0:00:03 > 0:00:06I'm embarking on a new railway adventure
0:00:06 > 0:00:09that will take me across the heart of Europe.
0:00:11 > 0:00:16I'll be using this, my Bradshaw's Continental Railway Guide, dated 1913,
0:00:16 > 0:00:21which opened up an exotic world of foreign travel for the British tourist.
0:00:21 > 0:00:24It told travellers where to go,
0:00:24 > 0:00:29what to see and how to navigate the thousands of miles of tracks
0:00:29 > 0:00:31crisscrossing the continent.
0:00:31 > 0:00:33Now, a century later, I'm using my copy
0:00:33 > 0:00:37to reveal an era of great optimism and energy,
0:00:37 > 0:00:42where technology, industry, science and the arts were flourishing.
0:00:42 > 0:00:46I want to rediscover that lost Europe that, in 1913,
0:00:46 > 0:00:51couldn't know that its way of life would shortly be swept aside
0:00:51 > 0:00:52by the advent of war.
0:01:05 > 0:01:08'I'm continuing a Swiss railway adventure,
0:01:08 > 0:01:11'which has brought me from Zermatt, near the Italian border,
0:01:11 > 0:01:13'to lakeside Montreux.
0:01:13 > 0:01:16'From there, I'll travel to the capital, Bern.
0:01:16 > 0:01:18'Then on through artisan country
0:01:18 > 0:01:21'towards the international city of Geneva.
0:01:21 > 0:01:25'Along the way, I'll make my cheesiest ever train journey.'
0:01:25 > 0:01:28I like a food that requires you to drink wine.
0:01:28 > 0:01:29So do I.
0:01:29 > 0:01:34'..and salute the bravery of a pioneering Swiss pilot...'
0:01:34 > 0:01:37Only when you go up in a small plane like this do you realise
0:01:37 > 0:01:43what a formidable obstacle the Alps would have been a century ago.
0:01:45 > 0:01:49'..before entering a war zone with the Red Cross.'
0:01:49 > 0:01:52CLAMOUR
0:01:52 > 0:01:54A most extraordinary turn of events.
0:02:01 > 0:02:03For many 1913 travellers,
0:02:03 > 0:02:07seeing Switzerland was a remarkable experience.
0:02:08 > 0:02:10They were stimulated by its beauty,
0:02:10 > 0:02:18mesmerised, having seen nothing like it.
0:02:18 > 0:02:22And like them, I'm now experiencing the excitement of the unexpected...
0:02:24 > 0:02:29..a vineyard called Chemin de Fer which is French for railway.
0:02:29 > 0:02:32It's owned by wine grower Luc Massy.
0:02:32 > 0:02:33I find you in a dry corner.
0:02:33 > 0:02:36- Yes.- I was very excited when I heard about
0:02:36 > 0:02:40a vineyard that was called Chemin de Fer
0:02:40 > 0:02:42but I did not expect something so narrow.
0:02:42 > 0:02:45How can you possibly produce wine from such a narrow strip?
0:02:45 > 0:02:48Anyway, this region in Dezaley, everything is narrow.
0:02:48 > 0:02:53We get walls, we get terraces, but every terrace is very, very narrow.
0:02:53 > 0:02:56And we do cultivate everything by hand.
0:02:56 > 0:02:59- And it stretches all along the line, does it?- Yes, it's going far away,
0:02:59 > 0:03:04all along the side of the track is Dezaley Chemin de Fer.
0:03:08 > 0:03:11I don't have to ask you why it's called Chemin de Fer
0:03:11 > 0:03:14but when was it first called Chemin de Fer?
0:03:14 > 0:03:17The first call is something like 100 years ago
0:03:17 > 0:03:23because after they built the railway from Lausanne to Milano in 1860s,
0:03:23 > 0:03:29I think it was more or less 15 years after, we get the vineyards,
0:03:29 > 0:03:31and it was named Clos du Chemin de Fer.
0:03:31 > 0:03:34And the railway must've taken the land away from the vineyards?
