Belgian post flooded with letters for Saint Nicolas

Children in Belgium this year are sending letters to Saint Nicolas en masse, reports the Belgian postal service Bpost. In preparation for the 6 December Feast Day, kids are sending in their drawings, defunct dummies and requests for toys. Bpost reports already 40% more letters addressed to the traditional gift-bearer than at the same time last year.

"That could be because we have for the first time introduced special 'Saint mailboxes'," says Bpost spokesperson Barbara Van Speybroeck in De Morgen. "We decorated some 2,200 red mailboxes with the Saint's mitre and beard to remind parents and their children to send him a letter."

More than 30 people work at the temporary 'Saint department' of Bpost, which handles more than 10,000 letters daily in the weeks leading up to the big gift-giving holiday.

Bpost expects to receive an estimated 300,000 letters this year for the Saint. The address is Saint Nicolas, Spain Street 1, 0612 Heaven. If the child's address is provided, Bpost makes every effort to send a reply.