Travel

Mt. Nebo and Fall Colors in Utah

November 10, 2018 by A. Cemal Ekin

Yellow is unique in the color spectrum. It is naturally luminous, almost up there with white. Most colors have lighter and darker tints and shades, but not yellow. The dark yellow sounds odd since it becomes brownish! The fall color in Utah, at least in the parts I have seen, is yellow unlike in New England where colors are a mix of reds, oranges, yellows all mixed in. Fall in Utah is an intense, vibrant, almost light emitting yellow. Yes, there are other colors but all are dominated by the intense yellow. This was even more pronounced on Mt. Nebo near Nephi aided by the gorgeous weather. The Mt. Nebo Scenic Trail is a recommended attraction, especially in the fall.

The Wasatch Range & Mt. Nebo

I prefer mountain views to ocean views. There is a far more visible variation in the mountains whereas the exciting part of the ocean lies beneath the surface. The Wasatch Range stretches about 160 miles and dominates the settled areas of the state of Utah. Apparently, about 85% of Utah’s population lives within a short distance from the range on the western side. And, Mt. Nebo is the tallest one in the range on the southern edge of it. Named after the Biblical Mount Nebo overlooking Israel, it is the centerpiece of the Uinta National Forest. Its peaks are a hair under 12,000 feet and they seem to be covered with snow probably much of the time. (Thanks to Wikipedia for much of this information.)

The Mt. Nebo Scenic Byway

I enclosed a small segment of the map from the Lightroom Map module. It shows the spots where I took photographs. Elif drove us to the north edge of the trail so that we could drive over Mt. Nebo to reach the south edge and stop at the Devil’s Kitchen. We drove on the trail for a while, stopping to take a few photographs until we came to the closed gate. The two orange rectangles on the top right mark that spot. The trail was closed due to forest fires from that point forward. So, we spent some time at that location, took photographs of the golden yellow foliage all around, on the trees, on the ground, even on the stream running with the water.

Elif decided that we could try the south end of the trail to reach the Devil’s Kitchen and we started the drive back on the freeway. A little while later we were climbing on the trail from the south end. The climb was steep and I could feel the thinning air. The marker on the road showed 11,000 feet! The orange rectangles going down on the left to make a hook show our path to and from the Devil’s Kitchen.

The Devil’s Kitchen

The park at the Devil’s Kitchen was accessible from a short walk on a path. At the end of the path was an overlook to enjoy the rock formations along the hillside. We enjoyed the view, took quite a few photographs and headed back to the car stopping here and there for more photographs of Mt. Nebo with its snowy tops. During this trip, we saw Mt. Nebo from both sides!

After a few more photographs, it was time to head back since the rest of the trail was closed. But even this much was quite a treat for the eyes. The bright yellow created a great experience for us and allowed us to capture its luminous qualities. Even the photographs I took from the car on the way back show the everpresent yellow on the fading grass near the road. We returned to Salt Lake City in mid-afternoon and stopped to have a late lunch/early supper at a nice burger joint. A nice way to end a good day on the hills of Mt. Nebo.

Now, put on your sunglasses and enjoy a trip to Mt. Nebo!

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The Marina and The Golden Spike

November 8, 2018 by A. Cemal Ekin

This post is dedicated to the memory of our good friend Alan French who passed away yesterday. He loved trains, I wish he could have seen some of the photographs. Rest in peace Alan.

The delayed trip to the Great Salt Lake Marina happened one afternoon with great weather still prevailing. It was an easy drive and we passed by the Saltair and proceeded to the marina. The gates were open this time. The Great Salt Lake Marina is located on the south shore of the lake and has 340 slips according to their Web site.

The Great Salt Lake Marina

Although there were some visitors, the marina was generally quiet. A few people went to the observation deck but I managed to find an empty period to photograph it against the vast lake. There was a lone sailboat moving quietly across the calm waters. Elif, Jan, and Mina went down to the beach but the path was a bit too challenging for me and I stayed at the parking level.

Utah has the bluest skies I have seen anywhere. It may have something to do with its generally dry weather and the high altitudes around the Salt Lake area. That rich blue reflected on the water giving both of them an amazing color quality. The girls, including Josephine the dog, enjoyed walking up and down the beach, dipping their feet in the waters of the Great Salt Lake and eventually returned to the parking level.

