Every design for Vaasa

Swedish-speaking Finland has its cultural capital in Vaasa. Finnish and Swedish are both official languages here, and with Swedish-speaking majorities in the surrounding municipalities, Swedish holds a strong place in daily life. It is also a city of students, with the University of Vaasa and several other colleges, and for a few months in the Civil War it was the seat of the Senate.

The city lies on Finland's west coast, on the Gulf of Bothnia, and the sea has always set its terms. The first town, soon named after the royal House of Vasa, grew up at what is now Old Vaasa, but after a great fire it was rebuilt closer to the water, because the land rising out of the sea had left the old harbour behind. The neighbouring municipality of Mustasaari, Korsholm in Swedish, encircles the city to this day.

Pohjanmaan museo, Kuntsin modernin taiteen museo and the Suomen Vapaudenpatsas are part of the town's shared memory, and the shores of Onkilahti and the paths of Koivupuisto are where many of its childhood summers were spent. On the map, they are all still there.