Holland’s honorary consul in Izmir, Karel Dutilh (b. 1939), comes from an Amsterdam family that settled in Smyrna (Izmir) in the eighteenth century. Karel Dutilh and his brother Hendrik Dutilh (b. 1929) ran a successful international nautical freight company. Inspired by the rapid growth of tourism, they expanded their company in 1960 by setting up a travel agency. In 2000, Dutilh withdrew from active involvement in the hectic business world. Although he does not actually speak Dutch, he understands the language of both cultures.