A Soiree in Istanbul

I arrived in Istanbul on Wednesday morning after a very early flight from Bucharest.  It was a nice day, sunny and 80 degrees.  Our driver met me at the airport.  There are few things in life more comforting than being picked-up at the airport by a driver, but after a long three weeks of traveling,  this was nice.  He drove us along the water on the European side.  It takes a few minutes longer but much more enjoyable.

When I got to the office, our country leader invited me to a formal Turkey-French Soiree (Chamber of Commerce meeting).  We spent 7+ hours in meetings, I am road weary and would prefer to sleep.  I gave a lame excuse... I didn't bring a tie.  Of course he had an extra one so I had to say yes.

I don't know if you have ever been to something like this, but it is usually average food, lots of presentations with polite applauds and long.  All I could think about is 3 hours of French and Turkish business gibber-jabber.  On top of being tired I thought I was in for one long boring night.

My attitude took a dramatic turn for the better when we arrived.  First, it was outdoors, next to water.  We could watch the cargo ships (big boats) and cruise liners up close and personal.  Second, we had wine and appetizers (fresh olives and Turkish hazelnuts).  True there were guys in tuxes and ladies in gowns, but right then I was enjoying the moment.

The dinner was nothing to write about and the presentations were in French & Turkish.  After that it got better.  The presentations only lasted 30 minutes, the moon came out over the water and the wine kept coming... 

All that alone was worth the lack of sleep, but then there was a concert.  Candan Ercetin a top recording star in Turkey gave a 2 hour concert during the meal.  She had a ten piece jazz and blues band and her voice reminded me of a mix between Nora Jones and Susan Tedesci (yea, I know, a crazy combination).  I would guess she is in her early 40s.  She wasn't Lady Gaga or Madonna, but everyone in the place knew her and her music.  People were singing, dancing, clapping and waving their napkins to every song.  She sang in French, English and Turkish.  The last 20 minutes of the show was nothing but traditional Turkish music.  The whole time on stage she danced and swayed and played with the audience.  In case you couldn't tell, I thoroughly enjoyed it.

One of the moments I will remember for a long time was when she finished a song and told us she would take a short break as the mosque was about to call people to prayer.  She know sooner walked off stage and the prayer chants started from the local mosque prayer tower.  I was extremely impressed with the respect for religious observation, something I'm told Istanbul is famous for.  Could you imagine that happening at a concert?

On my way out of the office today my friends presented me with a CD from her.  I can't wait to go home and load it on my iPad.  I'm sure when I hear it, I'll close my eyes and remember one of the best business events I ever attended.