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Olympics – London 2012; Indeed “inspires a generation” and Men’s Cycling Road Race by our street!

Have you watched the London 2012 Olympics Opening Ceremony? What a glorious, breathtaking, welcoming event it was.  It always fascinates me how this wonderful event bring people, nations all over the world together, celebrates diversity,  inspires fair game, hope and friendship. If you haven’t had a chance to watch, please tune in BBC’s iplayer Olympic Ceremonies – London 2012 Online – you won’t be disappointed!  One of my favorite parts has been the Queen’s appearance with James Bond, where two of them made their way by helicopter to the Olympic Stadium – please check out Queen and Bond unite for London 2012 Olympics video ; unforgettable, we will be watching again and again.

Weybridge, Surrey dresssed up for the Men’s Cycle Race

Here in Surrey, England, we have been very lucky to watch and cheer for the Men’s Road Race Cyclists, passing through our door step. We lined up with thousands of other folks cheering for the racers, an incredible, unforgettable atmosphere; here are some photos from our street in Weybridge during the race:

One of the many bicycles decorated for the race!

Cheers for Team GB's Mark Cavendish!

We are all lined up waiting for the racers!

 

And here they are!

 

... and gone in a flash!

And here are the wonderful game makers of volunteers, who helped the games happen, posing with a happy relief after the race

I know many folks are getting together to watch the games and share a delicious bite. Here are some ideas for you to spice up your London 2012 get -togethers;

Zucchini fritters with feta and dill; delicious, a real crowd pleaser; you can prepare ahead of time and enjoy with friends and family.

Zucchini fritters with feta and dill; wonderful with garlic yoghurt by the side

Puff pastry pockets with cheese, potato and parsley; you can serve these delicious treats as a starter or you can enjoy them for lunch with salad or with afternoon tea.

Puff pastry with cheese and potato, delicious treats

Like sports and music, love of food brings people together and celebrates diversity. I feel very lucky to get to know many wonderful bloggers all around the world. Here I wanted to share and celebrate  some wonderful recipes showcasing the cuisines of some of my favorite bloggers – these may be a wonderful addition to your Olympic Games party spread too :

Peri’s Spice Ladle’s grilled south-indian-style lamb chops with yellow daal – what a wonderful way to spice up the BBQ!

Cuisine de Provence’s Tian of sun kissed vegetables would be perfect aside to some BBQ’d lambchops 🙂

How about Kalofagas’ delicious mouthfulls of ouzo-cured salmon? Very tempting, and so refreshing with slices of cucumbers!

I love My Italian Kitchen’s Mediterranean inspired salads, and this summer salad would go so well with the Games!

Last but not least, Phil’s delicious and seriously addictive Cake-meringue pie would be a wonderful finish for an Olympic feast!

London 2012's wonderful slogan; "inspire a generation"

One of the slogans of London 2012 has been “Inspire a generation”; I loved the fact that during the Opening Ceremony, the cauldron consisting of 204 petals (one for each competing nation or territory) were lit by seven young athletes chosen by British Olympic champions. What a lovely way to inspire and empower the future generation. London 2012 has had a very promising start and I am sure it will be an inspiration for a generation to come.

 London is buzzing with excitement again. Hope you enjoy London 2012!

Ozlem

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16 Responses to Olympics – London 2012; Indeed “inspires a generation” and Men’s Cycling Road Race by our street!

  1. CuisinedeProvence July 28, 2012 at 4:06 pm #

    The Bond episode was my favorite, too!

    • Ozlem July 28, 2012 at 4:13 pm #

      loved every bit of it!:)

  2. Peri July 28, 2012 at 4:58 pm #

    What a wonderful post, dear Ozlem! The opening ceremony and the entire games are an event out here too…we have a strong Team USA and a few swimmers are from our aquatic center! How amazing that the cyclists passed through your street, fun times and makes you part of the action…

    And thanks for making our grilled Lamb chops a part of the menu, so happy to see it in this worldwide celebration of sports:)

    • Ozlem July 29, 2012 at 11:03 am #

      Hi Peri, I watched the US swimmers – men- last nite, you sure do have a stong team, best wishes! It’s wonderful to witness the games, great atmosphere:) Your BBQ is always welcome at this household, delighted to share yummy lamb chops:)

  3. BacktoBodrum July 28, 2012 at 7:59 pm #

    I’m trying to catch it on You Tube now. I’m without a TV in Sweden so can’t watch iplayer. I think the Olympics will be finished when I finally get home.

    • Ozlem July 29, 2012 at 11:00 am #

      I hope you can – I had a cooking class at the Opening ceremony evening, so I did miss a chunk of it – but you can catch the whole thing on BBC’s iplayer too if you can – enjoy Sweden!

  4. Phil in the Kitchen July 28, 2012 at 10:25 pm #

    Thanks so much for including my cake meringue pie in that lovely menu – there are some very fine dishes there. I wouldn’t recommend my dessert to an athlete just before an event, though, it might just slow them down a bit. Maybe after the event. Surrey does look quite festive this summer.

    • Ozlem July 29, 2012 at 10:59 am #

      You are welcome Phil, your cake would be just thing while watching Olympics – Surrey does look very festive, wonderful that the spirit of Olympics bring people together.

  5. Susan July 29, 2012 at 12:05 pm #

    How completely & totally exciting!

    • Ozlem July 29, 2012 at 2:46 pm #

      Atmosphere is amazing Susan, hope that the blog helps to capture!

  6. alida July 29, 2012 at 1:38 pm #

    These are interesting shots of the Olympics games.
    I am in Italy for the summer so I am going to miss them all!
    Thank you very much for the link to my blog. I really appreciate it.
    Keep going, your recipes are really professional!

    • Ozlem July 29, 2012 at 2:45 pm #

      Ciao Alida,
      You are very welcome, enjoy Italy! Many thanks for your kind words, as always.

  7. Julie July 30, 2012 at 2:11 pm #

    How exciting to be able to experience some of the Olympics right from your doorstep. I actually spent some of my childhood living in Weybridge, and these photos brought back so many great memories. The puff pastry pockets and fritters look delicious- definitely something to make for our iftar table this week! Thank you for sharing.

    • Ozlem July 30, 2012 at 8:36 pm #

      Hello Julie,
      Thanks for your wonderful comment, such a small world isn’t it? I wonder if Weybridge changed much since you were here?:) vVery glad the food gives some inspirations for iftar,
      Ozlem

  8. deniz August 1, 2012 at 6:10 pm #

    Thank you for sharing these gorgeous photos. I’m so happy you had a sunny day! And ohhh, how I’d love to have some mücver.
    With yogurt 🙂

    • Ozlem August 1, 2012 at 6:38 pm #

      Merhaba Deniz 🙂 Thank you to you too, the races were fun! It’s quite easy to knock up the zucchini fritters – mucver- hope you can have a go – I wished you were closer and I could share!

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