Something is afoot in jolly old England. It started in Durham. One of the first storefronts we came to after walking down the hill and across the river to town was the Caffe Nero [yes, that is the way they spell cafe] -- the best coffee between here and Milan, they advertised. And it was excellent coffee. Caffe Nero not only sold good espresso [and other coffees], it was doing a booming business. It was always full. We had been forewarned that Durham was a dreadful place for eating, and here was a bit of coffee heaven right in the center of town. It was also, as already noted, a fine place for a muffin, which meant strong appeal to almost every member of the party -- Anna being the toffee and banana muffin eater.

But that was not the end. There was a Caffe Nero in York -- two we think but we found only one of them. York was also a 2 Starbucks town, and we found both -- though we stuck to Caffe Nero for coffee. Then there were local coffee houses in York that may have served good coffee. Hopping down to London -- we were walking the streets on our first evening in town and what should we find but a Caffe Nero only two blocks away from our bed and breakfast. Easy walking distance for coffee lovers.

Coffee houses that serve good coffee seem to be sweeping the country. We asked about the coffee machine at the Bosworth battlefield [where Richard III became ex-king, taking Richard Ratcliffe with him to an early grave], thinking even it might make acceptable coffee. Not so. It produced only flavoured espressos -- espresso with chocolate, for example. We have also been drinking tea with breakfast, thinking that bed and breakfasts know how to do that very well, and their coffee making is [at least] suspicious.

But this "afoot" does not seem limited to coffee. There are also the "grass clippings." In Durham we found a tall food restaurant that served mixed lettuces in their salads. OK, that was an upscale restaurant. It may signal little. But then we were purchasing for the picnic we planned  for Yarm -- for the trip from Durham to Whitby. So we charged into Marks and Spencer, an upscale grocery store [which itself seems quite extraordinary for the standard version of English eating], and there we found mixed lettuces by the bag. It was a happy day for the grass eaters in the crowd -- Anna and I were happy that they were happy, but we were willing to eschew grass clippings for the picnic. In fact, Anna eschews grass clippings on every occasion, but I rather like them at the appropriate moment. Heading for London from Beverley we needed another picnic so we headed to the local Safeway one block from our bed and breakfast. When what to our wondering eyes should appear -- mixed lettuces by the bag full.

Mixed lettuces by the bag are sweeping the country -- along with espresso. What is jolly old England -- the culinary backwash of the world -- coming to?

Espresso and mixed leaves seem to signal a broader movement afoot. We have been able to find quite good restaurants almost everywhere we have been. In Durham it was Chadwicks. As far as we could tell it was the only excellent restaurant in Durham, but one is enough. In York we looked forward to the Cafe Rouge [assuming that it still existed] our favorite from two years ago. It was still there and we had two evening meals at the Cafe Rouge. But there was also Kites -- quite a nice, upscale restaurant where you ate on the third floor up [or second floor, as they say]. And the first night Anne and I had found Pierre's -- just across the park from our bed and breakfast and had a pleasant french style meal there. And we ate there at lunch one day.

We were sure Beverley would be a challenge; we did not anticipate Ceruti2. There is a Ceruti 1 in Hull, and the guidebook says Ceruti [1] is one of Hull's finest restaurants, and they have a second restaurant in Beverely, which is only a few miles from Hull. Ceruth2 was only a couple of blocks from our bed and breakfast -- located in the railroad station. The location did not seem promising. Nevertheless, we went. It was very surprising. It was so surprising that we returned the next night. The physical ambience was white -- walls, ceiling, posts, and tables. The cultural ambience was proper. With every course they would take away the flatware we did not need and replace it with the pieces we would need. Proper was not all. They served excellent food, which is why we went back for a second meal.

On to London, where we found Bella Pasta just down the street from our bed and breakfast; a restaurant at which we had eaten in Durham. It was ok in Durham and no better in London. The cigarette smoke did not go well with our party. Then we found Cafe Rouge in London. It was Anna's favorite restaurant in York, and she was almost as pleased with the London Cafe Rouge that we tried on Sunday night. There are a dozen, or so, of them in London, but the first one we tried was a pleasant evening meal with a very French speaking wait person.

We have been busy eating our way across much of England -- Glasgow to London. So far the food has been much to our liking.

In the north we had more to do. Our first day in York we followed the route of the Corpus Christi celebration of more than 500 years ago. Henry Boynton and his mother Agnes Scrope Boynton Ratcliffe were members of the Guild and marched in the procession. And Margaret del See Boynton was a member of the Guild and marched in the procession a decade later. We followed their footsteps beginning at Micklegate and the Priory Church of the Holy Trinity. It was the starting point for a pageant that required all day to play out its 40+ plays. It was just barely raining as we started. Anna had her purple coat; I had my umbrella.

The high point of the journey was the church of St. Martin of Tours. It was the home of the low flying gargoyles. It had a large number of particularly ugly gargoyles, but the low ones were the favorites of Anna and her friends. She had her own dragon with her, who she introduced to the low gargoyles.

We ended at the minster of York. It is a large and very lovely church under the care of the archbishop of York.

Afternoon and time to feed the pigeons. That is definitely one of the favorite sports of the youngest member of the party. She can spend large amounts of time distributing food to whatever pigeons can be attracted. And the park at St. Mary's Abbey in York is a fine place to attract pigeons.

There is much more to do in York, but this was enough for our first day.