Winter is the coldest season of the year in Sweden as well as in the Northern hemisphere. At the winter solstice, the days are shortest and the nights are longest, with days lengthening as the season progresses after the solstice. Winter in Sweden is defined by meteorologists to be when the average temperature per day is constantly below 0°C. This usually corresponds to the months of December, January and February. An extremely cold winter is called vargavinter (wolfs’ winter). The last vargavinter in Sweden was the winter of 2009/2010. Many animals go into hibernation or lie dormant during the winter e.g. bears and hedgehogs. Migratory birds have flown to the tropical regions. Annual plants survive the winter as seeds. Winter activities – when there is snow and ice Popular winter activities in Sweden are ice hockey, bandy, skiing, skating and go sledding (se picture). You can go sledding in Slottsskogen and at Delsjön in Gothenburg. We have listed information about some winter activities below. Unfortunately most of the links are only in Swedish. (try google translate to get the information in your language) Snowball-fighting, jigging and ice swimming Popular activities during winter are snowball-fighting, jigging (drill a hole through a frozen lake to catch fish) and ice swimming followed by a sauna. You can try this in Gothenburg, see www.askimsbastu.se Skating Public ice-skating on Heden in the city centre of Gothenburg. Fee: SEK 30. If you wish to borrow skates, it costs SEK 30. More information in Swedish e.g. opening hours at www.ispaheden.se Long distance skating In the Gothenburg surroundings, there are excellent opportunities to go long distance skating on natural ice. From December to March you can usually find great ice. Skating clubs provide information about which ice is best at the moment. (Membership is required, ~ 150 sek) The weather variations in western Sweden make it almost always possible to find good skating ice, even though it has snowed or been warm weather for a long time. Some of Gothenburg's skating clubs: GLSK, Göteborgs Långfärdsskridskoklubb, www.glsk.se Interested in cross-country skiing? There are skiing tracks in Skatås and Delsjön in Gothenburg. More information about the tracks and how to get there at Skatås utomhusaktiviteter - Skatås gym & motionscentrum - Göteborgs Stad You have to bring your own skies. You can also rent skies at some shops, www.akessportservice.se or www.udenssport.se/sv More information about the tracks and how to get there at the Swedish website www.skidspar.se and at www.youtube.com/skidspar Downhill skiing A skiing resort fairly close to Gothenburg is Isaberg. (100 km east of Gothenburg) There are 10 slopes and 8 lifts and a shop where you can hire skies and boots etc. More information at www.isaberg.com (information also in English) Bandy Bandy is a team winter sport played on ice, in which skaters use sticks to direct a ball into the opposing team's goal. If you want to see bandy live in top division, you can go to Heden in the centre of Gothenburg and see one of the matches. More information at http://gaisbandy.se Museums in Gothenburg Below are listed some of the museums. More information at www.goteborg.com The Göteborg Museum of Art houses collections from the 15th century to today. The museum has a Nordic emphasis but the collections also contain older Dutch and French art, including important works by Rembrandt, van Gogh, Monet and Picasso, to name a few. www.konstmuseum.goteborg.se The Göteborg City Museum displays cultural history from antiquity to the present. The Museum is located in the Swedish East India Company’s vast office and warehouse building, built during the mid-18th century. www.stadsmuseum.goteborg.se The Natural History Museum has collections from all over the world, and the oldest specimens date from the 18th century. The museum is most famous for its stuffed blue whale - the world’s only preserved blue whale - and a big beautiful African elephant. http://gnm.se The Maritime Museum and Aquarium Explore life under, above and by the water. The cultural history exhibitions include artefacts from the Swedish American Line, seaman reminiscences from life at sea and tales from the port city of Gothenburg. The temporary exhibitions raise and broaden public understanding of maritime culture. The museum’s aquarium is a place where the whole family can explore Nordic and tropical marine environments and their fascinating aquatic life. www.goteborg.se/wps/portal/sjofartsmuseet The Röhsska Museum of Design and Decorative Art The Röhsska Museum of Design and Decorative Arts has over 50 000 objects in its collections. The majority of the collection consists of old Swedish and European handicraft products, but also includes classical Greek and Roman artefacts, and material from Japan and China is well represented. www.designmuseum.se The Museum of World Culture The Museum of World Culture is Gothenburg's most visited museum. A meeting place with exhibitions and programs on exciting and contemporary issues about the world we live in. www.varldskulturmuseet.se Universeum A science discovery centre situated at Korsvägen, next to Liseberg. On seven floors there are lots of adventures and ingenious facts - an exciting experience for the whole family. www.universeum.se Museums outside Gothenburg North of Gothenburg you will find two interesting museums, which you can reach with Västtrafik (buses and trains) The Nordic Watercolour Museum is one of the most exciting cultural projects in the Nordic countries. It serves as a Nordic centre for contemporary art, for research and training, with the emphasis laid on techniques of watercolour art. The museum is situated on the island Tjörn, 70 km north of Gothenburg. You will find more information and how to get there at www.akvarellmuseet.org/ Rock carvings in Tanumshede - on the Unesco´s list of World Heritages. The Vitlycke Museum features extensive information on the unique rock carvings in the area, some carved 3000 years ago. Since 1994 these carvings are included in the Unesco’s World Heritage List. It is situated about 30 km south of Strömstad in northern Bohuslän . You will find more information and how to get there at www.vitlyckemuseum.se Travel between cities in Sweden or abroad: You can take bus, train, boat or plane to travel. You will find timetables and information at: Public transport in West Sweden www.vasttrafik.se Buses: www.swebus.se www.nettbuss.se www.bus4you.se Trains www.sj.se Boats: www.aferry.se Aeroplanes: www.swedavia.se or www.flygresor.se Activities and events winter and spring 2014 Date Program Jan 28, 2014 Gothenburg City Museum - guided tour Accompanied by an experienced guide, we will visit the museum and learn more about the history of Gothenburg. Time: 3:30 pm–5 pm. Feb 3 International Café at Ågrenska villan, 5 pm–7 pm An informal meeting place for international researchers, international staff, PhD students, their families and hosts. Feb 20 International Evening Visiting researchers and international staff at the University of Gothenburg are invited to an informal get-together at Ågrenska villan. A buffet will be served. March 3 International Café at Ågrenska villan, 5 pm–7 pm An informal meeting place for international researchers, international staff, PhD students, their families and hosts. March/April Excursion to the Sven Lovén Centre for Marine Sciences at Tjärnö A whole day excursion along the west coast of Sweden to Strömstad. Staff from the Lovén Centre will inform us about the marine studies. Coffee and lunch is included. Departure at 8 am and back again at 5 pm. April 7 International Café at Ågrenska villan, 5 pm–7 pm An informal meeting place for international researchers, international staff, PhD students, their families and hosts. May 5 International Café at Ågrenska villan, 5 pm–7 pm An informal meeting place for international researchers, international staff, PhD students, their families and hosts. May 7–11 International Science Festival in Gothenburg The International Science Festival in Gothenburg is one of Europe’s leading popular science events and the only one of its kind in Sweden May 8 Get-together for international researchers Every year a welcome get-together for international researchers takes place during the International Science Festival in Gothenburg More details and how to register for the events, see the Calendar www.gu.se/guestservices We hope you will enjoy your stay in Gothenburg! Guest Services _________________________________________________________________________________ University of Gothenburg, Guest Services 2014-01-14 Medicinaregatan 20 A, PO Box 100, SE 405 30 Göteborg, Sweden +46 31 786 2116 , [email protected] www.gu.se/guestservices .