Photos: BerkeKayalarr, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 Candemrag, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 Bernard Gagnon, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
Photo credits
Photos: BerkeKayalarr, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 Candemrag, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 Bernard Gagnon, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
Agora of Smyrna: a market below street level
Your local guide
Gül Erdem
View profile
Highlights
- A Roman market buried by centuries
- Vaulted basement storage galleries
- Trenches that show the city's layers
- A restored ancient colonnade
- How Smyrna's agora was rediscovered
About this tour
This session explores the Agora of Smyrna, a Roman-era marketplace excavated well below the level of the modern street above it. You see a restored colonnade and the vaulted basement galleries used for storage beneath the original market floor. Gül explains how centuries of rebuilding on top of the site buried it so completely.
The call begins with a sound check at the site entrance, then moves from the colonnade down into the basement galleries. Gül points the camera downward into the trenches rather than across a flat ruin, and answers questions throughout before sending a short note on the excavation's timeline.
This suits anyone curious about how ancient cities get buried and rediscovered rather than only their finished ruins. It also pairs well with a session on Kadifekale above the modern city.
Included
- Live video walk with a local guide
- Questions to your guide all the way
- A short list of places to visit later
Not included
- Internet connection
- Travel to the city
Itinerary
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Welcome and sound check 5 min
The guide joins the video call, checks the picture and sound with you, and gives you a quick sense of Izmir before heading out.
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Excavated colonnade 21 min
The camera moves along a restored Roman-era colonnade sitting well below the current street level, and Gül explains how centuries of rebuilding buried the original marketplace.
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Basement galleries 21 min
You see vaulted basement galleries once used for storage beneath the market, and Gül points out surviving fittings that show how goods were kept and moved through the site.
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Your questions 9 min
Time to ask anything about Izmir: prices, safety, food, or whatever you are curious about.
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A short list to keep 4 min
Before you go, the guide sums up with a few things worth remembering: a dish to try: Izmir köfte and Karşıyaka, worth a slower look.
Good to know
- A stable wifi or mobile connection makes the picture smoother than a shaky one.
- Any phone, tablet or laptop with a camera works. You watch, the guide does the walking.
- Times are shown in Istanbul time, so check the time where you are before you book.
- The session is not recorded, and recording it yourself is not allowed. Feel free to take your own notes.
- Ask questions any time, out loud or in the chat. The guide will pause to answer.
- Sessions run in small groups, up to 10 people, so there is room for everyone to ask something.
Questions about this tour
What will the session cover?
The guide walks through Izmir, showing you Excavated colonnade and Basement galleries live on camera, plus whatever else you would like to see.
What happens if my connection drops?
Rejoin with the same link within a few minutes and the guide will catch you up on anything you missed.
Can I ask the guide questions during the session, or is it a fixed script?
Anything, any time. Sessions leave room for your own questions throughout, not just at the end.
Do I need to know the history already?
No background needed. The guide explains everything as it comes up.
How it works
- You get one join link after booking.
- Join from any device: phone, tablet or laptop.
- We connect on Google Meet; the link comes with your booking. I walk the site live with my phone.
Times shown in Istanbul time (GMT+3)
Cancellation
Flexible
- Cancel up to 24 hours before the start: full refund.
- Cancel less than 24 hours before the start, or no-show: no refund.
- If the guide cancels or the date does not reach its minimum group: full refund.
- Cancel in My Account → Bookings; the refund is calculated from the start time in the tour's local time.
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Next: Mon 26 Oct · 10 seats left From 24,00 €
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