Kuusisto Castle

Tuorla Observatory is the Department of Astronomy at the University of Turku, southwest Finland. It is the largest astronomical research institute in Finland. Together with the Space Research Laboratory at the Physics Department of the University of Turku, it forms the Väisälä Institute of Space Physics and Astronomy (VISPA).

Piikkiön rautatieasema is a railway station in the municipality of Kaarina, Piikkiö, near Turku, Finland. It was opened in 1889. The station building, designed by a Finnish architect Bruno Granholm was built in 1888 and later expanded in 1922. The last train stopped at the station on May 26, 1979. The station is located in the central area of the town of Piikkiö. In September 2016, the railway station was sold to a private buyer.

Piikkiö (Finnish pronunciation: [ˈpiːkːiø]; Swedish: Pikis), is a former municipality of Finland. Piikkiö was consolidated with Kaarina on 1 January 2009. It is located in the province of Western Finland and is part of the Southwest Finland region. The municipality had a population of 6,836 in December 2004 and covered an area of 90.35 km2 (excluding sea) of which 0.07 km2 is inland water. The population density was 75.72 inhabitants per km2. The municipality was almost unilingually Finnish.

Kuusisto (Finnish: Kuusisto; Swedish: Kustö) is an island and former municipality in Kaarina, Finland. The island is about 12 km long and 2 km wide. Its main attraction is Kuusisto Castle.

Littoinen (Finnish; Littois in Swedish) is a village in south-western Finland, centred on Lake Littoinen (Finnish: Littoistenjärvi, Swedish: Littois träsk). The village is shared between the town of Kaarina and the municipality of Lieto, and it borders the regional centre of Turku. It started growing after the founding of a broadcloth factory by Lake Littoinen in 1739, and the railway connection built in 1899 increased its growth. In the 1960s the operations of the broadcloth factory (Finnish: verkatehdas) were discontinued due to decreased demand, but the premises still exist and have been transformed into residential and commercial spaces. The factory's heritage is still visible in the village's place and street names.

Lieto (Finnish pronunciation: [ˈlie̯to]; Swedish: Lundo) is a municipality of Finland. It is located in the province of Western Finland and is part of the Southwest Finland region. The municipality has a population of 20,299 (31 December 2021) and covers an area of 302.56 square kilometres (116.82 sq mi) of which 1.66 km2 (0.64 sq mi) is water. The population density is 102.26 inhabitants per square kilometre (264.9/sq mi). Neighbour municipalities are Aura, Kaarina, Marttila, Paimio, Pöytyä and Turku. The municipality is unilingually Finnish. Lieto has a medieval stone church, St. Peter's church, that originates from around 1500 near the city center. The municipality is also home to the largest local scout troop in Finland, called LEK or Liedon Eränkävijät.

Kaarina (Finnish pronunciation: [ˈkɑːrinɑ]; Swedish: S:t Karins, i.e. "Saint Catherine's") is a small town and municipality of Finland. It is located in the Southwest Finland region and is a neighbouring town of Turku, which is the capital of Southwest Finland, therefore Kaarina is a part of the Greater Turku region. The municipality has a population of 35,502 (31 December 2021) and covers an area of 179.58 square kilometres (69.34 sq mi) of which 29.15 km2 (11.25 sq mi) is water. The population density is 236.14 inhabitants per square kilometre (611.6/sq mi). The municipality is unilingually Finnish, with a Swedish minority and e.g. a Swedish comprehensive school. Bilinguality was proposed but rejected in 2015. The famous fetish artist Tom of Finland was born in Kaarina. Kaarina has a well known football team Kaarinan Pojat. The municipality of Kuusisto was consolidated with Kaarina in 1946. The municipality of Piikkiö was consolidated with Kaarina on 1 January 2009. At the same time, Kaarina adopted the coat of arms of Piikkiö.

Vaala (Finnish; Svalas in Swedish) is a district in the Itäharju-Varissuo ward of the city of Turku, in Finland. It is located to the east of the city centre, and consists mainly of a strip of low-density residential area between the more densely built suburbs of Varissuo and Lauste. The current (as of 2004) population of Vaala is 972, and it is decreasing at an annual rate of 0.62%. 30.35% of the district's population are under 15 years old, while 4.22% are over 65. The district's linguistic makeup is 85.29% Finnish, 2.47% Swedish, and 12.24% other.

