My 04:45 cab got me to London Bridge in time to see the sunrise reflected in the Shard. My 05:27 train got me, via more sunrise over the Thames at Blackfriars, to St Pancras in loads of unfretty time to amble through the ticket check, security, the passport check and the other passport check. My 07:01 Eurostar got me to Paris (10C cooler than London today) in a very brief time warp. I must have been asleep for some of it. The journey is so, so much easier than when I used to do it by coach.

An almost-first: I had plenty of time before meeting J, my wonderful nephew, at the place he'd suggested for lunch near the Gare de Lyon, so I decided to try the journey there by bus. I'm fine with the metro/RER system but Paris buses have mystified me for over half a century. But with a digital map in my palm, it was incredibly easy to know which bus to catch, how to find the bus stop, and where to get off. Another dragon slain.

J and I chatted as easily as we always do then he kindly carried my bag to see me off on my train to Milan.

There is some fabulous scenery from about two-and-a-half hours into the journey as the train heads into the Low Alps, but 9 hours on a train is too long.

I'm very glad to have reached my bed in Milan, even if the blip is London (spot Tower Bridge!) at the far distant other end of today.