0:03:34 > 0:03:38Yes, exactly. But all the big wall that you can see here
0:03:38 > 0:03:41is very good for the vineyards
0:03:41 > 0:03:45because we say we have first the sun,
0:03:45 > 0:03:47the second sun is a reflection from the lake,
0:03:47 > 0:03:51and the third sun is the heat from the wall.
0:03:51 > 0:03:53Well, I've never seen anything like it in my life.
0:03:55 > 0:03:59The vineyard has been in Luc's family for over 100 years.
0:03:59 > 0:04:04His grandfather bought it in 1915 and now they are the only family
0:04:04 > 0:04:07authorised to produce Dezaley Chemin de Fer.
0:04:09 > 0:04:13The Chemin de Fer is made with grape Chasselas
0:04:13 > 0:04:16and the Chasselas is native from this region.
0:04:16 > 0:04:18But you will taste it.
0:04:18 > 0:04:21It's a great, very delicate wine.
0:04:25 > 0:04:27- Very good.- Are you happy with that?
0:04:27 > 0:04:28Yeah.
0:04:28 > 0:04:352014, this wine is getting ripe now because if you drink it too early,
0:04:35 > 0:04:37all the conditions are not good.
0:04:39 > 0:04:42I'm enjoying it very much indeed.
0:04:42 > 0:04:45I like to think that, in the early days of the railways,
0:04:45 > 0:04:49when there were steam trains, some of the smut, some of the ashes,
0:04:49 > 0:04:54might have fallen from the trains onto your terroir, onto your land,
0:04:54 > 0:04:56and that might be tasted in the wine.
0:04:56 > 0:04:58And if you don't mind me being irreverent,
0:04:58 > 0:05:02I shall always remember this as Chateaux Choo-choo!
0:05:02 > 0:05:04Chateaux Choo-choo, yeah.
0:05:10 > 0:05:14'While I could happily linger on Switzerland's Riviera,
0:05:14 > 0:05:17'Bradshaw's has more excitement in store.'
0:05:18 > 0:05:19What a beautiful train.
0:05:19 > 0:05:22It takes you back to a golden age.
0:05:24 > 0:05:28'Each of its recommended itineraries offers a new adventure.'
0:05:36 > 0:05:39Not only do the Swiss build great railways,
0:05:39 > 0:05:41they market them brilliantly, too -
0:05:41 > 0:05:43put glass panels in the roof,
0:05:43 > 0:05:47give your trains names like Jungfraujoch,
0:05:47 > 0:05:50Glacier Express or Golden Past,
0:05:50 > 0:05:53and people will flock from all over the world,
0:05:53 > 0:05:57possibly for the rail ride of their lifetime.
0:06:10 > 0:06:13'I'm changing trains at Montbovon
0:06:13 > 0:06:16'on the River Sarine in the Gruyere district.
0:06:19 > 0:06:21'If you lived through the 1970s,
0:06:21 > 0:06:25'you may recall that Swiss fondue was all the rage
0:06:25 > 0:06:30'and, as a teenager, I had to have my own fondue set.
0:06:30 > 0:06:34'So, with a real sense of bell-bottomed nostalgia,
0:06:34 > 0:06:35'I joined the Train du Fromage
0:06:35 > 0:06:39'to meet food historian Dominic Flammer.'
0:06:39 > 0:06:43- Dominic, what do we have in here? - We have the wine inside.
0:06:43 > 0:06:45We have first to heat the wine a little bit
0:06:45 > 0:06:47so that the cheese will melt better.
0:06:47 > 0:06:50It's called the caquelon, this thing,
0:06:50 > 0:06:52a rechaud and a caquelon in French.
0:06:52 > 0:06:55There isn't an English name for that, I imagine.
0:06:55 > 0:06:56We are drinking a Chasselas,
0:06:56 > 0:06:59because this is a wine with a high acidity
0:06:59 > 0:07:03and this will help us to digest the whole cheese we will eat.
0:07:03 > 0:07:06I like a food that requires you to drink wine.
0:07:06 > 0:07:07So do I.
0:07:07 > 0:07:11A-ha! Open my cheese.
