The USA faced Japan today and once again came from behind to tie forcing the match into overtime. Japan scored within the first minute and again in the eleventh putting the US in a dire situation. Nicolai scored to bring the game back into reach and Japan responded with a third first-half goal. Things looked bleak at half-time with a 3-1 deficit to overcome but the team battled back. Nico had an assist and the match equalizing goal to force overtime despite the fact that he was often double or triple marked by Japan whenever he was within striking range. Unfortunately, Japan scored once more handing us our second overtime loss in as many days. Nicolai and most of the team is pretty beat up and their match against Poland, third ranked in Europe, tomorrow will not be an easy one.

Each day we spend about an hour and a half traveling from the heart of Istanbul to the Turkey Football Federation Training Grounds where most of the World Cup matches are being held. The trip involves a combination of metro trains and a taxi van ride. On the metro today, I took this picture of brother and sister sitting side by side and realized I was doing the same with my sister. It has been great having her join us on this trip to share in Nicolai’s exploits, support team USA, and enjoy Turkey together with our family.

We returned from today’s game in time for some golden hour photography and I chose the ancient Yeni Cami Mosque as my subject for the evening.

The Turkish Museum of Archeology was our first stop this morning. Once again, Kyle had to work so it was just Jeanine, Maya, and my sister Alissa who made the visit. We could have stayed for much longer but had to make our way to Riva where all preliminary games are being played. We hop the metro and take it to the other side of the Bosphorus (usually about 15 minutes depending on the snafu of the day) where we pick up a taxi van to complete the 45 minute remainder of the journey.

The game was a nail-biter. Haiti scored first with a lovely flick on goal. The US responded when Nico buried a penalty kick near the end of the first half. Haiti opened the second half with another fine goal. Once again, the US battled back and found a way to put the ball in the net to equalize with only seconds left in the match sending it into overtime. Overtime consists of two ten minute halves which is a lot after a full match. Haiti scored first putting pressure on the US to find another goal. We pushed our team forward to press the attack but left ourselves exposed to the quick counter attacks Haiti is known for. Once they had a two goal lead in the overtime period the game was out of reach and for every attempt we made at scoring, Haiti countered with another goal of their own. Although we tied in regulation time, Haiti scored 4 unanswered goals in the overtime period and thus eliminated any chance the US had for a place in the top eight standings. Although the team left the pitch feeling dejected, they played a hell of a match, left everything they had on the field, and showed a ton of grit down to the final seconds. Haiti was the stronger team today and deserved the win. The US played with great composure and intensity and can be very proud of their effort.

Today, all teams have been given a day off before the elimination rounds commence. I was up with the sun and down to the Galata Bridge where I launched my drone for some nice views of the Süleymaniye Mosque, which is one of the most impressive buildings we have seen so far. After breakfast, I joined Jeanine and Maya for a tour of the Spice Bazaar and the Grand Bazaar. Jeanine purchased several spices and Maya, a lamp. Kyle had to work and stayed behind at the hotel.

In the afternoon, we rendezvoused with the team for a 5-hour cruise on the Golden Horn and Bosphorus River. It was a most relaxing experience providing excellent views of the famous palaces, mosques, and exclusive homes which line the water’s edge. We anchored for about 30 minutes during which most members of the team enjoyed high diving from the boat’s top deck into the chilly water which separates Europe from Asia.

With a 5-0 win over Indonesia this afternoon, the USA advances to the knock-out round of the World Cup and will face Haiti on Wednesday. Nicolai scored 4 goals and had 1 assist. One of his goals was ruled an own goal but if you watch the video, there is little doubt that Nico’s shot was what created the goal. Haiti defeated the USA 6-0 in our last international friendly but we were playing without our full squad. During the World Cup Qualifier’s we defeated them by a one goal margin so it should be a very competitive match.

Nico emerged from the day’s match with an assortment of painful looking injuries. Whether they were inflicted intentionally or not, the result is a reminder of how rough this sport can be.

Earlier in the day Jeanine, Kyle, Maya, Alissa and I toured the Topkapi Palace Museum. I was blown away by the clock collection where we saw some incredible mechanisms that would be marvels by today’s standards. We learned that some of the clocks represented an entire lifetime of work for the maker. The weapons exhibit was also quite interesting and we had to send in a retrieval party to extricate Kyle. The Imperial Harem  contained more than 400 rooms and was home to the sultan’s mother; several hundred concubines and the four wives of the sultan; and the rest of his family, including children; and their servants. The men touring this exhibit seemed to agree that it was a pretty nice arrangement, an opinion not shared by the women.

