I had decided before to take three days off in the Lake District to get some writing done (formal reason) and to just hang around in the area where Beatrix Botter wrote and drew and that she worked so hard to protect (true reason).

And I defy anyone to find a better place to edit your book. One day I’ll come back here and write another.

Naturally, I also visited Hill Top Farm, where I immediately became a member of the National Trust. “If you’re from Sweden you might not get that many advantages”, said the lovely woman working behind the till. “But otherwise there’s free admissions, and free parking…”

Which is kind of sad, now that I think of it, that people only agree to help protect our beautiful places and historical landscapes if there is free parking. “We look after the places you love: historic houses, gardens, mills, coastline, forests, farmland, moorland, islands, castles, nature reserves, villages….” – “Yes, yes, my good woman, but the parking.”