Turkey – Wandering AR

Izmir is the third largest city of Turkey which borders with the Aegean Sea. It is a little outside the tourism hot spot but we usually find the best places when we wander outside the touristy path!

Visit the Kemeralti Bazaar: You can spend a whole day exploring the bazaar and still not see the entire place. Starting with freshly ground Turkish coffee, Turkish delights to the rugs, ceramic, and carpets. Anything you can possibly imagine at a much lower rate than Istanbul. The bazaar is open six days a week from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and closed on Sundays.

Vegetable shop

Turkish Delights

Fruity Delights

Take a day trip to Pamukkale: A unique combination of natural and man-made wonders, Pamukkale-Hierapolis has been made a UNESCO World Heritage site. For more information for a day tour, check out my blog https://wanderingar.wordpress.com/2018/05/27/a-trip-to-the-cotton-castle-pamukkale/

**On our way to Pamukkale – Basmane Station**

Take a day trip to Ephesus: Ephesus, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, is a tourist magnet, attracting tens of thousands of visitors. You can tailor a day trip to Ephesus without buying any tours if you’re on a budget. Best way is to take the train from Basmane Station, which brings you to Selcuk in about 70 minutes. From Selcuk station you can walk to Ephesus in 30 minutes or walk across town to the bus station and ask for the minibus that goes past Ephesus. Another option is to take a taxi in the morning which will bring you to your destination in an hour. Unfortunately, we couldn’t plan a trip to Ephesus due to shortage of time but it is not to be missed!

Take a stroll at the Konak pier: It is located close to two of the city’s landmarks, Izmir’s famous clock tower and Konak square. Take a stroll by the walkway and enjoy the beautiful view of the Aegean sea. The walkway is lined up with some great restaurants and coffee shops, so it’s a perfect spot to unwind.

Chill out at Alsancak Mahellasi: You can’t miss out on visiting Alsancak when you are in Izmir. Two large streets parallel to the coastline, called the First Kordon and Second Kordon form the main shopping center. Its bustling with locals and the best place to go are usually where the locals chill. Many restaurants, bars, cafes, discothèques and other entertainment venues are concentrated in this area.

**Orange picking on the way to Alsancak**

Izmir Eats: We had most of our meals at Alsancak, our favorite restaurant was Chick’inn, a fusion of Turkish & Chinese cuisine! We also tried authentic doner wraps around the neighborhood, a delight to your taste buds! Hunting for food is not that difficult in this area. The streets are lined with Turkish & fast food alike.

Chick’inn – Beef Kofte & Tavuk Fajita

Kuncu Firin

Nar Suyu – Pomegranate juice

Chick’inn

Dondurmali Irmik Tatlisi

Chick’inn – Stir fry chicken & Beef Doner

Tavuk Doner

Doner Wrap

Explore the streets of Konak: Autumn in Izmir is magical, though it was chilly but a prefect time to explore the streets and get to know the locals. People are very friendly around here and are always ready to give you helpful tips and suggestions.

P.S.

I would recommend a 4 nights’ stay in this city only if you’re planning to take day trips to Pamukkale & Ephesus. You need at least 2 days more or less to explore the city and get a taste of the local lifestyle.

Truly a spectacular view, the geological phenomenon that is Pamukkale, literally “Cotton Castle” in Turkish, is the site of the well preserved ruins of the Greek-Roman city of Hierapolis. A unique combination of natural & man-made wonders, Pamukkale-Hierapolis has been made a UNESCO World Heritage site! It is Turkey’s single most visited attraction with over 2 million visitors annually.

How To Get There?

We traveled from Izmir to Denizli by catching the train from Basmane Station at 8:00 am. It is the best option if you’re traveling on a budget because the ticket costs just 18 TL each. It took us less than 5 hours to reach the Denizli Gar (train station).

Walk out the front door of the Denizli Gar, turn left, climb the stairs and look a bit to the left. Across the boulevard you’ll see the Denizli Otogar (bus terminal). Enter the building and take the escalator down to the lower level. At peron 76 (gate 76) you’ll find the minibuses to nearby towns. Take the one to Pamukkale and in about 15-20 minutes you’ll reach your destination. Don’t forget to mention Archaeological Site North Entrance. They charge you 6 TL for the ride.

Hierapolis Ruins

Once you arrive at the entrance and get your ticket from the reception (35 TL each), you can either continue walking towards the Hierapolis ruins or take shuttle van (2 TL each) to directly go to the travertines.

As you walk towards the ruins, you’ll find yourself lost in history. We spent about 10 minutes in the ruins then took the shuttle to the travertines.

Pamukkale Travertines

Once we reached the travertines, I was left speechless and couldn’t wait to get into the warm springs. This surreal, brilliant white travetine terraces with its warm, crystal clear pools is truly a picturesque treat to the eyes. It was a magical walk through this wonder!

Make sure you remove your shoes before you walk through the pools. December is a very chilly month in Turkey but I spent a very warm day at Pamukkale. It’s quite sunny during the day but cools down after 4:00 pm. The best time to visit this area is between 6:00 am to 8:00 am to be honest. The tourists start flooding in by 9:00 am. Luckily, we didn’t encounter many during our visit at this of the year.

One of the most beautiful sunsets I’ve seen in my lifetime was here. Hues of crimson and lilac filled the sky at sunset. It wasn’t easy to leave this wonderful place but unfortunately the site closes at 6:00 pm and we departed with huge smiles on our faces.

Departure

We took the last shuttle to exit the site and reached the gate to catch the minibus to go to the Otogar. We couldn’t catch the last train to Basmane station but luckily we took the bus departing at 7:30 pm for just 25 TL. Our journey back was about 3 hours. It was a long journey but one of the best and unforgettable experiences till date.

Tours & Tips

There are many tours available to Pamukkale and each of them with different rates and packages. Another popular option is to stay overnight at one of the hotels near the site. If you want to avoid the tours then follow the above instructions for an adventure of your own!

Category: Turkey

Things to do in Izmir

A trip to the Cotton Castle – Pamukkale