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General => Report & Review => Topic started by: Gis on September 14, 2011, 00:10:10

Title: 5206 Sinterklaas Steamboat
Post by: Gis on September 14, 2011, 00:10:10
Last year I made a photo story about Sinterklaas (which you can read all about here. (http://www.playmofriends.com/forum/index.php?topic=6216)), after the release of 4893 (http://www.playmobil.nl/on/demandware.store/Sites-NL-Site/nl_NL/Product-Show?pid=4893&cgid=Weihnachten), which I will hopefully add to the story later this year. Playmobil went a step further this year and have released a steamboat as well. If you haven’t seen last year story:  He uses the Steamboat to travel from Spain to The Netherlands and takes all his presents with him on the various boats.

So, as promised earlier today,  I decided to review this set as I of course bought it as soon as it hit the shelves.

First a picture of the box front.

(http://i1033.photobucket.com/albums/a415/gorraxpb/reviews/5206/IMG_4683.jpg)

The logo on the top right corner actually mentions it is nominated for the toy of the year award this year in The Netherlands. Other than that it is a bit weird that this is shot against a night background as usually the shots of him in the boat are at daytime. He only distributes his presents at night time. It shows the contents very decently.

The next picture shows how it comes out of the box. Once again no extra protection around the loose items, luckily nothing got scratches or something.

(http://i1033.photobucket.com/albums/a415/gorraxpb/reviews/5206/IMG_4684.jpg)

Next we have the content of the first bag.

(http://i1033.photobucket.com/albums/a415/gorraxpb/reviews/5206/IMG_4685.jpg)

It’s a shame they use the exact same figures for the steamboat as they do for the 4893 set. There are so many colour combinations that would work for the “Zwarte Pieten” clothes wise it would have been nice if this would have featured a different one and preferably more than one. Oh well, we’ll have to customize some more I guess.

Next up we add the second bag

(http://i1033.photobucket.com/albums/a415/gorraxpb/reviews/5206/IMG_4686.jpg)

The horse is now complete and there are some toys, which is of course essential as it is about giving gifts to the kids.

Next bag please

(http://i1033.photobucket.com/albums/a415/gorraxpb/reviews/5206/IMG_4687.jpg)

Some more toys and some stuff for the boat…NEXT!

(http://i1033.photobucket.com/albums/a415/gorraxpb/reviews/5206/IMG_4689.jpg)

Now we are talking those little wheels finally have a car they belong too and we can see that this set has a decent collection of toys. Also the last pieces of the boat have finally come out of their bag.

The next picture shows the assembled cabin.

(http://i1033.photobucket.com/albums/a415/gorraxpb/reviews/5206/IMG_4690.jpg)

As a Dutchman I like the colour orange but I don’t fully understand why they chose it as a colour for the cabin. Oh well I am not going to paint it, I don’t mind it that much….but still!
And finally the fully assembled boat with our protagonists on board.

(http://i1033.photobucket.com/albums/a415/gorraxpb/reviews/5206/IMG_4691.jpg)

The seagull is really an odd addition I think, I would really rather have had slightly less toys and not the seagull for another “Zwarte Piet”

Here is a front view angle

(http://i1033.photobucket.com/albums/a415/gorraxpb/reviews/5206/IMG_4692.jpg)

So there you have it. I really like the set a lot, and I am sure it will be a hit with many kids from Belgium and The Netherlands. As this is an exclusive for our markets and we all hate internet scalpers I thought we set up a similar thing that we have currently going on with Durer!

So if you are interested in this and are willing to pay 20 Euro’s plus shipping them please add your name to the list in the post on the trading board http://www.playmofriends.com/forum/index.php?topic=9115.0 (http://www.playmofriends.com/forum/index.php?topic=9115.0).




Title: Re: 5206 Sinterklaas Steamboat
Post by: cachalote on September 14, 2011, 00:22:17
:love: the boat looks great gis.
 :) thank you for your reiview.
although i still can't believe how such a political-incorrect duo like the white santa vs. zwarte pieten is so well accepted in the netherlands i find both klickies lovely.
Title: Re: 5206 Sinterklaas Steamboat
Post by: bonniebeth on September 14, 2011, 01:07:54
I believe he is black because he is covered in soot, right?

