If you are looking for a quieter way into Italy from Switzerland, consider Slovenia.
Languages never seem to be a problem, you can pick up the bare essentials but you dont need fluency to find a campsite.
You may need a lot of maps, take a small scale Euro map and buy en-route but check out which ones you will need. Smaller lanes are only found on 1:200,000 and larger scale.
Try a long weekend shakedown tour before you go.