#2,747

It might seem tactless, following the fatal derailment of that train on the west coast of the United States, but I cannot help welcoming the latest feat of railway engineering in Germany, the addition of a new section of line through Thuringia inaugurated a few weeks ago. Twenty-two new tunnels and a similar number of valley-spanning bridges now permit speeds of up to 300 kilometres an hour on the journey from Berlin to Munich.

As I write, one of those trains is bringing Jessi to us for a festive week in the Bavarian capital.