0:07:11 > 0:07:13'Aboard the moving train,
0:07:13 > 0:07:15'the Gruyere and Vacherin come pre-packaged.'
0:07:16 > 0:07:19A lovely smell is arising from it now, Dominic.
0:07:19 > 0:07:23- Indeed.- It's a lovely consistency now.
0:07:23 > 0:07:26'Originally, in its simplest form,
0:07:26 > 0:07:29'bread, wine and cheese was a winter food for farmers
0:07:29 > 0:07:31'high up in the Alps.
0:07:31 > 0:07:35'But on this fondue express, it comes with one or two extras.'
0:07:35 > 0:07:38- Do you want a little bit? - Yes, please.- With pleasure.
0:07:38 > 0:07:42So this is like a cherry spirit, a kirsch?
0:07:42 > 0:07:44It is a cherry spirit.
0:07:44 > 0:07:46- Thank you.- You're welcome.
0:07:48 > 0:07:49Ooh!
0:07:49 > 0:07:51Smell it. Bon appetit, monsieur.
0:07:51 > 0:07:55Merci bien. You should not lose the piece of bread.
0:07:55 > 0:07:56- No.- You know what happens?
0:07:56 > 0:07:59- I've no idea.- You have to offer me a glass of cherry,
0:07:59 > 0:08:01and you have to drink one, too.
0:08:08 > 0:08:10Wow, that's good, Dominic.
0:08:18 > 0:08:20- Hello.- Hello.
0:08:20 > 0:08:23- You have finished your fondue. - Yes, already.
0:08:23 > 0:08:26Spectacular! Do you like to make a fondue?
0:08:26 > 0:08:31Yes, I do, but we have to be very careful with the cheese,
0:08:31 > 0:08:35because, when it's too young, when you are preparing it,
0:08:35 > 0:08:40there becomes a little bit of oil on the top of the fondue,
0:08:40 > 0:08:42and that's very bad.
0:08:42 > 0:08:46- That's very bad?- Yes, and it's not very good to eat also.
0:08:46 > 0:08:49So, if I were to cook a fondue...
0:08:49 > 0:08:53- Yes?- ..and if it turned out badly, I should blame the cheese?
0:08:53 > 0:08:55Yes, of course!
0:08:55 > 0:08:57- You're right.- That's great.
0:08:57 > 0:09:00SHE LAUGHS
0:09:00 > 0:09:02Of course!
0:09:05 > 0:09:09'I can stick around no longer amongst all this Alpine cheesiness.
0:09:09 > 0:09:11'The Swiss capital summons me.'
0:09:18 > 0:09:20My next stop will be Bern.
0:09:20 > 0:09:23Bradshaw's says that it's often mentioned
0:09:23 > 0:09:25as the most picturesque town in Europe,
0:09:25 > 0:09:29with wonderfully preserved medieval towers and fountains.
0:09:29 > 0:09:32It's the seat of the Swiss Government.
0:09:32 > 0:09:34Now, there's a couple of surprises.
0:09:34 > 0:09:37I would never have included Bern on my tourist trail
0:09:37 > 0:09:41and I don't suppose that many people could name it confidently
0:09:41 > 0:09:45as the capital of this highly democratic country.
0:09:53 > 0:09:58'Back in 1912, Switzerland's famed neutrality was tested.
0:09:58 > 0:10:02'The German Kaiser paid a visit, hoping that if war came,
0:10:02 > 0:10:06'Switzerland would cover Germany's southern flank against France.
0:10:08 > 0:10:11'But despite a population whose majority was German-speaking,
0:10:11 > 0:10:15'the Swiss resolutely refused to take sides.
0:10:16 > 0:10:19'As the day draws to a close,
0:10:19 > 0:10:22'I'm looking forward to exploring Bern in the morning.'
0:10:36 > 0:10:40Overlooking the Aare River, Bern's picture postcard looks
0:10:40 > 0:10:43belie its true claim to fame.
0:10:43 > 0:10:46I'm on the hunt for Switzerland's seat of power.
0:10:54 > 0:10:58Switzerland is a federation of 26 little states,
0:10:58 > 0:11:00and its Parliament is behind me.
