Colors of Ventspils - traditions, festivals, mentality and lifestyle

The culture of local people is very interesting and authentic. Besides the traditional national emblem and anthem, they have several original national symbols. For example, white wagtail became the national bird in 1960. The tiny bird spends only half a year in the city, leaving for winter. Local people also have the national flower, chamomile. The flower has become an essential symbol of various celebrations. Oak and linden are popular trees in the region and are widely used in the local medicine.

Jani Day or solstice is, without a doubt, one of the most interesting and unusual national celebrations. This holiday appeared approximately during the early medieval years when local people felt obliged to thank Jani, the fertility god, for a good harvest. With time, the holiday lost its sacral meaning and most rituals were forgotten, but local people still follow some of those ancient traditions.

For example, many prefer to go to the countryside on the holiday day in order to be closer to nature. They admire the beautiful landscapes and gather herbs. It is believed that all plants have special healing properties on this day. People make circlets from oak and linden leaves and take them home. These self-made amulets are believed to protect houses. In accordance with another tradition, locals make big fires, this way greeting the powerful sun. Copyright www.orangesmile.com

All national celebrations, round dancing, and solemn processions happen around these large fires. Dancing moves are also symbolic – their purpose is to ask the god to bless people. This holiday traditionally attracts numerous locals and guests of the city who are very interested in participating in the ritual. Young people have their own entertainments. In order to test their love, couples try to jump over the festive fire while holding their hands. If young people manage to jump without separating their hands that means their relationship will be long and no troubles or obstacles can part them.

In the evening, girls go down the river in order to cut adrift the flower circlets they made. If the circlet doesn’t sink and moves slowly on the water surface, the girl who made it will soon become a wife. However, the most interesting part of the holiday starts closer to midnight. Everyone goes deeper to the forest in order to find the main symbol of happiness – the blooming fern. It is believed that if one manages to find the fern on the shortest night of the year, he or she will be lucky in everything.

Ventspils City Festival is a two day long event that remains one of the most popular and beloved celebrations among both locals and travelers. The holiday schedule is always packed with interesting activities that include the traditional Baltic Flower Carpet Festival and a glorious parade. During the City Festival, numerous squares in the central part of Ventspils become an open-air venue for performances of different music bands and street actors. As a rule, the majority of festive activities take place on Dzirnavu Square and the Osta Street Promenade. Some of the activities take place in the Renka Garden where everyone is welcome to attend a real open-air party. The event ends with magnificent fireworks that color the night sky with all colors of the rainbow.

Everyone interested in art has one more interesting event to attend. GGFEST of the Ghetto Games Festival is a popular festival focused on youth culture and action sports. The event usually takes place in the end of July and traditionally attracts many young people from Latvia and neighbor countries. GGFEST was established almost a decade ago, but that doesn’t prevent the festival from attracting professional street artists and sportsmen from all over the world. The number of participants grows every year – in 2017, the festival attracted more than 1500 participants in 17 different sports. There are athletes not only from Europe but also from the USA, Canada, and Australia. Several thousand spectators came to the event to cheer the athletes. Some of the sports activities at GGFEST include street basketball and football, skateboarding, wakeboarding, streetbike freestyle, BMX, street dancing, and even the “Baltic Open” Street Workout Championship.