Great review, Gis! I really like the boat. And a nice amount of toys in there... I love PM toys!
Title: Re: 5206 Sinterklaas Steamboat
Post by: PrimusPilus on September 14, 2011, 02:47:05
Nice review Gis! (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v321/luwerner/gif/thumbs-up.gif)
I don't think I got the story behind the set; this would be the "Dutch Santa Claus"? He uses a boat instead of a sled? And why is the boat named "Madrid"?
Title: Re: 5206 Sinterklaas Steamboat
Post by: stadswache on September 14, 2011, 04:00:50
Sinterklaas
 
Sinterklaas is an elderly, stately and serious man with white hair and a long, full beard. He wears a long red cape or chasuble over a traditional white bishop's alb and sometimes red stola, dons a red mitre, and holds a gold-coloured crosier, a long ceremonial shepherd's staff with a fancy curled top. He carries a big book that tells whether each individual child has been good or naughty in the past year. He traditionally rides a white gray horse.
 
 Zwarte Piet
 

 
A Zwarte Piet (Black Pete, plural Zwarte Pieten) is a servant of Sinterklaas, usually an adolescent in blackface with black curly hair, dressed up like a 17-th century page in a colourful dress, often with a lace collar, and donning a feathered cap.
 
Sinterklaas and his Black Pete usually carry a bag which contains candy for nice children and a roe, a chimney sweep's broom made of willow branches, used to spank naughty children. Some of the older Sinterklaas songs make mention of naughty children being put in the bag and being taken back to Spain. The Zwarte Pieten toss candy around, a tradition supposedly originating in Sint Nicolaas' story of saving three young girls from prostitution by tossing golden coins through their window at night to pay their father's debts.
 
There are various explanations of the origins of the helpers. The oldest explanation is that the helpers symbolize the two ravens Hugin and Munin who informed Odin on what was going on. In later stories the helper depicts the defeated devil. The devil is defeated by either Odin or his helper Nörwi, the black father of the night. Nörwi is usually depicted with the same staff of birch (Dutch: "roe") as Zwarte Piet.
 
Another, more modern story is that Saint Nicolas liberated an Ethiopian slave boy called 'Piter' (from Saint Peter) from a Myra market, and the boy was so grateful he decided to stay with Saint Nicolas as a helper. With the influx of immigrants to the Netherlands starting in the late 1950s, this story is felt by some to be racist Today, Zwarte Pieten have become modern servants, who have black faces because they climb down sooty chimneys. They hold chimney cleaning tools (cloth bag and staff of birch)
 
The Zwarte Pieten have roughly the same relationship to the Dutch Saint Nicolas that the elves have to America's Santa Claus. According to tradition, the saint has a Piet for every function: there are navigation Pieten ("wegwijspiet") to navigate the steamboat from Spain to Holland, and acrobatic Pieten to climb roofs and stuff presents down the chimney, or to climb down the chimneys themselves. Over the years many stories have been added. In many cases the Pieten are quite bad at their job, for instance the navigation Piet might point in the wrong direction. This provides some comedy in the annual parade of Saint Nicolas coming to the Netherlands, and can also be used to laud the progress of children at school by having the Piet give the wrong answer to, for example, a simple question like "what is 2+2?", so that the child can give the right answer.
 
Arrival and origin
 




Sinterklaas arrives




Sinterklaas arrives in Rumst
Sinterklaas traditionally arrives in the Netherlands each year in mid-November (usually on a Saturday) by steamboat from Spain. Some suggest that gifts associated with the holy man, the mandarin oranges, led to the misconception that he must have been from Spain. This theory is backed by a Dutch poem documented in 1810 in New York and provided with an English translation:
 
Dutch
 Sinterklaas, goed heilig man!
 Trek uwe beste tabberd an,
 Reis daar mee naar Amsterdam,
 Van Amsterdam naar Spanje,
 Daar Appelen van Oranje,
 Daar Appelen van granaten,
 Die rollen door de straten.
 
