Saint Nicholas Day blessed at church or at home. The host wafts incense over the table, then lifts and breaks the bread. Bulgarians also observe 6 December as the name day for those with the names Nikola, Nikolay, Kolyo, Nikolina, Neno, Nenka, Nikoleta and Nina. In the Netherlands the primary occasion for gift-giving is 5 December, when his feast day is celebrated. In Belgium they celebrate Sinterklaas on the morning of the 6 December. In the days leading up to 5 or 6 December (starting when Saint Nicholas has arrived by steamboat around mid-November), young children put their shoes in front of the
St. Nicholas Church, Taganrog Imperial Army during Russo-Turkish War (1768–1774). The bell features depictions of patron saints of sailors: Saint Nicholas and Saint Phocas and the following phrase can still be read today in , which literary means "This bell was cast in the Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker Church in Taganrog from the trophy Turkish artillery...weight...pounds. Year 1778, month of August, on the date of ...". The bell was cast before the foundation of Sevastopol for the Saint Nicholas church in Taganrog, which was the Russian Navy's military base at that time. Until 1803 the St.Nicholas church was subordinated to the Navy ministry. After