Putin, his personal driver and me!

A hilarious story from my time as GM of the David Citadel Hotel, Jerusalem.

President Putin visited Israel during April 2005 and stayed at the David Citadel Hotel Jerusalem.

I had the pleasure of welcoming him on his arrival and bidding him farewell on his departure.

The one humorous event that occurred during his visit actually happened in the underground car park of the hotel. The Presidential Mercedes Limousine has been flown in with the delegation, and was the talk of the hotel. It was bulletproof and equipped with high tech modern communication equipment. I wanted to take a look, so I requested that one of his interpreters accompany me down to the car and explain the gadgetry and features of the Russian Presidents car.

The car was guarded 24 hours by one of the drivers who greeted us when we arrived, and explained about the thick glass bulletproof windows, the communication gear and also that the tires were solid rubber that couldn’t be shot out.

As a joke, I asked the interpreter to explain to the driver that these cars were not very reliable, and that should it break down as expected, I would be honored to lend the President my Peugeot 407, an excellent replacement.

The burly Russian driver had no sense of humor. He looked at the interpreter as he conveyed my message, looked at me with scorn and then told me curtly, “One of the wheels of my Mercedes is worth more than your car!”

All of us at the hotel enjoyed the Russian visit very much, from the State dinner held in his honor by President Katsav of Israel, down to camaraderie with his personal Chef and members of his staff.