I am a Latvian and today is quite a special day back home. To start I have to say that Latvians celebrate the Midsummer solstice or “Jāņi” like no other nation that I know. It’s a magical night from June 23 to 24, where pagan rituals take place, people leave the grayness of the city to go to the countryside and have fun with their friends and family and drink beer.

But that’s not the tradition I felt nostalgic about today.

See, there is another interesting tradition called the National Singing and Dancing Festival that takes place every 4 years (just like The Olympic Games) and it is extremely important for every Latvian.

Some say that Latvians are loners, quite anti-social and prefer to be left alone. And it is true. But once every four years, singers and folk dancers put that aside and come together to create something magical.

I have had the pure pleasure and honor to be a part of this whole process twice, and I can say, it is not easy for the singers, even harder for the dancers. But the first time you experience the whole process is the time you are going to remember because it is like nothing else you have ever done before.

Firstly, you have to practice for about 2 years (that is about the time when the songs for the festival have been selected) and participate in additional choir competitions, because not everyone is actually able to go to the main event.

If you are selected as being good enough, a week before the main event you go to the capital city to start practicing. I have to say, it is hard to control more than 10 000 singers on the same stage. The repetitions are gruesome, you are packed together with people you do not know under direct sunlight for 6-10 hours per day. It is a miracle you still can talk at the end of the day.

You are constantly hot, getting sunburn and made to sing the same song over and over again even though you can swear that the first time was good enough and the conductor is just deaf. But never mind all that because you just keep going until he says it is OK for now, we will try again tomorrow.

By the end of the week you are tired, because you are sleeping in a school on a blow-up mattress (or if you are young you do not sleep at all because you party all the time) and voiceless, because your vocal chords are not prepared for this.

But then the final concert arrives. In the morning there is a general repetition with an audience where last tweaks are being made. Then you have a couple of hours to rest and the actual performance starts.

And I forgot to mention, that you have to wear a full national outfit during both concerts. It is made of pure wool. Ten thousand people are wearing wool while standing on the same stage (you see where I am going with this?)

So it seems like a nuisance and terrible experience that no one in their right mind would go through. But there is a catch.

There is no feeling like that in the world.

By being part of the whole festival you connect with Latvian culture like never before. That is the proudest moment of your life — to realize you are singing songs that have been sung before you were even born, folk songs from hundreds of years ago with all ten thousand voices sounding like one.

And then there are some songs that the audience is singing with you, because they are known as unofficial anthems for the country. And those who listen live (more than 20 000 people) are standing up, demanding you to sing it once more, as it is SO IMPORTANT. (“Saule, Pērkons, Daugava” — a song that should be the national anthem (and is unofficially))

That is the moment when you feel as Latvian as it gets. Even more — you are proud of being a Latvian. Sad to say, but it is not an every day feeling.

What do you think happens after the show is over? It goes on — everyone keeps singing,dancing and partying until the morning light. Because then it does not matter if you were sitting in the audience or standing on the stage; the songs bring people together.

So one would think that it is the same feeling every time you are participating, every time you step on a stage, sing the beautiful songs and see the audience cheering.

No.

For some reason the second time is annoying rather than pleasant. In my personal opinion it is by virtue of the conductors. They are making a spectacle in order to show off, including songs that nobody knows or likes and making the concert too long (the first one in 2008 was about fours hours, in 2013 it was more than 6(!!!) hours).

The first time I participated in 2008 was so prodigious, that I still remember all the emotions and even the repertoire like it was yesterday. And even though I was disappointing last year, I would go and do it again and again and again. Simply because I am a Latvian and it is something special for me.

And I know it is something special for the world as well, as this festival has been included in the UNESCO World Culture Heritage list.

So even tough Latvia is a place you probably have not heard of, or if you have then it is because of the beautiful girls and cheap booze, there is a bit more to us than meets the eye.