Pyynikki Circuit

The Pyynikki observation tower (Finnish: Pyynikin näkötorni) is a 26 meter observation tower in Pyynikki, Tampere, Finland. It was completed in 1929 by the design of the city architect Vilho Kolho, and built using local red granite. The tower stands 75 meters above the level of the adjacent lake Pyhäjärvi (152 meters above the sea level) on the ridge crest of the Pyynikki Esker.The top can be reached by a lift, but walking up the stairs offers various observation windows. The open top offers a clear view of the city of Tampere as well as lake Näsijärvi on the north and lake Pyhäjärvi in the south. Entrance to the park and cafe is free but climbing the tower costs 50 cents for children or 2 euros for adults. The Cafe has its own historic donut recipe which has remained unchanged for 80 years.

Pyynikki (Swedish: Pynike) is a district and a nature reserve in Tampere, Finland. It is located in the Pyynikinharju ridge, between the city center and the western district of Pispala. Pyynikinharju is the highest esker in the world, rising 85 meters above the level of lake Pyhäjärvi.Tampere Circuit was a motorsport race track which ran on public streets of Pyynikki. In 1962 and 1963, the Finnish motorcycle Grand Prix on Tampere Circuit was a race of the Road Racing World Championship.

The Pyynikki Esker (or the Pyynikki Ridge; Finnish: Pyynikinharju) is the tallest longitudinal esker in the world, located in Pyynikki, Tampere, Finland. The ridge rises to a height of 160 meters above sea level and 80 meters above the surface of Lake Pyhäjärvi. The Pyynikki Esker belongs to the ridge formation that extends from South Ostrobothnia to Salpausselkä. The ridge formation continues west of the Pyynikki Esker as a rocky ridge known as the Pispala Esker (Pispalanharju) and Tahmela. To the east, after the settlement of Tampere, the ridge becomes the Kalevankangas esker, where there has been a cemetery by same name for almost 150 years. In Kangasala, the ridge formation continues as the four ridges called Kirkkoharju, Kuohunharju, Keisarinharju and Vehoniemenharju. The Pyynikki Esker, like longitudinal ridges, is mainly gravel and sand. There are still some old European red pines growing in Pyynikki, whose roots are partly in the air, as the sandy ground rolls down towards Lake Pyhäjärvi over the years. Vegetation on gravel ridges has not only pines but also junipers that are protected. However, juniper berries can be picked when you remember that the branches should not be folded or the juniper should not be removed from the ground. There also grows Norway maples, which give the ridge a beautiful color in autumn. Mountain currants also grow on these ridges. In the middle of the heathers you can find golden chanterelles and in the autumn a few other edible mushrooms. Lingonberries also thrive on the southern slopes.The Pyynikki observation tower, built in 1929, is still in use. It has a ground-level café. There are wooden stairs at several points on the slopes of Pyynikki, along which you can reach the top of the Pyynikki Esker from the shore of Lake Pyhäjärvi.

Pirkankatu is a busy, east–west street in Tampere, Finland, which forms the southern border of the Amuri district. The districts of Kaakinmaa and Pyynikinrinne are located south of the street. To the east, the end of Pirkankatu is the Hämeenpuisto park, in the middle stages of which it connects to Hämeenkatu. In the west, on the border of Pispala, Pirkankatu becomes the Pispala Highway.Pirkankatu is one of the driveways leading to the city center, and it is one of the main routes used by Tampere public transport. In 2021, the Tampere tramway art stop designed by sculptor Jaakko Himanen was completed on Pirkankatu, in front of Pyynikintori. Pyynikintori is the terminus of the first stage of the tramway, from where trams run through the city center to Hervanta.At the eastern end of Pirkankatu is the cityscape and historically significant Pyynikki Church Park, where the landscape is dominated by the Alexander Church (1881). Across the street is the nationally significant Central Library Metso (1986), designed by architects Raili and Reima Pietilä. Most of the residential buildings on Pirkankatu are wooden houses built in the 1920s. Such is, for example, the 138-meter-long Kilometritalo (1923). The most notable of the stone apartment buildings is Veljeslinna (1952), which is part of a large, sealed city block, which is rare compared to typical Tamperean architecture.