Pictured above is the main greeting area within the Harem. The Sultan would have welcomed friends and guests here surrounded by his wives, children, and concubines. Formal state visits would have taken place in the Audience Chamber located in the Third Courtyard.

I set out for the Hagia Sophia this morning before dawn so that I could position myself for a good photograph at sunrise. Drones are not permitted within the tourist complex’s cordoned-off grounds but are allowed outside. Skies were overcast which made for a slightly muted shadow-free scene. I am really pleased with the result. I then toured the interior of the mosque which was equally beautiful.

By the time I returned to our hotel it was time to wake Kyle and Maya who arrived late last night. After breakfast, we left to watch the USA vs Argentina match. Nicolai scored a thunderous goal early in the game and immediately ran to the sidelines to embrace his siblings. Unfortunately, Argentina battled back with three unanswered goals. Torrential rain preceded the game and continued through the opening minutes leaving the field incredibly slick. Limited crutch traction put a real damper on the US athletic style of play and favored the Argentinian short pass game.

After the match, we returned to Istanbul and toured the Blue Mosque, the Mausoleum of Sultan Ahmet, and the Basilica Cisterns.

Even though many areas are currently under renovation, the Blue Mosque is still an amazingly beautiful example of Ottoman-era architecture. For the shot, I launched my drone from the rooftop terrace of the nearby Sirkeci Mansion where we are staying while in Istanbul.

The primary reason for our visit to Istanbul is to watch Nico compete for team USA in the Amputee World Cup. In our opening match, we faced England, second place finisher in the European championships and a highly regarded side. Cheered on by a small but highly vocal contingent of US supporters, the US managed to better the English squad with a 1-0 result. Nicolai had the assist for the winning goal and just missed what would have been a very pretty goal using a reverse flick (the equivalent of a bicycle kick in amputee soccer,

When the match ended the team’s exuberance was borderline hysterical. The win demonstrated that the US has graduated to a premier level of play. Although our roster is not deep, we have strength in every position. We play Argentina tomorrow and based on how they dismantled Indonesia, I would say we have a very tough match on our hands.

This morning we made the 5 1/2 hour drive from Ephesus to Istanbul where we returned our rental car outside the city and took a cab to our hotel. There, we connected with my sister, Alissa, who came to Turkey to support her nephew and enjoy a much-needed vacation. The opening ceremony for the Amputee Soccer World Cup was held at the Ülker Fenerbahçe Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium where professional matches are played. The entertainment featured a procession of the 24 flags representing all the countries that are competing, a drumming ensemble, dancers, and an apparently famous singer. While very nice, it did not come close to the opening ceremony at the last World Cup in Mexico which was more of a cultural celebration of the country and its history. After the ceremony, the host nation had its opening match against France which had little chance against the top rated team especially when supported by thousands of fans. Security at the venue was like nothing you can imagine. Hundreds of police officers, heavily armed, many in riot gear. Jeanine had her power bank, lipstick and hand sanitizer confiscated. Alissa had to surrender her cell phone charger. I was detained because my camera was too professional. After a long delay and checking with other officials, I was finally permitted to enter with my gear. The people we have met in Turkey are as friendly and welcoming as anywhere we have ever travelled. Today’s experience at the stadium, however, was a reminder that this is still a country where the police and military rule with an iron fist.

We arrived in Selcuk this morning after a relatively short 2 1/2 drive from Pamukkale and spent the afternoon visiting the amazing ruins of Ephesus. The ancient port has a history dating back to the 11th century BC and was once considered the most important trading center in the Mediterranean region and the most prominent city in then Greece. Throughout history, Ephesus survived multiple attacks and changed hands many times between conquerors and ultimately declined after the toll of so much conflict and natural disasters. It was also a hotbed of early Christian evangelism and remains an important archaeological site and Christian pilgrimage destination. The Library of Celsus was definitely a highlight, with the Great Theatre and Terrace Houses a close second. The massive site remains one of the most complete archeological excavations of an entire city in the world.

After a brief respite in our quaint hotel, we explored the Basilica of St. John and the Ayasuluk Fortress before enjoying a lovely dinner to celebrate my 64th birthday.

