We duly filled up our rucksacks with two weeks of optimised clothes and ditched most of our technology and then jumped on a plane to Zürich.
It's a more complicated route now we live in Exeter, because we had to overnight it at a Radisson leaving the electric car for an experimental period of two weeks standing without charge. I remembered to disarm certain facilities although I think the car knows when it is is being left untethered for any length of time and gradually switches things off.
Next morning to the airport for a suitably good breakfast before boarding the plane for the quick flight to Zürich, maybe 75 minutes flight time away.
Now we were in Switzerland. We crossed from the airport to the Airport shopping area and sat for a celebratory coffee in Sprüngli, with our luggage compactly arranged around us.
Onward to the adjoining train stattion and a fast link to central Zürich, which was enjoying fine weather from the European heatwave. Then to find the hotel, and be checked into a lovely room before the start of our adventure.
First impressions? Just like backpacking around Europe in the olden days, except we had the creature comforts of First Class with its ease to get uncrowded seats. And these are Swiss trains. Clean, smooth and very well - appointed. It is also becasuewe used the Swiss Travel Service to help us get booked. They know a thing or two about the best ways, routes and fares in Switzerland.
Just starting out, so we took it easy today. It will take a day or two to adjust to the extra weight we are carrying around, plus the ability to navigate old school with actual paper maps.
My Virgin phone connection has already died, but not before it was able to take an additional £50 from my account. I've used the same phone number in Europe for the last 20+ years but never had this kind of experience before.
Guess I'll be using Wifi everywhere - although I'm reminded that it wasn't even a thing back when I Interrailed.
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