I board the 9.31 to Brescia and sit down opposite a woman and a man. His florid face and unkempt hair, Las Vegas T-shirt and black leather manbag scream ageing rockstar.

The snow fell heavily – big, powdery snowflakes that fluttered in the grey mist before melting on the freshly cleared road. Despite the near-blizzard conditions, the two-carriage Tadami line train pulled in on schedule, carving its way through the snow like a child pushing a spade in the sand.