India and China take centrestage

The first morning in Davos started with a sturdy trudge along snow-covered pavements winding through this tiny Swiss town, stunned by temperatures of minus ten, and amazed that it was still dark after eight thirty in the morning. The town is so deep in its high Alpine valley, that it takes hours for the sun to reach the houses, but as I walked my spirits were lifted as I saw the morning light hitting the stunningly beautiful mountain peaks far above me, covered in gleaming white snow.

I passed several roadblocks on the way to the conference centre, manned by very effective looking military, and I saw armed men on several roof-tops. Every year the centre of this tiny town turns into a highly secure camp, as hundreds of political leaders pass through.

Once into the conference centre, I found a maze of concrete corridors, lounges, and breakout rooms over three floors. Bewildering for a first-timer like myself, I was glad to meet a few friendly faces who were also struggling to find where they needed to be to be. Old friends greeted each other and the remarkable power of Davos' meetings started to take effect: people really do sit and talk, and do not rush off.

The sartorially delicate have been arguing over the right dress-code: smart casual or suit and tie. In the event it is about even, but regardless of clothing, everyone has found that they have to wear substantial snow-proof boots. Some of Dubai's brightest and best were late for their morning sessions as they went out shoe shopping to equip themselves with footwear that will get them to and from the conference centre, and to the many other venues around town that are used for different sessions all through the day.

Today walking was easy because there had been twenty centimetres of snow fall last night. But the clear weather means that the melting snow will freeze and tomorrow is expected to bring temperatures of minus twenty. Tough to walk on ice. Tough even to think in that sort of temperature!

The sessions so far have been dominated by economic discussions: how to deal with the financial crisis which started in America and is rippling through the world. There is remarkable agreement that the new global reality means that India and China will be able to weather the crisis, and may well help contain it for the benefit of the global economy.

But as the economic and business discussions continue, the politically aware are waiting for the big show in the evening, when Condoleezza Rice is due to talk, followed by Hamid Karzai. Arroyo has just cried off her press conference (we all wonder why) and there is a steady thrum of helicopters overhead as leaders come and go. Musharraf is supposed to be here somewhere, but he is not due to come to the main conference. Maybe he is in a secure hotel looking for support as he faces his serious problems in Pakistan.

A final note: one of the more esoteric sessions later in the week is on the power of scent, and how the right aroma can help deliver a social result: attracting customers into a store, keeping people longer in a meeting, or lifting people's spirits. I think I have detected a slight scent of summer flowers coming through the air-conditioning. I look forward to finding out what effect this has on our discussions.