0:11:00 > 0:11:05It also has a Federal Council, a seven-man joint presidency,
0:11:05 > 0:11:08which has never been replaced at one fell swoop
0:11:08 > 0:11:11since it was founded in 1848.
0:11:11 > 0:11:13Even the legislation of Parliament
0:11:13 > 0:11:16can be vetoed by public referendums.
0:11:16 > 0:11:20So, the Swiss democracy relies on public consultation,
0:11:20 > 0:11:23consensus and continuity.
0:11:23 > 0:11:24They've done pretty well out of it.
0:11:28 > 0:11:31Whilst I admire that balance and even-handedness,
0:11:31 > 0:11:34I wish to explore the Swiss sense of adventure.
0:11:38 > 0:11:39I'm following in the slipstream
0:11:39 > 0:11:42of one of Bern's greatest aviation heroes.
0:11:45 > 0:11:50Oskar Bider was a 22-year-old maverick pilot determined to become
0:11:50 > 0:11:54the first person to fly across the Alps in 1913.
0:11:54 > 0:11:57- Hello, Daniel.- Hi, Michael. - Good to see you.
0:11:57 > 0:12:00'To relive that epic flight,
0:12:00 > 0:12:03'I'm being taken aloft in a 1937 biplane
0:12:03 > 0:12:05'by pilot Daniel Ogg.'
0:12:05 > 0:12:09Now we make you look like a driver.
0:12:09 > 0:12:11'Thankfully, Daniel is experienced.
0:12:11 > 0:12:15'Bider obtained his pilot's licence after just a month.'
0:12:20 > 0:12:23OK, Daniel. Let's go flying.
0:12:23 > 0:12:24Yes, let's do it.
0:12:28 > 0:12:32Even in a plane more modern than Bider's,
0:12:32 > 0:12:35it all feels frighteningly flimsy.
0:12:38 > 0:12:40OK, Michael, are you ready?
0:12:40 > 0:12:42I'm ready.
0:12:42 > 0:12:44OK. Up we go.
0:13:09 > 0:13:13I must have crossed the Alps dozens of times,
0:13:13 > 0:13:18but only when you go up in a small plane like this, a little biplane,
0:13:18 > 0:13:21feels so flimsy and so tiny,
0:13:21 > 0:13:24do you realise what a formidable obstacle
0:13:24 > 0:13:27the Alps would have been
0:13:27 > 0:13:28a century ago.
0:13:29 > 0:13:33You had to be a very brave man to fly across them.
0:13:44 > 0:13:47Following an unsuccessful attempt,
0:13:47 > 0:13:51Bider set off again on the 13th of July 1913,
0:13:51 > 0:13:54only a decade after the first plane ever
0:13:54 > 0:13:56had been flown by the Wright brothers.
0:14:00 > 0:14:03Flying in this wonderful biplane,
0:14:03 > 0:14:07the Alps today are crystal clear and snowy covered.
0:14:08 > 0:14:13He piloted his monoplane, rising to 11,800 feet,
0:14:13 > 0:14:16across this mighty range,
0:14:16 > 0:14:18setting a new altitude record
0:14:18 > 0:14:21before landing safely in Milan.
0:14:21 > 0:14:24Switzerland's Alps had been conquered from the air
0:14:24 > 0:14:27in Bider's greatest triumph.
0:14:27 > 0:14:31Just behind me is the Jungfraujoch,
0:14:31 > 0:14:36the shoulder of mountain over which Oskar Bider flew.
0:14:45 > 0:14:48Taking to the air helps me to appreciate
0:14:48 > 0:14:51what this daring young man achieved,
0:14:51 > 0:14:53and I salute his courage.
0:15:05 > 0:15:09By 1913, the growing railway network
0:15:09 > 0:15:12had made Switzerland a European transport hub,
0:15:12 > 0:15:15as every year thousands of travellers
0:15:15 > 0:15:18passed between southern and northern Europe.
0:15:18 > 0:15:21They were tempted by the dizzying choice of routes
0:15:21 > 0:15:24and lyrical descriptions in my Bradshaw's Guide.
