I have a new duck friend:

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The duck is in the hotel bathroom in Milan. It made me smile a lot, and the accompanying inspirational quote is not too bad, as these things go. It was a welcome friend after the second of two bike journeys today, Paris and Milan. Both were journeys to get from one railway station to another and make me very happy to have my own bike with me.

I like being able to cover more ground and see a place – don’t get me wrong, I LOVE public transport – but the freedom on a bicycle I find second-to-none, with the added bonus of the slight peril that cycling in busy cities can bring, which just adds to the fun. Paris has a very good cycling infrastructure – separate bike lanes and proper bike racks everywhere. Milan less so but I saw plenty of cyclists even in the 20 minute ride across town. I’ll find out more tomorrow when I have the morning in town.

In the meantime, two photos from the journey:

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The French railway company is currently aiming to bring art to as many railway stations as possible, and outside Gare de Lyon is an extract from a photography exhibition currently running in Paris, from the Charlie Chaplin archives (a lot of which was donated to the National Cinema Museum in Paris). Keeping Charlot company in the photo are Betty the Brompton bike and the familiar Miffy van Gogh. They are my travel buddies for this trip and I’m very pleased. The other photo is a typical scene of the railway journey I completed today, the route from Paris to Milan. It’s the third or fourth time I’ve taken this route, with the wind up, through, and down the Alps, which never fails to provide awesome views, as well as a sense of marvel at some of the engineering.

Right, I should get some kip before a morning in Milan and a train journey to Bologna. Ciao ciao!