Sinterklaas Parade...

This was our first time seeing the Sinterklaas Parade in Amsterdam since 2008. We had to defend our spot near the fence over an hour before the parade started. All around us were little kids dressed up as Sinterklaas (otherwise known as Saint Nicholas)...

...or Zwart Piet (Black Pete), his loyal helper (or slave, depending upon your outlook).

Kids often bring bags to collect kruidnoten (tiny gingerbread cookies) from Piet. While the girl on the left had a Minnie Mouse purse to collect her treasures, the girl next to her had a Ziploc bag...

...and this boy had a burlap sack, similar to what Sinterklaas uses to deliver gifts on December 5.

There has been much controversy over the last few years about the tradition of using blackface when dressing up as a Zwarte Piet. Unlike The Hague, which still allowed blackface in November 2019, Amsterdam had switched to black smudges to represent the soot of a chimney. Personally, I think the smudges make a lot more sense. Luckily the usual zaniness of the parade hadn’t changed.

As always, there were lots of colorful costumes and interesting methods of transport.