De muzikale reis van Sinterklaas

Look, there comes the steamboat
From Spain once again!
It brings us Saint Nicholas;
I can already see him standing there.

How his little horse prances
Up and down the deck,
How the pennants flutter
Back and forth.

His helper is smiling
And calls out to us:
‘Good children get treats,
Naughty children get the birch rod!’

Oh, dear Saint Nicholas,
Please visit me too,
And do not ride quietly
Past our little house!

Here he comes, here he comes,
Kind, dear Saint Nicholas.
My best friend, your best friend,
The friend of every child.

My little heart is beating,
My little heart beats with joy.
What will he bring you, what will he bring me,
What will he bring you and me?

Here he comes, here he comes,
Kind, dear Saint Nicholas.
My best friend, your best friend,
The friend of every child.

It is Sinterklaas’s birthday;
I am putting my shoe out ready.
I hope he will fill it
With… oh, if only I knew!

Here I put some water,
There, some hay for the horse,
Because that faithful animal
Truly deserves it.

Softly go the little horse’s hooves,
Clip-clop, clip-clop, clip-clop, clop.
It is Sinterklaas’s horse,
Step by step, step by step.

The little white horse carries
Sinterklaas across the roof with ease.
The little white horse carries
Sinterklaas across the roof with ease.

The little horse can find its way,
Clip-clop, clip-clop, clip-clop, clop.
In the bright moonlight,
Step by step, step by step.

The little horse is not tired yet,
But I must go to bed.
The little horse is not tired yet,
But I must go to bed.

Sinterklaas, you little rascal,
Put something in my little shoe,
Put something in my little boot,
Thank you, dear Sinterklaas!

Listen, the wind is blowing through the trees;
Even here inside the house, the wind blows.
Will kind Saint Nicholas come,
Now that I find the weather so dreadful,
Now that I find the weather so dreadful?

Yes, he rides through dark nights
On his little horse, oh so fast.
If he knew how eagerly we are waiting,
He would surely come,
He would surely come.

Look, the moon is shining through the trees;
Friends, quieten your noisy play.
The wonderful evening has arrived,
The evening of Sinterklaas!

Our hearts beat with anticipation:
Who will get the cake, and who the birch rod?
Our hearts beat with anticipation:
Who will get the cake, and who the birch rod?

Listen, children, who is knocking?
Listen, children, who is knocking?
Who is tapping softly on the window?
It must be a stranger,
Someone who has lost their way;
I will quickly ask their name.

Saint Nicholas, Saint Nicholas,
Come and visit us tonight,
And scatter some treats
In one corner or another.

Naughty children, he says,
Get a scolding, he says,
Or a little bag of salt, he says.
For you know, he says,
That Saint Nicholas, he says,
Does not like naughty children at all.

Saint Nicholas, Saint Nicholas,
Come and visit us tonight,
And scatter some treats
In one corner or another.

Oh, come and have a look
At what I have found in my little shoe.
All of it given to me
By dear Saint Nicholas!

A doll with plaits in her hair,
A sweet little dress, ready to wear,
Three bouncing balls in a net,
A letter-shaped almond pastry.

Oh, come and have a look
At what I have found in my little shoe.
All of it given to me
By dear Saint Nicholas!

A humming top with a whip,
A box of building blocks for me too,
And skates and a new cap,
A letter-shaped almond pastry.

Oh, come and have a look
At what I have found in my little shoe.
All of it given to me
By dear Saint Nicholas!

Goodbye, dear Sinterklaas,
Bye, bye, bye, bye, dear Piet.
Goodbye, dear Sinterklaas,
Bye, bye, listen to our farewell song.