Pretoria - Sisters Kakhiso Tsolo and Tshepang Nkoloko spent Monday morning at the SA Post Office in Centurion sorting some of the 500 letters written by their peers and addressed to Santa Claus at the North Pole.
Post Office spokesperson Johan Kruger said there was a letter from a girl who listed 10 items for Santa to choose from.
Kruger said the items asked for in the letters ranged from a blue Mickey Mouse waterproof watch to a comb.
“Another youngster forgot to write his or her name, but asked for a Frozen book, Thomas Train and Elsa soft toy.”
Although some children had written down all they wished for, Kruger said others preferred to illustrate what they wanted with drawings.
He said they put photos of their preferred gifts on the letters.
“Almost all the letters are beautifully decorated with drawings, glitter and stickers. Most children do not use postage stamps, but some think of drawing a picture of a stamp on their letters,” said Kruger.
All the letters were taken to the Post Office sorting centre before they could ultimately “reach” Santa.
Kruger urged parents to encourage their children to write to Santa as this year’s number of letters had slightly decreased compared with previous years.
The ideas raised by the children would be referred to big corporates to give them an idea of what toys and games children look forward to receiving in future.
Keneilwe Motlhabane, mother of a 2-year-old daughter, said she was going all out on a shopping spree to spoil her little one.
“She is such a lover of things. I have been looking forward to this time knowing exactly what I'm going to get for her.
“My child likes taking care of herself and being hands-on, so I think a doll with a game-house and tea sets will do the trick to keep her busy,” she said.
Motlhabane said she was willing to spend R1500 on her daughter before thinking about what to buy for her husband.
Katlego Mahlangu said she was going to spend R3500 on gifts for her three nephews. They liked cars and one was obsessed with the new VW Golf 7, she said. “I’m definitely getting him a remote-controlled Golf.”
Kgomotso Mokgatle said her granddaughter loved moving things – anything that had wheels. Mokgatle was therefore looking to buy her a car big enough for her to ride in and had compared prices. She was hoping to get it for less than R3000.
Millicent Tshabalala and her husband plan to buy their 18-year-old son an iPhone 7 and a PlayStation 3 for his brother, aged 7.
For those still clueless about what to buy, the most visited aisles at the shops are of small and major appliances, indoor and outdoor sports, toys and gaming hardware and accessories.
This is according to one of the large chain stores in the country.
The top five toys in stores this festive season have been Tevo Wazzoka 2.0, Zippi Kinetic Sand, Big Jim Black Scooter, Zippi Flubbaloon and Zippi Bungee Ball.
The store also advised parents buying presents for teenagers – considered the worst people to shop for this Christmas – to consider something with a “cool” factor.
And judging by online shopping sales and promotions, the gifts with a cool factor include gadgets such as smartphones, Bluetooth earphones, tablets and smart watches.
For the little ones, the in-thing is steer-around cars and remote-controlled police cars, which come with a sound and light combination.