0:15:26 > 0:15:28My next stop will be Biel,
0:15:28 > 0:15:30which Bradshaw's tells me is, "a busy place
0:15:30 > 0:15:33"near the northern end of the Bielersee,
0:15:33 > 0:15:35"a seat of the watchmaking trade."
0:15:35 > 0:15:39It's time to see what makes Switzerland tick.
0:15:42 > 0:15:45Biel in German, or Bienne in French -
0:15:45 > 0:15:48the city straddles the two linguistic areas -
0:15:48 > 0:15:51dates back to Celtic and Roman times.
0:15:53 > 0:15:55By the time of my Bradshaw's,
0:15:55 > 0:15:58it was already producing timepieces.
0:15:58 > 0:16:02A key innovator in this field was watchmaking company Omega.
0:16:05 > 0:16:07Hello, Petros.
0:16:07 > 0:16:11Watch historian Petros Protopapas has offered to guide me
0:16:11 > 0:16:13through this delicate craft.
0:16:13 > 0:16:17Was there a reason why there were lots of Swiss people
0:16:17 > 0:16:20who were so capable of doing this precision work?
0:16:20 > 0:16:22They practically had to do it.
0:16:22 > 0:16:24They had to learn it, they had to live by it,
0:16:24 > 0:16:26because in the winter time,
0:16:26 > 0:16:29a lot of Swiss people couldn't work the land,
0:16:29 > 0:16:31so they had to learn a new trade,
0:16:31 > 0:16:33like the trade to work machines,
0:16:33 > 0:16:36the trade to create new pieces, to produce dials, to produce hands.
0:16:36 > 0:16:39So it was a life-saving exercise.
0:16:40 > 0:16:43In 1910, Omega developed the chronograph,
0:16:43 > 0:16:45which included a stopwatch,
0:16:45 > 0:16:48and it became a vital tool for the artillery
0:16:48 > 0:16:50during the First World War.
0:16:50 > 0:16:52It may be obvious to you,
0:16:52 > 0:16:55but why is an accurate watch so useful to the military?
0:16:55 > 0:16:58It was a question of survival.
0:16:58 > 0:17:00You imagine yourself being on a trench -
0:17:00 > 0:17:04you would need to know how far away you are from your enemy.
0:17:04 > 0:17:08So the only way you can do this is if you have a chronograph
0:17:08 > 0:17:10that has a so-called telemeter scale on it.
0:17:10 > 0:17:13So imagine, you look on the horizon,
0:17:13 > 0:17:17and you could make out the lighting, the flash of the gun being fired.
0:17:17 > 0:17:21You would start instantly the chronograph at the flash you see.
0:17:21 > 0:17:23And then when you hear the corresponding sound,
0:17:23 > 0:17:25the bang of that very gun,
0:17:25 > 0:17:27you would stop the chronograph,
0:17:27 > 0:17:30and off the tip of the stopped seconds hand,
0:17:30 > 0:17:32you can literally read the distance.
0:17:34 > 0:17:37The newly developed watch on the wrist
0:17:37 > 0:17:41was much easier to access than fiddling around for a fob.
0:17:46 > 0:17:50I've been given very rare access to go behind the scenes.
0:17:52 > 0:17:54- Hello, David.- Hello, Michael. How are you?- Very well.
0:17:54 > 0:17:57- So many doors to come through.- Yes.
0:17:57 > 0:17:58It's like a high security place.
0:17:58 > 0:18:00So, please, remove your shoes.
0:18:02 > 0:18:04- Next...- Hairnet.- Hairnet, yes.
0:18:08 > 0:18:11It may look as though I'm ready to go into space,
0:18:11 > 0:18:14but the deadly enemy of precision is dust.
0:18:20 > 0:18:22What do you think?
0:18:22 > 0:18:25Absolutely...absolutely extraordinary.
0:18:25 > 0:18:28An enormous room. Obviously, beautifully clean,
0:18:28 > 0:18:31- but also almost entirely quiet.- Yes.
0:18:31 > 0:18:34Watchmaking, you know, we must be some kind of calm, you know?
0:18:34 > 0:18:36Must be quiet.
