. Mikuláš's journey accompanied by his advisors - a devil, who knows about all the mischief of children, and an angel, who knows about all the good deeds - dates back to the Middle Ages.

Arriving at each of the houses, Sv. Mikuláš asks the children how they behaved during the year. Depending on the answer and the advice of his assistants, he decides what gift the child will receive. Some for the great number of mischiefs committed during the year receive a stone, a coal, a branch or some other object from the devil's bag. To the children who behaved very well, Sv. Mikuláš asks them to sing him a song or recite a poem and, finally, they too receive their prize and are warned to behave well next year and that the devil will not hear about their mischief.

In the Old Town Square in Prague there is a traditional show that takes place on December 5 and marks the beginning of Christmas for the Czech people, this show is the Mikuláš. This spectacle that is celebrated in the streets shows two characters: St. Nicholas, the angel who represents good and the Devil who represents evil. Many children go out to observe this spectacle amazed and smiling. You can also see how these characters ask the children if they have been good or bad during the year and depending on the answer they can receive candy or coal.