Good and bad

[azziria]

Bad things about this Swiss business trip:

• Flying there and back. I loath it. My palms sweat during take off and landing, however calm I try to be. But I will not let this fear stop me from going places.
  
• The hours and hours in transit. Although at least I get to read books pretty much undisturbed while I travel.
  
• Long and tedious business meetings about staggeringly boring subjects with clients who take themselves far too seriously (however nice they are).

Good things about this Swiss business trip:

• Getting to read all of The Thirteen-Gun Salute and half of The Nutmeg of Consolation.
  
• Having a couple of hours off on a beautifully sunny afternoon to wander around the old streets of Basel, then sit on the banks of the Rhine and read my book. That was really very pleasant indeed.
  
• Dinner on Monday night. We tried a new restaurant, and the herb-crusted lamb cutlets I had for my main course were absolutely sublime, delicately flavoured with tarragon and cooked to just the right pinkness. Heaven on a plate, one of the best things I’ve eaten for ages. (And yes, I did send my compliments to the chef, because he seriously deserved them for creating such perfection.)
  
• My run along the banks of the Rhine before breakfast on Tuesday morning. No wind, cool but not too fresh, and the rising sun painting everything golden. Worth getting up for. I love cities early in the morning, when they’re mostly deserted so you have the streets to yourself. One of my joys.