In the UK you’d count yourself lucky to find a Shell garage with a Ginster’s-branded microwave and a working Costa machine. The average service station in Italy, on the other hand, is a culinary delight. Espresso is deliciously rich, arancini are made on site and there are little tables to stand around and read the paper. People stop there for the food itself, not as an add-on to the petrol.

I can recommend stopping at any of the dozens of such service stations en route from Marco Polo Airport in Venice to the Dolomites in the north of Italy. I can also recommend taking the route that passes through the town of Agordo – so picturesque it might be walled with giant postcards, and a superb spot to grab another coffee.