We arrived in Pamukkale after a long drive from Konya made more interesting due to a flat tire we experienced along the way. Despite my many significant accomplishments over the course of our marriage, I don’t think Jeanine has ever admired me more than by watching how efficiently and effortlessly I dealt with changing tires on our rental car. It was scarcely a ten-minute blip on our journey and another half hour to find and have the tire repaired at a local auto shop. Fortunately, we arrived at our destination with plenty of time to visit Pamukkale and the Hierapolis ruins. Pamukkale, meaning “cotton castle” in Turkish is famous for a carbonate mineral left by the flowing of thermal waters. Although still remarkably beautiful, the site has been loved to death by the throngs of tourist who come to enjoy bathing in the pools. The series of pools pictured above were artificially created to replace a motorbike access road once built there. The terraced pools pictured below are natural and what I was most interested in photographing. Regrettably, the lack of recent rain left them dry. As a consolation, the golden hour evening light made the basins appear slightly blue in color which gives the impression of them being filled with water. As I was leaving the site to rendezvous with Jeanine who spent most of her time visiting the ruins, I saw a couple having their engagement photos shot. As is always the case in such situations, I studied what the photographer was doing to see if there was anything to learn. In this case, I concluded that he had no idea what he was doing and that all his shots taken into the setting sun without any fill flash on the couple would be terrible. I decided that such a lovely scene should not go to waste and took my own photo of the couple from a completely different angle.

This post is not completed and I will add more photos when time permits.

For now, enjoy this low-resolution version of a video I shot with my drone this morning. Imagine a smooth jazz soundtrack that I will add when I return home.

Reminders for Carl:

Yesterday: hot air ballon ride, underground city, Rose Valley Hike

Today: Love Valley Hike, Drive to Konya, Church

When we decided to vacation in Turkey, it immediately became apparent that we could not miss visiting the Cappadocia region which features geography and human endeavor like few other places on the planet. Pictured above is Uçhisar which means ‘Outer Citadel’ in Turkish and refers to the huge rock cone that is its central feature. Uçhisar is dominated by a 60-meter-high ‘castle’ which is crisscrossed by numerous underground passageways and rooms, which are now mostly blocked or impassable but which served as residential areas and, perhaps, cloisters in Byzantine times. It is believed that around 1,000 people once lived in the castle although it is no longer inhabited today. It was our last stop of the day and I used the drone for a nice golden light shot.

The village of Göreme, located within the Göreme National Park which was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1985, will be our base of operations while in Cappadocia and is known for the countless eroded rock formations, many of which were hollowed out in the Middle Ages to create houses, churches, and underground cities. Our hotel room is located within such a man-made cave.

Our day began with a visit to the Göreme Open Air Museum. First thought to be a Byzantine monastic settlement that housed some 20 monks, then a pilgrimage site from the 17th century, this cluster of rock-cut churches, chapels, and monasteries was a wonderful introduction to the history of the region. The various churches have been given names by the locals such as the Dark Church, the Apple Church, and the Snake Church based on some of the paintings inside. We hired a nimble 85-year old guide who gave us a complete education on the significance of the site. Photography was not permitted in the churches but was allowed in the kitchens and dining rooms, an examples of the latter is shown below one of the typical carved rock formations. The center section of the u-shaped cutout is a dining table and the areas outside the u-shape are for seating. The fresco on the wall is one of the first depictions of the Last Supper and unlike Michelangelo’s version painted hundreds of years later, Jesus is seated at the head of rather than in the middle of the table.

Last night we began our journey to Turkey where Jeanine and I will be celebrating our 30th wedding anniversary (delayed two years by Covid). We had originally planned on Greece but made the change when we learned that Nico and team USA would be competing for the Amputee Soccer World Cup in Istanbul.

Our journey was not without challenges. Our Lufthansa flight from Boston to Frankfurt was delayed causing us to miss our connection to Brussels. Fortunately, the airline rebooked us on the next flight (Brussels Airline) which arrived just in time for our connection to Istanbul on Turkish Air which was also delayed. After clearing customs we hired a taxi to take us from the international airport to the regional airport located an hour away and flew on Pegasus Airlines from there to Kayseri where we rented a car and drove to our hotel. We left our home yesterday at 2:30pm and arrived in our hotel this evening just shy of midnight. We fell asleep minutes after our heads hit the pillow.

The only photograph I had time for today was a picture of the TV on our Turkish Air flight asking me to select a language for the entertainment system. I took it because I thought the pictured location would be a great addition to our itinerary if time permits.

Yesterday, Open Table shared this tribute to Jeanine with their entire community. I will let the pictures speak for themselves.

Yesterday, Nico asked me to photograph the Concord Carlisle High School Men’s JV Soccer Team which he is coaching again this season. The flash I normally use for such photos was not operating correctly so we had to time the photo for when the sun passed behind a cloud. This provides uniform lighting without causing the players to squint.