Espoo

Espoo is a city in Finland, located west of the capital Helsinki in southern Uusimaa, with a population of approximately 326,000, making it the second most populous municipality in the country. Espoo is part of the Helsinki Metropolitan Area, which has approximately 1.6 million inhabitants, lies on the northern shore of the Gulf of Finland, borders Helsinki, Vantaa, Kirkkonummi, Vihti and Nurmijarvi, and includes the enclave of Kauniainen. It covers an area of 528 square kilometers and is a bilingual municipality, with a population that is 68 percent Finnish speaking, 6 percent Swedish speaking and 26 percent speakers of other languages, well above the national average.