Cocktail of the Month ‘MIDNIGHT AT THE PERA PALACE’

BY JODY KURASH

President Biden awed the world last month with his top-secret surprise trip to Kyiv. “Amtrak Joe” and his entourage traveled overnight from Poland on Ukraine’s stateowned rail service in a luxury compartment.

Since the war began, global leaders Boris Johnson, Emmanuel Macron, Mario Draghi, Ursula von der Leyen and Justin Trudeau have traveled the same route, declared the safest and most secure way to visit the conflictravaged nation.

Long before “Train Force One,” a different “Train of Kings” existed in Europe. The Orient Express, a moving palace on the rails, opened in 1883 and traversed over 1700 miles from Paris to Istanbul. Along with kings, czars, spies and Europe’s elite class, fictional characters such as Hercule Poirot and James Bond cemented this train’s place in history.

While Turkey was as far into the Orient as this rail line would ever go, travelers capped off their journey with a stay at Istanbul’s glittering and glamorous Pera Palace hotel, an opulent inn, built to host passengers from the lavish train.

Famous guests have included Agatha