Back from Switzerland

I've got back from two weeks in (mostly) sunny Switzerland. Coming back to this cold damp island is a bit of shock to the system, especially with the weather the past few days.

I've travelled on a vast number of trains, from Inter-City expresses to rural narrow gauge branches, classic alpine main lines and preserved steam lines. I've even ridden threatened routes like the old Hauenstein line from Olten to Sissach.

I can think of quite a few ways in which Switzerland is better than Britain, apart from the obvious ones like the trains running on time. For instance:

• A town about the size of, say, Lostwithiel has a station buffet that's open all day. Not only that, if you order a beer, you get cold draught beer in a proper glass, not a can of warm Stella and plastic cup.
• The SBB's ICN tilting trains knock the spots of Richard Branson's Pendolinos. They even manage to make the seats line up with the windows in 2nd class, so everyone can see out. Come to think about it, so do the Italian/Swiss "Cisalpino" Pendolinos. On the other hand, you could argue that passengers are more interested in seeing magnificent Swiss mountains than their British equivalents are of seeing the grotty parts of Birmingham or Stoke on Trent.

I'll start uploading some of my 400+ digital photos once I've had the change to choose the best ones.