Paasikiven–Kekkosentie ("Paasikivi–Kekkonen Road"), or Rantaväylä, is a busy car traffic route located in Tampere, Finland, which serves as a regional transit road and a significant access route to the city center. It is a four-lane highway owned by the Finnish state and part of Highway 12. Paasikiven–Kekkosentie is located between the Nokia's motorway and the Teiskontie street junction.The originally Paasikiven–Kekkosentie was seven kilometers long and was built in several phases. The first part was completed on the southern shore of Lake Näsijärvi and north of Tampere's city center in the mid-1970s. The last part at the Petsamo district was opened to traffic in 1989. At the planning stage, the highway was called Kehätie ("Ring Road"), but later the western part was named Paasikiventie and the eastern part Kekkosentie in the town plan. Paasikiventie changed to Kekkosentie on the shore of Tammerkoski at the eastern end of the Näsinsilta bridge.The name Paasikiventie refers to President J. K. Paasikivi, who lived in Tampere as an early child. When the street name was entered in the town plan in the early 1970s, one hundred years had passed since Paasikivi was born. The name Kekkosentie, which was included in the town plan in 1977, is intended to honor President Urho Kekkonen, who had connections to Tampere through businessman Kalle Kaihari. At the time of the completion of Paasikiven–Kekkosentie, the so-called Paasikivi–Kekkonen doctrine prevailed in Finnish foreign policy.Paasikiventie and Kekkosentie were originally streets managed and operated by the city, but in the mid-1990s they were converted into state-maintained public roads. The road section between Mustanlahti and Naistenlahti was widened in 1997. Completed in 2016, the Tampere Tunnel, which is a couple of kilometers long, changed the alignment of the fairway so that Paasikiventie is now located on the west side of the tunnel (west of Santalahti) and Kekkosentie on the east side of the tunnel (east of Naistenlahti). The tunnel section is not Paasikiventie or Kekkosentie, but the name of the underground road is Rantatunneli. With the tunnel, the above-ground road section between Santalahti and Naistenlahti became obsolete from Highway 12, and was renamed Paasikivenkatu–Kekkosenkatu. The word katu (translated "street") tells that the responsibility for maintaining the road lies with the city of Tampere.

The Tampere Tunnel (also the Rantaväylä Tunnel, Finnish: Rantaväylän tunneli) is a 2,3 kilometre-long road tunnel in Tampere, Finland. It was opened 15 November 2016, six months before scheduled. The Tampere Tunnel is the longest road tunnel in Finland. It is part of Highway 12, which passes north of Tampere city center. 36,000 vehicles a day drive through the tunnel.

Pyynikki Summer Theatre (Finnish: Pyynikin kesäteatteri) is an open-air theatre operating in Tampere, Finland, known especially for its revolving auditorium. It is one of the largest summer theatres in Finland and has been running uninterrupted longer than any other open-air theatre in the country. The theatre was founded in 1948 and was originally named Tampereen kesäteatteri (Tampere Summer Theatre). It started operating in Joselininniemi, on the shore of the lake Pyhäjärvi, where the performances continue to be held until today. In 1955 the name of the theatre was changed to Pyynikin kesäteatteri. The theatre increased its popularity throughout the latter half of the 1950s. The construction of the rotating auditorium, designed by the architect Reijo Ojanen and holding 800 seats, was completed in 1959. The real breakthrough for Pyynikki Summer Theatre came in the 1960s with the play Tuntematon sotilas (The Unknown Soldier). This stage adaptation of the novel by Väinö Linna became hugely popular and remained in the repertoire for nearly a decade. The revolving auditorium was fully renovated in the mid-1990s, when the number of seats was increased to 836. Since January 2001, the theatre has been run by Pyynikin Kesäteatterisäätiö (Pyynikki Summer Theatre Foundation). In 2005 a roof for the auditorium was completed, thus lengthening the usability of the theatre in spring and autumn in the Nordic weather conditions. Tampereen Teatterikerho, which managed the theatre before the foundation was formed, has been an important influence in the cultural life of Tampere, because its support enabled the founding of Tampere Theatre Festival (Tampereen Teatterikesä) in 1969 and Teatteri 2000 in 1985.

