The large city of Izmir is a popular place to use as a base to explore some of the surrounding sites such as Ephesus or Pamukkale. Although we didn’t come to the city for access to those sites, we did spend a few days exploring the city as well as the nearby ancient city of Pergamon.
Izmir
Izmir was built on the location of the ancient city of Smyrna. Unfortunately, most of it was destroyed by a fire during the Greco-Turkish War in 1922. As a result, today Izmir has more modern buildings than it does heritage sites.
Kadifekale Castle
One of the remaining structures from that time is Kadifekale Castle. Situated atop Mount Pagos, the fortification was built by Alexander the Great and rebuilt by Byzantines and then again by Ottomans. Almost all that is left of the fortified city of Smyrna are sections of the defensive wall and a few of its towers. The best part of the site is climbing up the towers for great views of the city sprawled out below.
The only other feature that remains is a Roman cistern. This large reservoir provided water to the city’s 15,000 inhabitants.
On the other side of the castle we could see remains of a Roman aqueduct with a busy road running through. We also looked toward a large head of the Father of modern Turkey, Atatürk, carved into the side of a cliff.
Fatih Mosque
Just below the castle is the prettiest mosque in the city. Fatih Mosque’s exterior is decorated in blue tiles. The colourful motif continues inside.
Izmir Boardwalk
One of Izmir’s nicest features is its long boardwalk. On one side, is the dark coloured Mediterranean Sea. On the other, modern apartment buildings rise up to the sky above. It’s a popular place for locals and we often saw fishermen along the shore. The water was very rough when we were there. Huge waves crashed into the seawall covering the boardwalk with their spray.
Konak Square
Across from the boardwalk is the large, open Konak Square with an Ottoman clock tower. In the same square is the cute Ottoman-built Konak Mosque. It’s exterior is adorned with pretty blue tiles around the windows and a short, attached minaret.
Kemeralti Bazaar
From the openness of the square, walking through the massive Kemeralti Bazaar felt a bit claustrophobic. Its labyrinth of lanes wind their way between the many shops. Unlike the waterfront, the age of many of the buildings make you feel like you’ve stepped back to the time of Ottoman rule. It’s such a tight place that the Ottoman’s Hisar Mosque is barely visible. Its outer walls are obstructed by busy shops and cafes.
Our favourite part of the bazaar was having a tea on colourful benches while listening to a lively folk band only steps from the old Mosque.
The city has a few nice spots, but it also has a lot of poverty. Run down homes in favela-style neighborhoods climb the city’s hills. Trash was littered on the streets, and we were approached by a lot of beggars, even in the nice parts of the city. All of this is so different from what we saw in the rest of Turkey.
Pergamon
A great day trip from Izmir is the Greco-Roman city of Pergamon that was built on the top of a hill during the reign of Alexander the Great. After him the most unlikely of people took control. First Philetarus the Eunuch became leader of the ancient city, but it was his nephew and nephew’s descendants who developed it into one of the most beautiful and affluent cities in the region. Eventually the Romans became rulers of the area and added their own flair to the wealthy city. It was apparently so opulent and wild that in the 1st century, John the Baptist said the city was the seat of the devil.
Like all of these ruined cities, Pergamon fell from its glory and never regained its prestige. By the time the Ottoman arrived, the city had been long abandoned. The archeological site has a few indications of the glamor once enjoyed by this ancient city.
The most impressive building in Pergamon was built on the highest point of the mountain. The Roman-built Temple of Trajan, was a large building on an elevated platform and edged by tall columns. Along the tops of the columns are the remains of beautifully carved reliefs. It must have been stunning during its day. The temple was dedicated to both the Roman ruler Trajan and the Greek God Zeus.
The Altar of Zeus was also supposedly another beautiful building in Pergamon. In the late 19th century however, the structure was taken by German researchers and moved to Berlin. Such a shame that it’s not on its original site.
A fascinating feature that shows the engineering that went into building this city can be seen from below the temples. To get between the temples and theatre we walked through a long corridor of Roman barrel vaults. More than just a walkway, they were used to support the buildings above.
Exiting the barrel vaults, we found ourselves above the Greek theatre. Its design is a little different from other theatres because the seats were built directly into the steep mountain slope instead of a stone foundation. We could even see grass growing between the seats. Even though it is in ruin, it is still a fantastic site. From the top seats you have sweeping views of the countryside below.
The rest of the acropolis spills out on to the slopes below the terraces. This part of the site is in much worse condition. and as a result is not often visited. The best restored feature in the lower village is a 2nd century house. Inside are many lovely mosaic floors, but the best floor is hidden in the back corner. Called the Room of Masks, the mosaic flooring has the most peculiar images of heads with almost frightened expressions. It is thought that this was originally a guest house. I think it would be a scary place to be an overnight guest.
It’s a long walk down to reach the house but it was more than worth it. Parts of the old city are slowly being restored but the site is massive and much of it lies in ruins on the ground.
Getting to the Pergamon
From Bergama, you can either drive to the museum entrance on the top of the hill or take the cable car for 250 TRY ($8 USD) one-way.
Entrance Fee – 340 TRY ($11 USD); Opening Hours – 8:30am to 5:30pm
Bergama
Below the ancient city or Pergamon, is the Ottoman town of Bergama. It was touted as having great examples of Ottoman buildings, but unfortunately most were in disrepair.
The most interesting building is the 2nd century Red Basilica. The tall building was built from red stones that were cut to look like bricks.
When first built it was dedicated to Serapis and Isis, Egyptian Gods. Along the side of the building are Greek columns, but much different from other columns in Turkey. Statues of Egyptian gods formed most of the shafts of the columns. One was rebuilt with the Egyptian Deity Sekhmet as an example of how they would have looked. Wouldn’t it have been amazing to see when all of them were still standing?!
The building was converted to a church by the Byzantines, but the interior was demolished centuries ago. Today it’s a bare structure.
Getting to Bergama
If you have a car, Bergama is not difficult to reach from Izmir. It’s also possible to get there by public transit, but it takes quite a bit longer. From downtown Izmir the route involves a metro, train and bus. If you use the MoovIt app, it’s actually not too difficult.
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Coming Next – The Battles of Troy and Gallipoli
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