Geneva Diary Part 3

Day three in Geneva. I spent the morning trying desperately (and perhaps pointlessly) trying to rescue the lace shawl I’m knitting and then we walked to the park, one of those large, manicured affairs of which they are fond on the continent. The park is home to one of Geneva’s most prestigious restaurants, in front of which is an ice skating rink. I was amused to see children skating with the help of small plastic zimmer-frame constructions – and even more so to see an adult slipping around with one. The park also features a huge and elaborate monument to religious and political freedom commemorating events such as the translation of the Bible into English, the sailing of the Mayflower, Magna Carta…all events with which the people of Geneva apparently feel a kinship due to the city’s 1602 victory against the Duke of Savoy, which allowed it to preserve its political and religious independence.

From the park, we wandered on to Plainpalais, which is a huge, flat, concreted area which is presently home to a fun fair and a rather bedraggled market. Most of the stalls held cheese, greengrocery and overpriced market stall clothing, but the one that caught my eye was a Lebanese stall where a gentleman was baking rouch flatbreads on what looked like an upturned wok. The breads, made of dough which is either spiced or flavoured with olives, are rolled out flat, cooked, and then spread with any combination of houmous, spicy spinach, baba ghannouj and ‘lebanese spices’. Absolutely delicious and a great way to warm up on a cold day! I wish I could remember what they called them.

Next stop was Café Remor, which I loved, it was so delightfully eccentric and olde-worlde-y. They keep the cakes and pastries in a hollowed out piano and serve homemade ice creams in fascinating flavours. I tried saffron flavour, which came with a delicate lemon wafer. Definitely somewhere I intend to visit again!
Our ultimate destination was a chess open. I had never visited one before. It was held in a really retro building, with a mass of tables laid out. The players were of all ages – but overwhelmingly male. I was amazed to see pre-teen boys pitting themselves against adults. At the head of the room was a platform with just two tables – the big players, one of them, I learnt, a Grand Master.

Of more interest to me was the nearby synagogue, which is so large and famous that the road on which it sits is called ‘Rue de la synagogue’. Geneva is not particularly diverse, so I’m guessing this one building accommodates all the city’s Jewry.

Home, dinner, more Toy Story :)