0:18:36 > 0:18:40Here, we only deal with the assembly of mechanical movements.
0:18:40 > 0:18:45This tradition of hand-built watches dates back to 1848,
0:18:45 > 0:18:48when Omega's 23-year-old founder Louis Brandt
0:18:48 > 0:18:53began assembling watches from parts produced by local craftsmen.
0:18:53 > 0:18:55We still need people,
0:18:55 > 0:18:58we still rely on the judgment of the eye of the people.
0:18:58 > 0:19:03We just leave, I would say, all the boring things to the automation,
0:19:03 > 0:19:05and all the tricky things, all the assembly,
0:19:05 > 0:19:07must be done by people.
0:19:07 > 0:19:10David wants me to assemble the movement
0:19:10 > 0:19:13used inside some of the company's most precise watches.
0:19:13 > 0:19:16This one has 201 parts.
0:19:16 > 0:19:18It's just like a Lego.
0:19:18 > 0:19:21Remember that thing. It's an easy thing, watchmaking.
0:19:21 > 0:19:25We have a main plate, we just add some wheels, we put a bridge on top,
0:19:25 > 0:19:27screw them down, and it's finished.
0:19:27 > 0:19:28Quite an easy thing.
0:19:28 > 0:19:30But the problem is, they're rather tiny, these pieces.
0:19:30 > 0:19:33Mm... We'll look at it.
0:19:33 > 0:19:35You take the right one.
0:19:35 > 0:19:39The right, the left one on the left.
0:19:39 > 0:19:45Then...on top, you have to put the ratchet.
0:19:45 > 0:19:47It's quite an easy thing.
0:19:47 > 0:19:49'David is the quality control manager,
0:19:49 > 0:19:52'so nothing escapes his eye.'
0:19:52 > 0:19:54OK. Let me give that a go.
0:19:54 > 0:19:56No. That one first.
0:19:56 > 0:19:58This one first, for some reason.
0:19:58 > 0:20:00- On the right. - On the right. That's easy enough.
0:20:00 > 0:20:02- The left. - This one from the left.
0:20:02 > 0:20:05- You're good.- On the left.
0:20:05 > 0:20:09- Now, this is more difficult.- Yeah. - Tricky little fellows.
0:20:09 > 0:20:12Now, this has a square hole.
0:20:14 > 0:20:17- It's in.- I believe, er...yes. - It's in.
0:20:17 > 0:20:19If that wasn't fiddly enough,
0:20:19 > 0:20:23David is going to show me how to add five tiny drops of oil.
0:20:23 > 0:20:28That is the tricky part, but it's also the fun part of the operation.
0:20:28 > 0:20:30OK. We'll give this...
0:20:30 > 0:20:33- I don't have very good eyesight, you know.- Let me show you.
0:20:33 > 0:20:35- Each time you press the pedal...- Yes.- See?
0:20:35 > 0:20:38- Ooh!- ..you get some grease.
0:20:42 > 0:20:43Three...
0:20:44 > 0:20:45..four...
0:20:47 > 0:20:48..five.
0:20:48 > 0:20:51- What do you think, David? - Let me have a look.
0:20:51 > 0:20:52OK.
0:20:52 > 0:20:55- You know what?- Yes? - It's a terrible mess, you know?
0:20:55 > 0:20:56There is way too much oil,
0:20:56 > 0:20:59and you've put a lot of oil on top of the wheel.
0:20:59 > 0:21:02- Yeah, I missed...- Yes, you missed.
0:21:02 > 0:21:04- But you're not a watchmaker. - I'm not a watchmaker.
0:21:04 > 0:21:06I congratulate the people in this room.
0:21:06 > 0:21:08- That is so intricate.- Yeah.
0:21:08 > 0:21:11Ah, the Swiss didn't become famous for their watches for nothing!
0:21:15 > 0:21:18Suitably humbled, I'm heading back to the station,
0:21:18 > 0:21:21and south once more to Lake Geneva.
0:21:27 > 0:21:30- Bonjour, Monsieur. Ca va?- Ca va.
0:21:31 > 0:21:32- Merci, Monsieur.- Merci.
