King David Hotel prepares to welcome world leaders before Holocaust forum

“It’s going to be like a mini United Nations with controlled chaos and the security will be like Fort Knox,” said Sheldon Ritz, the Dan Hotels chain’s director of sales for embassies and ministries.

By GREER FAY CASHMAN
King David Hotel, Jerusalem, prepares arrival next week of royals, presidents and foreign ministers who will be attending the fifth World Holocaust Forum, January 2020 (photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)
King David Hotel, Jerusalem, prepares arrival next week of royals, presidents and foreign ministers who will be attending the fifth World Holocaust Forum, January 2020
(photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)
At Jerusalem’s King David Hotel on Thursday morning, the flags of different nations were already in place in the lobby lounge at the entrance to the reading room.
There are almost always one or two foreign flags in the lobby of the King David, which many foreign dignitaries prefer not only for its service but also for its snob value, and perhaps more importantly, because it has the best security system of all the hotels in the country.
The proliferation of foreign flags was in readiness for the arrival next week of royals, presidents and foreign ministers who will be attending the fifth World Holocaust Forum that is being held a few days ahead of the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz.
One flag had to be removed because Ireland, which had initially notified it would send a delegation, backed out.
“It’s going to be like a mini United Nations with controlled chaos and the security will be like Fort Knox,” said Sheldon Ritz, the Dan Hotels chain’s director of sales for embassies and government ministries.
The most difficult challenge, he said, would be breakfast, not because of any special demands made on behalf of or by any of the dignitaries, but because there could be no preparations without the approval of the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency).
It’s not like old times where a taster had to digest a spoonful of everything on the plate before it was served to the king, but according to Ritz, the Shin Bet decides, according to a list given to its operators, what goes on what plate.
Ritz did not anticipate that any of the dignitaries accommodated in suites would come down to the main dining room for breakfast. “These are people who eat in their suites,” he said.
This was subsequently confirmed by Executive Chef David Bitton, while standing in his pristine stainless-steel kitchen in which there is a notice on the wall about hand washing and general kitchen hygiene.
The visit to the kitchen, accessible from the hotel’s famed La Regence restaurant, also solved the mystery as to why the chicken soup at the King David is different in taste and color from the classical pale gold broth. A large cauldron of chicken soup was on the stove and in addition to the chicken legs, it was flavored with beef bones.
Bitton said that there had not been any special requests regarding food, not even for national flag frosting on cakes.
“The requests always come at the last minute, and we’re geared for that,” he said.
Nonetheless, he and his staff will have their work cut out for them because  up until Thursday, there were 20 different events in the hotel ordered on behalf of various delegations. That number is likely to rise, even though for most guests it will be only a two-day stay and most of the time will be spent outside the hotel.
Ritz is usually the person who speaks to journalists when royalty, presidents, prime ministers and foreign ministers are staying at the hotel, but this time he really did not have time to talk, and a press tour of preparations was instead led by King David General Manager Haim Shkedi and Eran Hendler, who is currently the hotel’s head of operations.
The first of the important guests who is scheduled to arrive is the one who’s traveling the furthest distance, said Hendler. That happens to be Australian Governor General David Hurley.
Neither Shkedi nor Hendler nor Ritz were willing to disclose which royal personage or head of state would be staying in which suite, though Shkedi and Hendler did take us up to the sixth floor to show us the suite in room 634. But we had to wait until it was cleaned.
It had not actually occurred to any of us that anyone other than royalty or a head of state would occupy such a suite, but when we eventually did get inside we saw that the cleaning had not been entirely completed and a large plate of assorted fruit had been left untouched and was still covered with shrink wrap.
“Who would stay in such a room?” we asked.
“Someone who’s willing to spend $7,000 a night,” replied Shkedy.
This was the only suite we were shown and although we were not told that it was the most luxurious, we were told the size of 170 sq.m., which happens to be the size of the most luxurious suite in the building. If it goes to a royal, a king should receive precedence over a prince, but there’s more than one king. Then again, the prince or one of the presidents may come from a more powerful and influential country than either of the kings. The complicated protocol is dictated by the Foreign Affairs Ministry. Whether it will go to a royal or to a civilian head of state is anyone’s guess.
The décor is mainly brown and soft gold. There’s a lounge dining room separated by a large business desk. The lounge has a well-stocked bar, two very comfortable sofas, four large arms chairs, a coffee table, a large-screen television and a well-thumbed library of books in English, French and Hebrew.
There are 10 high-backed and well-upholstered chairs around a solid wooden dining table, as well as another well-stocked bar in the dining area.
The bedroom has a king-sized bed with a thick mattress, opposite which there is a television built into the wall. The separate bathroom has a large jacuzzi bath, two wash basins and a bidet. A small television screen is built into the mirror at right angles to the wash basin. The toilet is in a closed-door cubicle within the bathroom. A dressing room opposite the bathroom has a ceiling-to-floor mirror, ample hanging space, and lots of deep shelves. There is an additional bedroom leading off the dining area, usually occupied by an aide to the dignitary who is the main occupant of the suite.
Heads of state, prime ministers and foreign ministers are usually the guests of the Foreign Ministry, which foots the bill and gets an appreciable discount.
Hendler disclosed the discount makes good business sense because it means that the relationship with the MFA can continue, and the ongoing presence of kings, queens, princes, presidents and prime ministers adds to the prestige of the hotel.
All the suite have large bullet proof windows that look out over the panorama of the Old City walls and the barren hills beyond.
French President Emmanuel Macron will be the happiest, no matter which suite he gets, because guests looking out of the window of every suite will see the French flag flying atop the nearby French Consulate on Paul Emile Botha Street.
Not every head of state will be staying at the King David.
Russian President Vladimir Putin will be staying at the nearby David Citadel Hotel, although on a previous visit he did stay at the King David.
Because the Americans were late in confirming who would head their delegation, there was literally no room at the King David for US Vice President Mike Pence, who will be one of the speakers at the forum, and Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House of Representatives, who despite their political differences are both staying at the Crowne Plaza Hotel near the western entrance to Jerusalem.
As this is not the first time that the King David has hosted so many dignitaries in one fell swoop, Shkedi was asked what makes this event different from any others.
“This time we were told in advance and had plenty of time in which to prepare,” he said. “For the funerals of Yitzhak Rabin and Shimon Peres, we were given only a day or two’s notice – but we’re prepared to meet any challenge.”
One of the tough challenges will be in the pomp and ceremony department. The King David has four different entrances, and seldom knows in advance which one a VIP will use to enter the hotel. The general manager must always be on hand, and because the four entrances are controlled by the Shin Bet and the police, the general manager is like a dog chasing its tail until all the main dignitaries arrive.


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