I spent less than a week here and worked till at least 7:30pm each night, so my appraisal of the Konak area of Izmir is always going to be limited, so I apologise in advance if my perspective of the area is inaccurate in any…Read More

I spent less than a week here and worked till at least 7:30pm each night, so my appraisal of the Konak area of Izmir is always going to be limited, so I apologise in advance if my perspective of the area is inaccurate in any way, but this is it.

My overwhelming impression of the city and especially the Konak area was that I could easily have been working in a less attractive place, I had really landed on my feet with this assignment. I wished I'd brought my wife, but not knowing anything about the area before I went, I didn't know how she would have occupied herself, or even whether it would have been a safe place for her to wander around alone. I need not have worried. A street full of interesting shops and department stores were a 10-minute walk away, and the promenade was a lovely place to sit, enjoy some sun and read.

The promenade is a very pleasant pedestrianised sea front walk/meet area. It gets well used throughout the day, but especially at night when lots of young people meet there to talk, walk and pass the time. Older men also go there to talk, smoke and to line-fish. If you walk along towards Izmir you can watch the ferry boats arrive and leave for destinations across the bay at 5 or 10 minute intervals.

Back into Izmir, the Konak area centres around a beautiful square. I bought a disposable camera to get some snaps and used the lot before I turned the corner onto the best bit, the square. If only my spider-senses had not momentarily deserted me I'd have had some better photos to post.

There are plenty of shops close to the main square, small and medium sized, some relatively expensive boutique-style, some bargain orientated, catering for people who live and work in the city. Izmir is lucky in some ways not to have a beach. There are few tourists and little of the hassle, rip-offs and irritations that go with an out-and-out tourist destination, especially in Turkey.

Izmir is Turkey's third city with three million inhabitants, on my ride back to the airport I got an insight as to how much it sprawls away from the coast. These areas are understandably less pretty and there is less reason if any to make these industrial and work-a-day residential areas part of your itinerary, so as a visitor you would stick mainly to the shore and commercial parts of the city.

Frankly I can't wait to go again, but next time I must try to allow myself a day either side of work to fully explore and enjoy more of this lovely city.

One final point - the city faces west onto the Aegean, so you get the most beautiful sunsets over the sea. The best daily free show on earth you could say. These should enjoyed from the multitude of excellent open-fronted restaurants that line much of the immediate shore area in the main part of the city. Failing that, you could just sit on the shore's edge and simply watch. A better option, maybe, for borderline fatties like me.

If you walk to the sea from the clock tower, you will see the dock where the ships leave to Karsiyaka ("the other side" is the direct translation). It is a pleasant half hour journey to the other side of the city, which is one…Read More

If you walk to the sea from the clock tower, you will see the dock where the ships leave to Karsiyaka ("the other side" is the direct translation). It is a pleasant half hour journey to the other side of the city, which is one of the most fashionable neighbourhoods of the city. The ship dock of Karsiyaka has a media shop upstairs, which sells a variety of Turkish and other newspapers, books, and magazines. If you walk direct ahead, you will enter the shopping district of Karsiyaka. It is a very enjoyable shopping street, no cars allowed.

At the very end of the street, there is the railway station where I used to sit under the trees enjoying my tea along the railway. The boulevard of Karsiyaka is also a relaxing place to walk or to observe the upper-class Karsiyaka people doing business as usual in the cafes and patisseries (especially Café 06, which is yummy yummy) along the boulevard.

The absolute centre of Izmir is the clock tower, which was built in 1901. The clock itself was a present to the Sultan from German Emperor Wilhelm II. The tiny mosque behind is named 'Ingiliz (English) Ayse’, but there is not much evidence as to…Read More

The absolute centre of Izmir is the clock tower, which was built in 1901. The clock itself was a present to the Sultan from German Emperor Wilhelm II. The tiny mosque behind is named 'Ingiliz (English) Ayse’, but there is not much evidence as to who built it or who was this lady called ‘Ingiliz Ayse’. To the north, you will see a statue holding a flag in one hand and a gun in the other. He was a journalist who first resisted the Greek during the WWI: Hasan Tahsin. If you walk to the old white building to the east, which still serves the city, you can enter Kemeralti along the street next to it. Close

Just a short journal to bring a couple of things to the attention of future users. 1. The entry visa: You need a 30 day tourist visa for entry into Turkey. What that means is that on arrival, BEFORE you pass through passport control,…Read More

Just a short journal to bring a couple of things to the attention of future users.

1. The entry visa: You need a 30 day tourist visa for entry into Turkey. What that means is that on arrival, BEFORE you pass through passport control, you must pay £10 for a little stamp in your passport. A couple of things to watch out for here. Firstly, the little kiosk dishing the stamps out is on the FAR SIDE of the line of 12 or so passport control booths, and there is no signage telling you to go to the visa booth first. That means many people automatically join the lines, wait ages to get to the front, then get told to go and get a stamp and start again. So when you arrive you must WALK PAST all the passport control booths to the little kiosk on the end, get your stamp, THEN join the line. The second thing is that you must pay in your own currency (£, $ etc) and you must pay the EXACT AMOUNT - they don't give change. Worse, if you are travelling as part of a couple and offer a £20 note as payment for both people (i.e. £10 each), for some reason they don't accept this either. They'll keep the £20 for person number 1, then ask for another £10 for person number 2 - you have been warned.

2. Baggage - maybe it was a one-off, but I'd checked my bag through to Izmir, and after passing through passport control, quite by chance, I spotted my bag rotating alone on the carousel. So I rescued it and re-checked it. I can't say how typical this problem is, but again a word of warning.

3. Turkish Airlines: George W was in town for a NATO summit when I passed through, so maybe this factor might have been to blame, but I did notice that every single local departure with Turkish Airlines was delayed on the day of my visit. Not that George W causes problems wherever he goes, of course ... My flight was delayed three hours while a technical problem was resolved, however. This I know because I watched from the gate window while a team of eight technicians took an engine to bits then re-assembled it by torch light on the tarmac. Now I will admit that I held my breath during take off on that short flight.

On the plus side, though, the airport has an easy to walk and navigate route from international to local departures (10-minute walk), and a nice duty-free area. Signage and traveler info in the terminals is also good, as is cleanliness and temperature control.

Leaving the pier behind, walk along the sea. There are many pubs, restaurants, and other entertainment establishments. There are also upmarket shops such as Vakko (clothing), D&R (media), and many others.…Read More

Leaving the pier behind, walk along the sea. There are many pubs, restaurants, and other entertainment establishments. There are also upmarket shops such as Vakko (clothing), D&R (media), and many others.Close

If you walk a kilometer or two to the south west of Izmir, following the coast road, you will end up in Mithatpasa. It’s another location where the Jewish preferred to live in the last century. On the way, there is the beautiful Beth Israel…Read More

If you walk a kilometer or two to the south west of Izmir, following the coast road, you will end up in Mithatpasa. It’s another location where the Jewish preferred to live in the last century. On the way, there is the beautiful Beth Israel synagogue (Mithatpasa cad, no. 265). A hundred meters further on is the lift built to reach upper part of town. It was built in 1907 by Nessim Levi to link Mithatpasa Street to Halil Rifatpasa Street. This place is a real treat. You can watch great views from here, have a beer, or have a whole meal for very affordable prices.Close