0:21:34 > 0:21:39In 1913, this journey would have taken over three hours by train,
0:21:39 > 0:21:41but by Swiss InterCity today,
0:21:41 > 0:21:44I'll arrive in just over an hour and a half.
0:21:50 > 0:21:53I've followed my guidebook pace by pace.
0:21:53 > 0:21:54"From the railway station,
0:21:54 > 0:21:58"the broad rue descends to the Pont du Mont Blanc,
0:21:58 > 0:22:00"across the end of the lake.
0:22:00 > 0:22:03"The views from the bridge and from the neighbouring quays
0:22:03 > 0:22:07"are very beautiful, especially on clear summer evenings."
0:22:17 > 0:22:22I'm up early to explore my final destination, Geneva.
0:22:24 > 0:22:26At the time of my Bradshaw's,
0:22:26 > 0:22:29this small but already prosperous city,
0:22:29 > 0:22:31beneath its emblem, the Jet d'Eau,
0:22:31 > 0:22:34would have been buzzing and cosmopolitan.
0:22:37 > 0:22:41But what truly marks this city out as world-class
0:22:41 > 0:22:44is its involvement in international affairs.
0:22:48 > 0:22:50The League of Nations was headquartered here,
0:22:50 > 0:22:55where the first Geneva Conventions had been signed in 1864,
0:22:55 > 0:22:57and it was the birthplace of
0:22:57 > 0:22:59the International Committee of the Red Cross.
0:23:03 > 0:23:06Just up the road from its imposing headquarters,
0:23:06 > 0:23:09I'm extremely lucky to be getting access
0:23:09 > 0:23:11to a Red Cross checkpoint exercise,
0:23:11 > 0:23:14run by trainer Benjamin Varen.
0:23:14 > 0:23:17In real life, you must have found yourself at military checkpoints
0:23:17 > 0:23:20like the one you're simulating today.
0:23:20 > 0:23:22Yes. I think the one that marked me the most was when I was
0:23:22 > 0:23:27at a checkpoint and the soldiers there seemed intoxicated,
0:23:27 > 0:23:30and it was a very, very tense situation,
0:23:30 > 0:23:32because I had trouble connecting to them.
0:23:32 > 0:23:35The first thing you need to do at a checkpoint is try to connect with
0:23:35 > 0:23:38the people, and if you can't do that, it can go wrong
0:23:38 > 0:23:40and it can be quite scary as well.
0:23:42 > 0:23:44The shock of seeing 40,000 casualties
0:23:44 > 0:23:49at the Battle of Solferino spurred Geneva businessmen Henri Dunant
0:23:49 > 0:23:50to found the Red Cross.
0:23:52 > 0:23:55Originally, it had a paid staff of only eight,
0:23:55 > 0:23:58but that quickly grew after the First World War.
0:23:58 > 0:24:00Today, it has over 14,000.
0:24:07 > 0:24:10I've clearly stumbled upon a checkpoint.
0:24:10 > 0:24:14The road is barred with a tree trunk,
0:24:14 > 0:24:17and there are four or five heavily armed guys here,
0:24:17 > 0:24:20who all look pretty menacing to me.
0:24:20 > 0:24:22Not the sort of people you want to mess with.
0:24:24 > 0:24:26Today, Dunant's abiding principles -
0:24:26 > 0:24:30to provide a permanent relief agency for humanitarian aid in wartime -
0:24:30 > 0:24:33are followed often in the face of great danger.
0:24:35 > 0:24:38OK. Get out. Everybody out of the car.
0:24:39 > 0:24:43Red Cross staff are now deployed in 80 countries,
0:24:43 > 0:24:47and for these trainees, learning how to negotiate is key.
0:24:48 > 0:24:50OK, on the line. Here.
0:24:50 > 0:24:51Everyone.
0:24:52 > 0:24:55I want to know what you are doing on this road.
0:24:55 > 0:24:57We are heading to the hospital.
0:24:57 > 0:25:00Here I have the notification that we received the agreement
0:25:00 > 0:25:02with your government.
0:25:02 > 0:25:03Give me your passports.
