Santas head to school before Christmas sets in!

Who says it’s easy to be a big, burly Santa and just say ‘Ho, ho, ho!’ Apparently, there’s a lot of prep and training that goes into it. The white-bearded man with fur-cuffed red trousers — who’s said to ride his sleigh on the night before X’mas and deliver presents everywhere — is a much-loved character. And to make sure that Santa does what he does best, there’s actually a school that provides training for him. Recently, a bunch of Santa aspirants headed to the Michigan in the US, for an intensive study on what it takes to portray

Jolly Old Saint Nicholas

. It was a sea of white beards and round bellies as the Santas gathered together, exchanged laughs and chatter and finally, boarded a train, to take them to the school.
What they will learn

Santas in a toy-making class (pic courtesy: Instagram)

Santas in a toy-making class (pic courtesy: Instagram)
There’s much to do at the

CWH Santa Claus School

, Midland, Michigan. It sees hundreds participate in the three-day course which teaches them how to improve their presentation of the bearded man. The subjects are also as fun as it gets. The students first take in a little history about Santa Claus, learn about proper dress and make-up, how to apply a wig and beard and how to say, ‘Ho Ho Ho!’. They are taught nuances of Santa sign language, making toys and yes, a few tricks of the trade too!

Indulging in some hot coffee during a break
The students also get to ride a sleigh and finally, the Santas will have a huge graduation banquet. What is interesting, is the networking here is in the way of meeting a bunch of Mr and Mrs Claus from around the world. Tom Valent, dean of the school was quoted as saying, “We teach a little bit about the history of Santa, so they understand who they are and what it is that we are portraying.” Looks like the year-end

festivity

has already begun!


DID YOU KNOW?

-

Santa Claus

is a legendary figure, also known by names like Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, Father Christmas, or just Santa.
- He is portrayed as having his home at the

North Pole

.
- There is also a village in

Rovaniemi

,

Finland

, where one can visit Santa in his workshop and watch him building toys with his little elves.