Västerbotten has a rich and varied cultural life. There is always something going on and places to see all year long. No matter what your interests are you are certain to find something that is just right for you.

The scope of the arts is very broad and is represented throughout the county. There are nearly 100 libraries, at least one in each municipality. The Västerbotten County Theatre is located in Skellefteå and in Umeå you can find two independent drama companies, Ögonblicksteatern and Profilteatern. All of which are travelling companies that put on plays for both young and old though out the Västerbotten. Regarding music, the institute Västerbottensmusiken includes Norrlands Opera and the world's northernmost opera house, Umeå Symphony Orchestra and Bothnia Musik, which together represent a large portion of the musical offerings.

Every year there are popular festivals that attract both international artists and public--the jazz festival, chamber music and folk music. Summer festivals include music for youths in Skellefteå that attracts young music fans from all over Sweden and the baroque festival in Nordmaling. There is also an established film festival each year that maintains very high quality.

In Västerbotten we try to live up the UNESCO's motto for cultural heritage: "A Future for our Past." As the cultural guardians the county's museums aim to make our past interesting and stimulating for all ages. Umeå has the county Museum at Gammlia with its open-air museum, the Fishing and Maritime Museum, as well as the Swedish Ski Museum where you can see the world's oldest ski (5,200 years old). Skellefteå has its museum and the Farmers' Village, while Lycksele has Gammplatsen--open-air museum and the Museum of Forestry. The Umeå University runs the BildMuseet--a Museum of Images, Contemporary Art and Culture, which is also located in the Gammlia area.

The county has 37 cinemas with 50 auditoria. In 1999, more than 545,000 cinema tickets were sold in the county. Not only are the inhabitants filmgoers, but they frequently visit the numerous art galleries as well.

Other important events for the citizens of the county are some of the major sports events. Vindelälvsloppet, which is an annual relay race, involves ten-man teams that run 300 kilometres from the mountains to the coast over a four-day period. The annual rounder's festival that is held by Umeå University that has had over 10,000 competitors. The Åsele market is a popular festival with over 100,000 visitors and Stora NOLIA is one of Sweden's largest trade fairs.

Cultural heritage
Evidence from the past can be seen everywhere, making Västerbotten interesting for both inhabitants and visitors. Many of the major sites have Visitors' Centres, which make the areas even more accessible. There are Bronze Age burial mounds along the coast and five stone churches from the middle ages. Some of the unique church villages are still standing, which were used as overnight cottages for the parishers. Farming communities are found in river valleys and around lakes where the inhabitants take great care in preserving the traditional timber structures such as the Västerbotten farmhouse and the circular grain store. The old ironworks of Olofsfors, Hörnefors and Robertsfors remind us of the industrial era during the 18^th century. The mining town of Boliden has its own museum that reflects the importance of rich ore finds of the 1920s. Several old power stations, for example Klabböle and Finnfors have been preserved as museums for the history of hydroelectric power.

Västerbotten's mountain ranges are also rich in places of cultural interest dating from prehistoric times to the present. Mountain homesteads from the 19^th century with houses build of birch wood can still be seen in the valleys. Higher up we find the dwellings and corrals of the Sami people. The settlers in Kultsjödalen and the Sami people had a common church village in Fatmomakke, with both overnight church cottages and Sami huts.

The cuisine is, of course, an important part of culture. Much of the primary produce comes from nature and are traditional food products: elk and reindeer meat, salmon, whitefish, grouse, mushrooms and berries such as cloudberries and arctic raspberries. We also have the famous cheese Västerbotten Austin. There is a tasty way using this excellent cheese in ice cream.

• Västerbotten's Cheese Ice Cream
  
  100 g grated Västerbotten's Cheese
  3 egg yolks
  1 dl sugar
  1 tsp vanilla sugar
  3 dl whipped cream
  3 egg whites

Grate the cheese. Whisk the egg yolks, sugar and vanilla sugar into a puffy mixture. Whip the cream and egg whites separately, then mix everything together carefully. Freeze in a low, wide tray, 25 cm in diameter, 3-4 hours. The ice cream should be served 20 minutes after being taken from the freezer with cloudberries and arctic raspberries.

Updated: 07 maj 2003