When we arrived in Izmir, the third largest city in Turkey with around 4.4 million inhabitants, it was only drizzling, and we decided to go for a stroll through the bazar and along the bay.
The old Turkish and partly ancient city center was largely destroyed in the earthquake of 1957. One of the landmarks today is the clock tower at the Konak square.
The clock tower was designed by a French architect and built in commemoration of the 25th anniversary of Abdul Hamid II’s (the sultan of the Ottoman Empire) accession to the throne in 1901.
The Kızlarağası Han is Izmir’s largest and most impressive caravanserai (han in Turkish). It was built in 1744 in the Ottoman architectural style. The caravanserai used to be located by the seaside, but is now about 200 meters from the shore.
We fought our way through the city traffic and past the modern high-risers to drive a little bit further north, before we stopped for the night.
Tomorrow we want to reach Çanakkale and cross the Dardanelles to Europe – more on our next post!