Uploaded March 2024 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Izmir. It’s the gateway to the ancient world you didn’t know about, home to Ephesus and its ruins dating back to the 10th Century BCE, including the Temple of Artemis, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
This is a place of pilgrimage for Christians who believe John the Baptist hid the Virgin Mary here following the crucifixion of Jesus. (Sorry, spoiler alert…)
And it’s home to the Ephesus Ultra Marathon, taking runners across the rolling hills and farmlands that surround this Ancient Greek city for up to 120 kilometers.
But for my wife, Melanie, it’s a homecoming of sorts. In 1922, her great-grandmother Vasilea Antoniadis fled Smyrna, as it was known back then, following the Great Fire at the end of the Greco-Turkish War.
Special thanks to Emin Bola at the Ephesian Tourism Agency: ephesiantourism.com and Süleyman Erköse for the tour in Izmir. You can contact him at tr.suleymanerkose@gmail.com to book your own tour!
FOLLOW ME
📸 instagram.com/BaurJoe
🐦 twitter.com/BaurJoe
⏰ tiktok.com/@baurjoe
📔 facebook.com/BaurJoe
📝 withoutapath.com
🏡 joebaur.com
📖 CHAPTERS
00:00 - Welcome to Izmir
00:33 - History of the Great Fire of Smyrna
01:40 - Agora of Smyrna
03:02 - Selçuk & Turkish Carpets
08:33 - Ephesus Ultra Marathon
11:38 - Ephesus
16:38 - Alaçati & Turkish Food
20:52 - Back to Izmir Check out my e-book featuring my 20 favorite off-the-beaten-path destinations in Germany! joebaur.com/product/germany-off-the-beaten-path-e-book
Izmir. It’s the gateway to the ancient world you didn’t know about, home to Ephesus and its ruins dating back to the 10th Century BCE, including the Temple of Artemis, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
This is a place of pilgrimage for Christians who believe John the Baptist hid the Virgin Mary here following the crucifixion of Jesus. (Sorry, spoiler alert…)
And it’s home to the Ephesus Ultra Marathon, taking runners across the rolling hills and farmlands that surround this Ancient Greek city for up to 120 kilometers.
But for my wife, Melanie, it’s a homecoming of sorts. In 1922, her great-grandmother Vasilea Antoniadis fled Smyrna, as it was known back then, following the Great Fire at the end of the Greco-Turkish War.
Special thanks to Emin Bola at the Ephesian Tourism Agency: ephesiantourism.com and Süleyman Erköse for the tour in Izmir. You can contact him at tr.suleymanerkose@gmail.com to book your own tour!
FOLLOW ME
📸 instagram.com/BaurJoe
🐦 twitter.com/BaurJoe
⏰ tiktok.com/@baurjoe
📔 facebook.com/BaurJoe
📝 withoutapath.com
🏡 joebaur.com
📖 CHAPTERS
00:00 - Welcome to Izmir
00:33 - History of the Great Fire of Smyrna
01:40 - Agora of Smyrna
03:02 - Selçuk & Turkish Carpets
08:33 - Ephesus Ultra Marathon
11:38 - Ephesus
16:38 - Alaçati & Turkish Food
20:52 - Back to Izmir Check out my e-book featuring my 20 favorite off-the-beaten-path destinations in Germany! joebaur.com/product/germany-off-the-beaten-path-e-book
