I was in Geneva for a couple of days last week, and really like the city - what little I had a chance to see.
I thought I was being smart by staying at a hotel only about a 5-10 minute drive from the area where I’d be spending most of my time, until I saw the cost of cab rides. I think I spent about $125 in two days on cabs. Ouch!
During one of these cab rides, I had an interesting conversation with the driver. He was clearly not from Switzerland, so when asked where I lived, I responded with Canada and not Israel. It turned out that he was from Algeria. He went on to say that he spoke French, Spanish, Arabic…and Hebrew. Hebrew? I asked him if he was Jewish, and it turns out that he’s not, but rather than it interested him. So after a brief exchange in Hebrew (really odd), I asked him where he suggested I go for dinner that evening.
He said that there was a really good kosher restaurant on Ave. Jules Crosnier in the old city. Ok, so what are the odds of being in Geneva and finding a Hebrew-speaking Algerian who sends you to a kosher restaurant? I hadn’t planned on looking for such a place, but under these circumstances, how could I refuse?
I spent 40 CHF on the taxi to take me there, and walked up and down the small street 3 times before pulling out my phone and searching google until I found this site that listed the address. There was definitely no restaurant at this address. I guess they closed. The site showed another place, so I walked the 15 minutes to get there, only to find that it’s only open for lunch.
So much for that idea. I walked a bit more, found a big-top circus in the middle of a downtown park, and then wandered into a great little Italian place.