Pyynikinrinne is a district of Tampere, Finland. It is located west of the city center. Pyynikinrinne is bordered on the south by the Pyynikki Esker nature reserve, on the north by Pirkankatu and on the east by Mariankatu. The western boundary of the district is the former border between Tampere and Pohjois-Pirkkala municipalities. The neighboring parts of the city are Pyynikki, Ylä-Pispala, Amuri, partly Särkänniemi and Kaakinmaa. Pirkankatu, which has long been a highway from the center of Tampere to the western parts of the city, was called the Pirkkala Highway until 1956. The Tipotie road, which once led across the Tampere–Pori railway line to the shores of Lake Näsijärvi, diverges from Pirkankatu at the former Tampere City Transport's department garage, also known as Rollikkahalli.A competition was held for the design of the Pyynikinrinne area, which was won in 1903 by architect Lars Sonck. The town plan drawn up by Sonck was confirmed in 1907. The town plan was in line with Art Nouveau ideals: blocks of varying sizes and shapes, streets following terrain and end views of the streets. The building stock of Pyynikinrinne is mainly protected. A particularly interesting object from an architectural point of view is the complex of villas bordering Palomäentie.The oldest surviving building stock on Pyynikinrinne is represented by, among others, Marjatta Hospital (Lambert Pettersson, 1912), the Technical School (R. Björnberg, 1912), the Durchman House (Oiva Kallio, 1915) and the Olán House (Wivi Lönn, 1916). Most of the district was built in the 1920s. The typical Pyynikinrinne Building Type is a two-storey wooden apartment building representing the classicism of the 1920s. The arm of Pyynikintori was built at the turn of the 1920s and 1930s from taller stone houses, designed by Martti Välikangas, Yrjö Lindegren, Jaakko Tähtinen and Veikko Kallio, among others. Architect Bertel Strömmer has had a special influence on the nature of Pyynikinrinne. Strömmer designed a large part of the Pyynikinrinne buildings and partially modified Sonck's town plan. Palomäentie 13 was Strömmer's first plan in his own name. Strömmer lived and kept his office at Palomäentie 22, a building that has since been demolished. Strömmer's surviving works in the Pyynikinrinne district include Pyynikki Sports Field with its auditorium (1922), Kisakentänkatu 10–14 (1924–25), Pyynikki Parish House (1928) and the vocational school (1939). After graduation, the vocational school was the largest public building in Tampere. Other significant buildings in the area include Pyynikinlinna (Jarl Eklund, 1923), Haapanen Villa (Veikko Kallio, 1929), Tampere Lyceum High School (Hjalmar Åberg and A. Willberg, 1935), Bishop's Residence (Gunnar Wahlroos, 1936) and Tampere Conservatoire. A special feature is Kilometritalo (Heikki Tiitola, 1923); this two-story residential building is 138 meters long. Pyynikintori, formerly known as Aleksanterintori or, familiarly, Plassi, once served as a marketplace and a center for horse trade. Domestic animals, including goats, cows, sheep and piglets, were sold at the Heinätori square, which is connected to Pyynikintori. In memory of the market square there is so-called Vaakahuone building (Lambert Petterson, 1913) between Heinätori and Pyynikintori. Today, Pyynikintori mainly operates as a bus terminal and parking area. The first bus station building in Finland, the western long-distance bus station (Bertel Strömmer, 1929), was built on Pyynikintori. An almost similar building was built for Tampere's eastern long-distance bus station, which was located in the Sori Square near the current bus station. The original station buildings functioned as service stations after the completion of the current Tampere Bus Station (1938) and have since been demolished. The Pyynikki sports field serves as a starting point and goal for women marathon event called Likkojen Lenkki, among other things. The Pyynikki Hall is a national and international venue for several indoor sports, such as volleyball and basketball. In addition, there is a small sports field along Palomäentie called Pikkusantamonttu. On the Pyynikinrinne, the Tampere Vocational College Tredu operates in three locations: Pyynikintie, Pirkankatu and Santalahdentie. Areas of study emphasize craftsmanship, such as the fashion industry, the barber-hairdresser line, and the electrical and construction engineering industry.

