圣尼古拉斯日, 瑞士韦尔比耶 Saint Nicholas Day in Verbier, Switzerland (© Denis Balibouse/Reuters)

圣尼古拉斯日, 瑞士韦尔比耶 Saint Nicholas Day in Verbier, Switzerland (© Denis Balibouse/Reuters)

圣诞滑雪 Santa slalom

瑞士韦尔比耶圣尼古拉斯日

我们习惯了圣诞老人从烟囱里滑下来，但谁知道他会滑雪呢？每年都有数千名圣诞老人在瑞士韦尔比耶举行一场令人惊叹的下坡滑雪表演，拉开滑雪季的序幕。为什么是服装？每年的12月5日，他们都会在这里庆祝圣尼古拉斯节。

圣尼古拉斯在历史上鲜为人知，但他被认为是在罗马帝国统治下长大的，在现在土耳其南部的一个富裕的希腊家庭。当他的父母去世时，他用自己的遗产帮助那些需要帮助的人、病人和受苦的人，甚至时不时地把礼物扔到陌生人打开的窗户（而不是烟囱）里。尼古拉斯以主教的身份加入了早期的基督教神职人员，将毕生精力奉献给慷慨地服务他人。据说他特别爱和帮助孩子们，这当然是圣诞老人传说的根源。

Saint Nicholas Day in Verbier, Switzerland

We're used to Santa Claus sliding down chimneys, but who knew he could ski? Thousands of Santa Clauses make a stunning downhill display to open the ski season in Verbier, Switzerland, each year. Why the costumes? Their annual descent also celebrates the feast day of Saint Nicholas, observed here each December 5.

Little is known historically of Saint Nicholas, but he's thought to have grown up under the Roman Empire, in a wealthy Greek family in what's now southern Turkey. When his parents died, he used his inheritance to help those in need, the sick, and the suffering—even tossing gifts through strangers' open windows (not chimneys) now and then. Nicholas   joined the early Christian clergy as a bishop, dedicating his life to serving others generously. It's said he loved and helped children especially, and that, of course, is at the root of the legend of Santa Claus.