Jyväskylä is a city located in central Finland, 147 km from Tampere and 270 km from Helsinki, near the lakes Päijänne and Keitele. It is the center of the Jyväskylä Region. The site of many education-related firsts in Finland, Jyväskylä is known as a city of schools, the Athens of Finland, and is also famous for its many buildings designed by Alvar Aalto and for hosting Neste Rally Finland, which is part of the World Rally Championship. The city is home of the annual Jyväskylä Arts Festival. At the end of 2004, Jyväskylä had a population of 83,582, while the Region of Jyväskylä had 163,420 inhabitants. The leaders of Jyväskylä have long proposed that Jyväskylän maalaiskunta (the rural municipality of Jyväskylä), which has its town hall, graveyard and beautiful church Taulumäen kirkko all conveniently located in central Jyväskylä, should unite with the city, but Jyväskylän maalaiskunta has resisted. The Jyväskylä region includes Jyväskylä, Jyväskylän maalaiskunta, Laukaa, Muurame and Toivakka.