Rajaportin sauna is Finland's oldest working public sauna. The sauna was founded in 1906 in Pispala in Tampere. Rajaportin Sauna is owned by Tampere city and run by the Pispalan saunayhdistys ry.

Särkänniemi is a district of the city centre of Tampere, Finland, located on the shores of Lake Näsijärvi, north of the districts of Amuri and Finlayson. The most famous sights of the district are Näsinneula and Särkänniemi Amusement Park, but in addition to that, the district also houses the Haarla's old paper mill building. The Amuri railway stop has also ceased operations in Särkänniemi. The Särkänniemi district also includes the Siilinkari islet in Lake Näsijärvi. Särkänniemi is bordered on the south by Paasikivenkatu (formerly Paasikiventie), on the other side of which is the Amuri district, and on the west by the Santalahti district. The district includes the Onkiniemi residential area. The Särkänniemi district is joined by Santalahti on its west side, which is named after the bay of the same name in Lake Näsijärvi. The first industrial plant in the area was the Eliander match factory, founded in 1852; Sahanterä Oy (1889), Näsijärven Pahvitehdas (1909) and Haarla Paper Mill (1920) were born later. On the west side of Särkänniemi, Onkiniemi was a popular beach as early as the 19th century. The first sub-town plan of Särkänniemi was approved in 1915 and the town plan of the whole area in 1921 and the town plan of Santalahti in 1945. Some of the streets in the area have been named according to the factory's owner families; The founder of the Haarla paper mill, Rafael Haarla, a trade counselor, according to whom Haarlankatu has been named, donated the statues of Hämeensilta to the city of Tampere in 1929.A hotel and spa with restaurants and water experiences are planned around the amusement park, as well as new apartments. It will also be possible to travel to the area by tram in the future as part of the Tampere light rail network.

Tahmela is a district in Tampere, Finland. It is located between Ylä-Pispala and Pyynikki on the shores of Lake Pyhäjärvi. There is a Varala Sports College in Tahmela. There are rental agricultural plots on the shore of Tahmela, and Kurpitsaliike ry ("the Pumpkin Movement") was founded in 1998 to defend the continuation of land cultivation in Tahmela.Tahmela has a large spring with very clear water until the 1960s, from which more than 600 households in the Pispala and Tahmela areas obtained their drinking water. The water was distributed by a cooperative that operated until 1961. In addition to the spring, the cultural center Hirvitalo is located in Tahmela. Tahmela is named after a croft of the same name located in the area, built around 1870. The croft was located along the current Selininkatu street. Tahmela was transferred from the municipality of Northern Pirkkala to the city of Tampere at the beginning of 1937. Until then, it had been part of the densely populated municipal community of Pispala. The town plan of Tahmela was confirmed in 1945 at the same time as the town plan of Pispala. The poet Yrjö Jylhä lived in Tahmela in his youth and according to him one of the streets of the district has been named. The former name of the Tahmela Bypass (Tahmelan viertotie) in 1945–1978 was Valtakunnantie and then until 1996 the Tahmela Highway (Tahmelan valtatie). The names refer, on the one hand, to a group of houses known as the "Kingdom of Vuorenmaa", and, on the other hand, that the street was to be built as a highway, like the Paasikiventie north of Pispala, under the Pyynikki Ridge's tunnel. Near Vallikatu are the remains of fortresses built by the Russian army during the First World War, which stretched from Tahmela to the Pispala Ridge. The name Hopankatu derives from a nearby ski jumping hill, built in 1908 and demolished in the late 1980s.

The Holy Cross Church (Finnish: Pyhän ristin kirkko, Swedish: Heliga korsets kyrka) is the name given to a religious building affiliated with the Catholic Church and is located in the city of Tampere, Finland. It offers religious services as the Mass in different languages (Finnish, Polish and English) in order to meet the different nationalities that make up the congregation. The Catholic parish of Tampere was formally established on September 3, 1957. Masses were held for the first time in Hotel Tammer, later in Emmaus. The congregation got its own church on November 22, 1969, being dedicated to the Holy Cross, and blessed with a parish hall, a presbytery, and other venues.