So this is what Oxfordshire looks like. Rolling hills (I presume that’s what they’re called), houses that are many centuries old (the one we’re staying at is older than anything – anything – in Joensuu, for example) and gardens. And in the gardens there are lots of lovely old ladies who serve tea and scones.

And oh yes, the village has a proper milkman!

I know it all sounds terribly cliched, and in a way it is too, but it is still oh so lovely. We’re staying with Mike, an old friend of my mom’s, and his daughter Katy. The house apparently dates from the 17^th century, which is quite frankly almost unbelievable. Fellow Finns can surely appreciate this amazement, as nothing in our noble country predates Kekkonen.