An early morning drive to Gatwick, a gallon of coffee, some slight turbulence over the Alps, a stroll in the sunshine at the other end and I'm finally at the Geneva show. Besides the snow-capped peaks, which are never boring, a few other things have impressed after a quick blast around the halls. Kimi Raikkonen on the Lotus stand seemed very relaxed after the three-hour drive from Zurich. Three hours? And you kept to the speed limit then Kimi, asked the MC. "Yes, of course, this is Switzerland," came the straight reply.

There was a cargo version of the VW up! which I thought looked rather good for urban light delivery work. With several varieties of up! on show (winter up!, x up!, swiss up! etc) it looked kind of unloved. But the classic 'car-derived van' is perhaps not dead after all.

And on the GM stand there was the RAKe, which we have seen before, but I got a close look at it. Genuinely innovative, I hope it makes it into production. I want a go and I like the way it rethinks the urban mobility problem but also looks like it might actually be, whisper it, fun. 

No time for lunch as I have an interview to get to... and that will set the tone for the afternoon as the schedule is crammed with them.