English
 Saint Nicholas, good holy man!
 Put on the Tabard, best you can,
 Go, therewith, to Amsterdam,
 From Amsterdam to Spain,
 Where apples bright of Orange,
 And likewise those granate surnam'd,
 Roll through the streets, all free unclaim'd [...]
 [8][9]
 
The text presented here comes from a pamphlet that John Pintard released in New York in 1810. It is the earliest source mentioning Spain in connection to Sinterklaas. Pintard wanted St. Nicholas to become patron saint of New York and hoped to establish a Sinterklaas tradition. Apparently he got help from the Dutch community in New York, who provided him with the original Dutch Sinterklaas poem. Strictly speaking, the poem does not state that Sinterklaas comes from Spain, but that he needs to go to Spain to pick up the oranges and pomegranates. So the link between Sinterklaas and Spain goes through the oranges, a much appreciated treat in the 19th century. Later the connection with the oranges got lost, and Spain became his home.
 
At his arrival Sinterklaas parades through the streets on his gray horse Amerigo, welcomed by cheering and singing children.[10] This event is broadcast live on national television in the Netherlands and Belgium. His Zwarte Piet assistants throw candy and small, round, gingerbread-like cookies, either "kruidnoten" or "pepernoten," into the crowd. The children welcome him by singing traditional Sinterklaas songs. Sinterklaas visits schools, hospitals and shopping centers. After this arrival, all towns with a dock usually celebrate their own "intocht van Sinterklaas" (arrival of Sinterklaas). Local arrivals usually take place later on the same Saturday of the national arrival, the next Sunday (the day after he arrives in the Netherlands or Belgium), or one weekend after the national arrival. In places a boat cannot reach, Sinterklaas arrives by train, horse, or even carriage or fire truck.
Title: Re: 5206 Sinterklaas Steamboat
Post by: Wolf Knight on September 14, 2011, 05:58:01
Thank you for the pics Gis!!!

Thank you for the background info stabwache!!
Title: Re: 5206 Sinterklaas Steamboat
Post by: Gis on September 14, 2011, 08:27:37
Nice review Gis! (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v321/luwerner/gif/thumbs-up.gif)
I don't think I got the story behind the set; this would be the "Dutch Santa Claus"? He uses a boat instead of a sled? And why is the boat named "Madrid"?

Hi PP, stadwache already did a real good job explaining lots of things and I did a photo story last year which has lots of pictures (including me in the newspaper) both from RL as well as how it looks Playmobilized.

The boat is not called Madrid but is from Madrid. The actual name should be "Pakjesboot 12" but this would make it very much not useable for anything but Sinterklaas. I think they choose Madrid because it does fit and it is more easily incorperated outside of Sinterklaas.
Title: Re: 5206 Sinterklaas Steamboat
Post by: tahra on September 14, 2011, 08:41:01
Thank you for the review ;)
Title: Re: 5206 Sinterklaas Steamboat
Post by: PrimusPilus on September 14, 2011, 13:58:04
Cool, thanks for the explanation stadwache! (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v321/luwerner/gif/thumbs-up.gif)
Well, with a colorful history like that behind the set, I see myself obliged to get one :love:.
Title: Re: 5206 Sinterklaas Steamboat
Post by: toyologist on September 14, 2011, 17:52:46
Cool, thanks for the explanation stadwache! (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v321/luwerner/gif/thumbs-up.gif)
Well, with a colorful history like that behind the set, I see myself obliged to get one :love:.

Me too!
Title: Re: 5206 Sinterklaas Steamboat
Post by: Jay on September 14, 2011, 19:12:55
For those who don't know much about Black Peter, and I count myself as one, take a look at Wikipedia for lots of information about him.
Title: Re: 5206 Sinterklaas Steamboat
Post by: Lindama on September 15, 2011, 08:40:38
Fab review and great background info! I love to hear about customs from other countries.
Title: Re: 5206 Sinterklaas Steamboat
Post by: Elric on September 15, 2011, 13:40:05
Thanks for the review. I would love to have the boat.
Title: Re: 5206 Sinterklaas Steamboat
Post by: Jay on September 16, 2011, 03:53:21
Great review, and a great story last year.