Espoo

In the 15th century there lived Swedish speakers in the area 
of Helsinki. On 12/6/1550 the Swedish King Gustav Vaasa ordered to build 
a city as a new trading post in Southern Finland and a competitor to Tallinn.
But in 1561 Sweden took control over northern Estonia and Tallinn, so the value of the city decreased, becoming a vacation place for military ships and soldiers.
In the middle of the 18th century, Helsinki remained a small town.
A huge influence in development of the city was in 1703 with the founding of St.Peterburg. 1700 - 1721 there was The Northern War, which also influenced Helsinki.
1710 the settlement was plagued by poverty.The city of Espoo is located in Southern Finland on the coast of the Gulf of Finland.
It is the second largest city of Finland with a population of approximately 238 000. 87% of the population of the city speaks Finnish and 9% speak Swedish. 78% of the population 
belong to the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland.
Espoo encompasses 582 km², 312km² being land. The rest are forests and water.

History

The first inhabitants in the area arrived about 9 000 years ago. A permanent Settlement was established during the 12th and 13th centuries.
 
The King´s Road was built in 1200, which passes through settlement.
The name Espoo was first mentioned in 1431. But it was based in 1458.
The oldest parts of the stone church in Espoo were completed in 1480
and it is thus the oldest preserved building in the city. The administrative 
centre has grown around the church.
In 1920 Espoo was a rural municipality of about 9 000 inhabitants.
But it started to grow rapidly in 1950. Due to its proximity, Espoo
soon became popular amongst people living in the other regions 
in 1963. Espoo received its town charter in 1972. In 2008 Espoo 
celebrates its 550 anniversary.

Sights

 1. University of Technology, which is designed by the architect Alvar Aalto, and The Technical Research Institute
 2. Horse racing
 3. Church, that was built in the 15th century - the oldest building in Espoo
 4. National Park
 5. Aurora Karazmina´s estate, was built in the 18th century
 6. Aksel Gallen - Kallela Museum
 7. Museum of Modern Art of Finland
 8. Museum of Clock
 9. Espoo City Museum
 10. Finnish Toy Museum
 11. The biggest Water Park "Serena" 
 12. The Central Park of Espoo
 13. Numerous islands for holidays