By Heidi Trautmann
They had come from all sides to celebrate Khora’s 1st birthday invited by its owner Merter Refikoglu, the intellectuals, writers, poets, theatre people and many young people; musicians came to serenading, a young group first – I have not found out the name yet – and the meanwhile famous ‘Gommalar’ not in their full strength but very present, having composed a birthday song. Café Khora, literary café a stone throw away from the Ledra Palace crossing, regularly visited by scene people from North and South. My friends Neriman Cahit, Ali Nesim, Mehmet Kansu had come, activist, writer and friend Aydin Mehmetali, journalists from both parts of Nicosia, Sibel Siber, internist and recently author of a book about her own thoughts and dreams somehow based on her experience with humanity; it will come out in English as well, she said. Yasar Ersoy, the grey eminence of theatre having published some volumes all about theatre in North Cyprus.
I wrote about the opening one year ago, a place for quality literature,
‘……..Merter Refikoğlu, the young man with blue eyes, has opened the Khora Kitap Café only three months ago after he had come back from London where he had made his master degree in city planning. City planning? Yes! “I am much too active to sit behind an office desk and waste my time waiting for a reply from other offices. So I took the chance and opened this bookshop plus Café where people who love books and are interested in exchanging news on the literature scene with people of likewise interests. It is sort of a dream for me.”
Merter Refikoglu has discussed his project with many friends from the literature and poetry scene, has talked to journalists and was given good recommendations.’
The Khora Kitap Café is situated on Muzzafer Pasa Cad. right at the traffic lights leading to the Ledra Palace check point. Tel. 392 228 9557, mobile 0533 834 7451.