Turun normaalikoulu (or Norssi for short) is a school in Varissuo, an eastern suburb of Turku, Finland. It provides education from primary school (age 7) to upper secondary school (age 19). The school is authorized by the International Baccalaureate to teach in both the Middle Years Programme and the Diploma Programme. Founded in 1892, the school is one of the oldest and most prestigious in Turku. The school holds a unique position as the only school in Turku not managed by the city's educational authorities, being federally funded and controlled by the University of Turku, who use it as one of their teacher training schools. It is the largest such establishment in Finland. There are usually approximately 1,300 people working at the school, of which 900 are students, 300 teacher trainees, and the rest teachers and other staff. In autumn 2015, the school began renovation, lasting until winter 2017.

Turku International School is an international school in Turku, Finland, located in the eastern district of Varissuo. It was established in August 2003, and is maintained by the City of Turku. Notably it doesn't have its own faculty, but teaching is undertaken by the University's teacher training school. The official language of the school is English (most people speak Finnish). Around half the 200 students are of foreign nationality.It currently temporarily operates within the premises of Turun normaalikoulu, but will soon get its own building in Varissuo. The school offers three programmes: a primary (years 1-4) and secondary (years 5-9) years programme, and the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (in cooperation with Turun normaalikoulu). The first two are based on the Finnish national curriculum and the International Baccalaureate's Primary Years Programme (PYP) and Middle Years Programme (MYP) respectively. The school is intended for foreign-born children living temporarily or permanently in Turku Region and for Finnish children returning to Finland after years abroad. By an agreement signed between the city of Turku and the University of Turku, Turun Normaalikoulu (the Teacher training school of Turku) takes care of the teaching in the international school.

Old Castle of Lieto (Finnish: Liedon Vanhalinna) is a site of a hillfort in Lieto, Finland. It rises 55 meters above the sea level.The original name of the castle is not known. According to excavations, the castle has been in use three times during its history, in the Late Bronze Age (1100–500 BCE) and in Middle Iron Age (500–700 CE). The third phase of the site between years 1000-1370 can be divided into two. According to the excavations the years 1000–1150 are marked with German money and prehistoric artefacts and the years 1200–1370 with Scandinavian bracteates and medieval artefacts. The hillfort was used by the local Finns proper population until 1170, when it was conquered most likely by the Swedes who possibly used it as a stronghold against Tavastians. The steep hillside supported by fortifications on top of the hill provided a good defensive position. Constructions on the hillfort were mostly made of wood. In the latest phase bricks were used as well. Remains of 11 buildings have been found from the top of the hillfort. Earliest defensive structures have been dated to 500 BCE and an outer bailey was in use in the Middle Ages. Total of 14 arrowheads and 150 crossbow bolt heads have been found from the area as well as several spear heads which the oldest has been dated to 6th century. Also several traces of fire have been found from the hillfort. Earliest traces of fire have been dated to Migration Period and the latest to 1360s.The castle was located between two ancient transport routes: Aura river and Hämeen härkätie leading to central Tavastia. Its importance decreased when the Turku castle was finished in beginning of the 14th century. Hence the name Old Castle of Lieto.

Varissuo (Finnish; Kråkkärret in Swedish) is a district and the largest suburb of the city of Turku, in Finland. It is located seven kilometres to the east of the city centre, and is the easternmost major suburb of Turku, bordering on the neighbouring city of Kaarina. Varissuo has 9,000 inhabitants, the majority of whom are foreign immigrants. It is thus the second largest district of Turku, after Runosmäki. The name consists of the words varis, meaning 'crow' and suo, meaning 'marsh'. 15.72% of Varissuo's population are under 15 years old, while 12.56% are over 65. Around 60% of the population speaks an immigrant language, reflecting the suburb's wide cultural variety. 90% of students at Varissuo school speak a mother tongue other than Finnish or Swedish. The suburb was constructed from scratch on an area of previously uninhabited wetland (suo in Finnish) starting in the mid-1970s as migration from rural areas to the city increased heavily in volume. Since then, the city's policy of placing many refugees and unemployed people in certain few districts has led to Varissuo, together with Lauste and Halinen, attaining a somewhat bad reputation.Varissuo has several schools, a library, an underground ice arena, a Lutheran church, a health centre, a post office and a social security (KELA) office. In addition, the Itäkeskus shopping centre is located in Varissuo, as well as a University of Turku teacher training school (Turun normaalikoulu) and Turku International School. As many other parts of Turku, Varissuo has many public transport connections, with frequent bus links to the city centre as well as other nearby districts and cities.