Izmir: Turkey’s Laid-Back City

Istanbul is wild, bursting, complex; not unusual for a giant city with 15 million people packed together. It’s exciting, but sometimes overwhelming.

To the south, though, lies Istanbul’s chill coastal cousin: the laid-back and liberal city of Izmir. With Ankara serving as Turkey’s administrative and governmental center, and Istanbul its beating cultural heart, Izmir is free to be itself—as the major city on Turkey’s Aegean coast, it’s the gateway to Ephesus, Pamukkale, and Selcuk, as well as the beaches of Turkey’s west coast. Our weekend in Izmir was as relaxed as the city itself. We were traveling with a local (my friend Kivanc), so we had no doubt that we’d see the best of the city, make some Izmir friends, and get everywhere we needed to be. Much like Istanbul, Izmir is situated on two shores and each has its own personality. We stayed on the Karsiyaka side, a quieter, more residential area where we visited Ataturk’s wife’s house—which was mostly notable for the life-size and creepy-as-hell wax figure of the founder of the Turkish Republic himself, staring us down with his cold glassy eyes. We didn’t linger too long on that shore and instead hopped on a ferry—just like in Istanbul!—to explore Izmir’s other (and more tourist-centric) side, called Konak.

Izmir Clock Tower

We explored its famous Ottoman-era clock tower, as well as the Asansor, a famous elevator built by a rich Izmir Jew in 1907 to make the trip up Konak’s steep hill easier for the city’s residents. Now there’s a restaurant at the top of the Asansor with seriously killer views of the city, where we lingered for photos and sodas.

The view from the top of the Asansor.

As the sun started to dip, we decided to promenade along Izmir’s shore line. Izmir is Turkey’s second largest port city (after Istanbul), and the seaside is really a pleasure here—especially at sunset. Our late night was spent in true laid-back Izmir fashion—drinking beers by the water and watching kids set flight to paper lanterns. There was also a march, since the news that night from Istanbul wasn’t good—tear gas in Taksim, surprise surprise—and everyone seemed to be taking part, even children. To distract ourselves from the violence in Istanbul, we sang old pop songs accompanied by Kivanc’s friend’s guitar and played some card games by moonlight and generally enjoyed each other’s company.

And to complete the laid-back weekend in this laid-back city, we spent the next day at the beach. This is Izmir. This is what you do.