Olympic football

Our men at the match inspecting the Wembley arch

Flags of the Olympic nations at Wembley

Gabon v South Korea: score 0:0

Two young 'stringers' covered Olympic football at Wembley for me last night while I experienced unwelcome aspects of London hospitality as follows: the house white wine I ordered was substituted by some horrible sickly sweet cordial; when I asked the bar assistant if it was the usual Colombard she paused long and hard before trying: 'It's different tonight'. 'You're telling me' I said. 'Shall I change it?' 'Don't bother - throw it away. I'm going out' (suiting the action to the word). At the local fish restaurant, the inexperienced young waiter spent a long time explaining what their house white was, before explaining that they had run out. I ordered their house salad, advertised as 'avocado, tomato and cucumber'. When a plate heaped with salad leaves arrived, with two ( I counted them) bits of tiny bits of avocado hiding shyly inside, I requested - and was given - what was specified on the menu. For dessert I was encouraged to go for a 'special' - Eton Mess, whose indispensable ingredients are meringue, cream and strawberries. A dish of sticky meringue arrived decorated with three raspberries. Hey ho. A couple of days off live sport now until the Graeco-Roman wrestling on Sunday, so this blog will roam the wilder outposts of southwest London reporting on the informal aspects of Olympics 2012.