KRAMPUS & ST NIKOLAUS 

'Krampus' and 'St. Nikolaus' play an ancient game of 'good cop bad cop'

 with the 'Krampus' aiming to punish your wrongdoings and 'St. Nikolaus'

 making amends the day after. Actually, traditions vary all over Austria:

you might find both of them making house visits on the 6th of December,

you might find the local youth dressing up as gangs of 'Krampusse' and

haunting the streets a day before St. Nikolaus visits the families.

Here's what they look like: St. Nikolaus is clad in white with an shock of white

hair and an enormous beard. He carries a bountiful bag filled with presents.

If you see him recite a poem to get presents. A 'Krampus' hides beneath a

special suit of fur and a (carved) mask or painted face. He often carries

cowbells and always a birch. If you see him run!