0:25:07 > 0:25:10Tragically, attacks on the Red Cross have become more frequent,
0:25:10 > 0:25:13and workers have often been targeted.
0:25:15 > 0:25:18Is it OK for you if my colleague just check very fast
0:25:18 > 0:25:20if you don't have any weapons, because it's about our security.
0:25:20 > 0:25:23Come on, get it done. She's injured.
0:25:23 > 0:25:26It seems that the situation is really deteriorating.
0:25:26 > 0:25:28They've been here an awfully long time now.
0:25:28 > 0:25:30Tempers are getting a little bit frayed.
0:25:30 > 0:25:33Voices are now being raised. It's not going so well.
0:25:33 > 0:25:34Give back the passports.
0:25:37 > 0:25:38Thank you very much.
0:25:38 > 0:25:39The Red Cross worker...
0:25:39 > 0:25:40Check they're all there.
0:25:40 > 0:25:45..is armed only with one of the most recognisable symbols in the world -
0:25:45 > 0:25:48the Red Cross on a white background,
0:25:48 > 0:25:49the reverse of the Swiss flag.
0:25:50 > 0:25:54Do you have any safety and security information for us?
0:25:54 > 0:25:57- What we have to do?- There's been shooting this morning in this area.
0:25:57 > 0:25:59That's all I can tell you. Now, if you want to risk your life and
0:25:59 > 0:26:03go this way, with the clearance you have received and the explanation
0:26:03 > 0:26:05you have given me, OK, you can proceed.
0:26:05 > 0:26:06It's at your own risk.
0:26:06 > 0:26:08One, two, three.
0:26:09 > 0:26:11Don't worry, don't worry. Stay calm.
0:26:11 > 0:26:15It seems this group has successfully negotiated its way through.
0:26:15 > 0:26:17GUNFIRE
0:26:17 > 0:26:20Get down! Get down!
0:26:20 > 0:26:21Move! Move down.
0:26:27 > 0:26:29Move, move, move! Come on!
0:26:32 > 0:26:33Move down!
0:26:33 > 0:26:36Go to the car and move.
0:26:36 > 0:26:37Now!
0:26:40 > 0:26:43A most extraordinary turn of events.
0:26:43 > 0:26:47Just as they'd negotiated their way through, we came under fire.
0:26:47 > 0:26:48Explosions all around.
0:26:48 > 0:26:50The soldiers have put them in the car.
0:26:55 > 0:26:58A dramatic conclusion to events.
0:27:00 > 0:27:05Seeing the Red Cross in action makes me realise what an impact
0:27:05 > 0:27:07the qualities of this small nation have had.
0:27:10 > 0:27:15A country dominated by mountains and, in winter, by snow,
0:27:15 > 0:27:20has nonetheless possibly the world's most efficient railway system.
0:27:20 > 0:27:25That suggests that the Swiss people are ingenious and exceptional.
0:27:25 > 0:27:29They sell watches and banking services to the world,
0:27:29 > 0:27:32and host several international organisations.
0:27:32 > 0:27:37And yet, over the centuries, they've held themselves apart,
0:27:37 > 0:27:40remaining neutral during two World Wars,
0:27:40 > 0:27:44and staying out of Nato and the European Union.
0:27:44 > 0:27:46Unlike most European countries,
0:27:46 > 0:27:50neither their people nor their beautiful cities
0:27:50 > 0:27:53have been devastated during the 20th century.
0:27:53 > 0:27:59They have thrived on a fondue of prosperity and peace.
0:28:00 > 0:28:04'Next time, I set my sights on the Italian Riviera...'
0:28:04 > 0:28:07What do you say in Italian for "take that"?
0:28:07 > 0:28:09Prendi la mira.
0:28:09 > 0:28:13'..as I take off on a new Bradshaw's railway tour...'
0:28:13 > 0:28:16My country's future depends on this.
0:28:18 > 0:28:21'..for a taste of La Dolce Vita.'
0:28:21 > 0:28:24- The secret of good pesto is... - Muscle!
0:28:24 > 0:28:27Buono, buono, buono! I'm so excited!