Istanbul and on to Geneva. December 23, 2019
Greetings- Happy Hanukah!
We ended our stay in Istanbul with a delightful dinner at a traditional Turkish restaurant – with a wide assortment of mezze (we picked ceviche, a tomato salad, an octopus salad, stuffed zucchini, spicy eggplant, and a pepper salad – and for the main course we had the monkfish cooked in parchment paper. The restaurant is aptly called “Meze” and it was started just a few years ago by three architects who like food (perhaps better than buildings). We walked to the restaurant and walked back to the Georges. The little restaurant (seats about 25 people) is directly across from the Pera Palace Hotel (which we considered as an option). The Pera Palace is where Agatha Christie wrote the famous book, Murder on the Orient Express!
It was pleasantly cool during our time in Istanbul – great travel weather – but we know it will not last as we move on to both Geneva and then Uzbekistan.
It was great to return to Istanbul, even for such a brief time – to see the seven hills and the thousands of mosques that dot the city, to eat spectacularly well, to stroll around. But, it made me think that perhaps a longer trip to Istanbul (and a return to various other parts of the country) should be part of the bucket list. With its more than 3,000 mosques (with spectacular ones situated on each of the seven hills of the city) and its interesting Asian and European mix, its history, and of course its food – It’s a fascinating city even if only for a short time. Of course, there’s also the jailed journalists, lack of free press and media, detaining students who protest Erdogan, obstruction by police of construction workers protesting poor working conditions, and gross human rights violations of Uyghurs. So, the historic beauty of the city, the warmth of the people, and did I already mention the great food? Needs always to be understood in context – yet it’s so easy to romanticize as an outsider dipping into the country for fleeting moments.
We woke early on Monday to get to the very new, and very large Istanbul Airport to catch our Turkish Air flight. The airport (IST) is about an hour from the city and I gather it was a controversial project and involved displacement, corruption, and delays (sound familiar?). It’s like a mega mall – making the large quantity of shopping at Heathrow, Hong Kong, Singapore, and other airports pale in comparison. I’m told there is nearly 600,000 sq ft of shopping, not counting eateries. Anyway, as a result, the walks are very long to get to the planes, and the airport designers (in addition to making vastly high ceilings which help to balance the array of glitter, color, and lights coming at you) have built in many different stopping points for selfies and setups for photography… such as the one I’m pictured in above – getting ready to fly!
The check-in and boarding process was made fairly simple since Turkish Air treats Star Alliance Gold members quite nicely with special lines, early boarding, etc. The three-and-a-half-hour flight was fine; Turkish Air still serves food to all passengers regardless of class. And the arrival was simple, including finding our luggage immediately! But the lines in Geneva were long for customs (longer actually for EU and Swiss than for the “autres” like us.) We settled into the Tiffany Hotel in the arts district, close to the old town. It has about 60 rooms and is quiet and a bit old fashioned. We’ve stayed here before and know our way around – it’s close to the tram to Carouges which is where the family is.
We then hopped into a taxi to head to see Elizabeth, Hem, Emma, and little Finn (who is now 9 months old and of course totally adorable). Emma, (Mike’s niece) Hem (her husband), and Finn live in London and are here for the holidays; Julia, Mike’s other niece (who actually lives in Geneva) will arrive on the 26th with partner (now fiancé) and Louis (2 years old) and Ella (3 months old). They are in Bordeaux spending Christmas with Julian’s family… complicated. Anyway, we will all be together on the 27th and 28th when we will celebrate the holiday and make believe it is Christmas Day.
We had a wonderful casual meal cooked by Elizabeth – straight from Alice Water’s Chez Panisse cookbook!
We got back to the hotel around 11 and were actually quite exhausted. It was also a two hour change for us, so it was more like 1:00 am… although frankly I don’t think we really have a body time anymore.
I woke up early to finish this note… Today, we will keep it low key and I think we will head to the annual Christmas Market at Parc Bastion (about an 8 minute walk from the hotel) and we might even do a Jewish Christmas Eve tonight – Chinese food and a movie (something I did as a child every Christmas, along with lots of other Jewish families who didn’t celebrate Christmas – not sure how the tradition began, but I know that in San Francisco there is the Kung Pao Kosher Comedy Show held at a Chinese restaurant for the past 30 years or so. What I’ve always been told is that the practice of eating Chinese food on Christmas Eve goes back about a century… and that it began in New York City at the turn of the century when Jewish immigrants and Chinese immigrants found themselves living in close quarters on the Lower East Side. One common feature was that neither celebrated Christmas. So Chinese restaurant owners kept their restaurants open and Jews came to eat there and it began to be a tradition. Not sure how good Chinese food is here in Geneva, but it’s such an international city I’d imagine it will be fine. (It’s still in the planning stage, so it could change).
In our case, it’s because we are having the Christmas dinner and gift exchange on the 27th when everyone will be here in Geneva.
OK.. that’s it.
Have a wonderful Christmas Eve and Hanukah – be it at home or in a Chinese restaurant.
Fern
Fern's Travel Notes 