The Devils In the Detail

We are a stay at home family, my husband works online, we all play online, we socialise on line; in all we are too much online.

Determined to decrease our internet dependency, a £30 family rail ticket was purchased allowing reduced travel costs. I posted an online message to the husband and son explaining the plans. We would explore the nearby city of Exeter, take in the rich architecture, the lively culture and walk along the river.

Arriving at the train station we set off to collect the tickets that had been ordered online. There had been some sort of error resulting in tickets for one adult and one child. Nothing could be done, either one adult could go back home or we would have to purchase another adult ticket.    

Waiting for the Coach Train illustrated by AndyArtisan

Eventually we departed, on a coach! We were under the general impression that on reaching Tiverton Parkway we would then transfer to an actual train (after all we did have train tickets and a rail travel card). Unfortunately the driver was not going to Tiverton Parkway, though he did pass through Ivybridge, Totness and a handful of other little towns, arriving two and half hours later at Exeter.

There are, as any travel guide will tell you, many delights to be found in Exeter. The museum had exhibits that might have been organised during a drunken night out, and perhaps the person responsible for labeling them had a hangover because many of them had no corresponding information. Never the less there was education to be had and the neo gothic building was a joy in itself. In many ways Exeter is the buildings, yes it has the wide main shopping streets, but these are linked with narrow streets like arteries leading to the splendid Cathedral.

We looked in tiny shops, I bought some lovely beads, we walked along the river, and on the way back to the train station the child gazed into the window of The Patisserie Valerie; where his eyes rested on a Black Forrest Gateaux. We duly entered and purchased the delicious looking cake.

Black Forrest Gateaux illustrated by AndyArtisan

That scrumptious treat might have been placed in a paper bag and handed over to the child, but not at the Patisserie Valerie! To begin with service was supplied by a stylishly uniformed young woman with a genuine looking smile. The generous slab of cake, was first placed into a transparent container bearing the name of the Patisserie, the container was placed into a brown cardboard cake box of exactly the right size (this also bearing the Patisserie name and web address) until finally it was lowered with great care into a paper bag with carrying handles. The entire ritual was classy, the packaging a perfect balance of traditional and modern, and in short the rather mundane experience of purchasing a piece of cake had been turned into something very special. Alex Polizzi would have approved. Because presentation is all, the devil is in the detail and first impressions last.

If only, I lament, If only, my students, could get it: Presentation is all!