The following day, on Sunday we spent some time at home. Elif completed carving a pumpkin for Mina to display for the Holloween at the doorsteps. After the Jack-O-Lantern was ready to shine at night we got in the car and Elif drove us to the Golden Spike National Historic Site. It was a little past Ogden and the road was not too crowded.

The Golden Spike National Historic Site

On May 10, 1869, the two railroad companies, the Union Pacific and Central Pacific connected their respective tracks that tied the continent coast to coast. That happened at the Promontory Summit where the current historic site has its guest facilities are located. We arrived there a little before their closing time, and I showed my senior pass to all the national parks and we quickly went to the storage where the replicas of the two locomotives were on display.

The replicas were quite convincing and were built around the 1970’s. During the summer months, they have daily runs, demonstrations, and reenactments of driving the last spike that created the first transcontinental railway in America. Jupiter was the more colorful with the Union Pacific 119 displaying a painting of Johnny Appleseed on one of its stacks. The park ranger offered some narrative and answered questions. It was almost their closing time and we got back in the car.

There are two auto tours, the East Auto Tour and the West Auto Tour. We decided to take the East Auto Tour because we were told it was more like driving on the old tracks, and they were right! As Elif drove, the vista was one from a western movie, a vast expanse of land with a few scattered clusters of buildings. We approached a cut on a small hill for the train to go through although it was turned into a road for the cars. I could almost visualize bandits perched on the small hills ready to pounce on the passing train. When you see the photographs these words will make more sense! For a detailed pace of laying the rail track with interesting historic photographs visit the Union Pacific special page. The Promontory Summit is towards the end, and as you scroll down you will see the steps leading to the connection. There are photographs pretty much at all the stops.

Zucca Italian Restaurant and The Speakeasy

After the tour was complete, Elif drove to Ogden where she had made reservations for dinner at Zucca Italian Restaurant. Its lower level was converted to simulate an old-fashioned speakeasy with padded doors and walls decorated with period imagery. As we parked the car outside Zucca, we saw a lot of people in Holloween costumes, and I don’t mean just children. In Utah, adults seem to be more into the Holloween at least as much as the kids, maybe even more. On the streets, we saw some children in costumes but the adults stole the show.

We went downstairs a little before the reservation time but the place was empty anyway. The food was good but Mina’s pasta bolognese was not to her liking, a little too much pork in the sauce. But we enjoyed the meal as a whole. When we got out, both sides of the street was getting filled with people apparently waiting for a parade. Before it started, we got in the car and returned home. Another enjoyable day.

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An Outing in Salt Lake City

November 1, 2018 by A. Cemal Ekin

It was good to see Elif at the airport waiting for us. The weather was very nice and it would remain so for the rest of our stay. We arrived at Elif’s house and settled in our bedroom Elif fixed for our arrival. Mina had gone on a trip with her father and was to return home after her dance practice. We were very pleased to see her arrive and decided to go out to eat at one of the local restaurants.

Our next major outing would be to pick up Mina from her school, Salt Lake Arts Academy, and go to a local period costume store called Decades. After that, a trip to the Salt Lake Marina would allow us to see the sunset from a nice vantage point. The used clothing store was quite interesting, well organized, and filled with clothing from to 50’s and maybe even earlier. Unfortunately, their policies did not allow picture taking in the store. There will be a few windows I photographed from outside as well as their Art Deco style logo hanging over the entry door. Mina was able to find the poodle skirt from the 50’s; after purchasing it we got back in the car. Elif said since we have time before the sunset, we could stop over at the Salt Lake City Public Library with an interesting architecture.

The library was indeed quite interesting with a slanting curved glass facade and the leaning support legs of the walkway descending from the roof garden. I stayed out a little, took some photographs of the building and walked into the lobby which is called the Urban Room. There were some small shops, tables, and chairs for enjoying a cup of coffee and relax. The main lighting of the library is the over 176,000 square feet of glass on one side and the ceiling. The Urban Room roamed upwards for five stories and glass enclosed elevators carried people up and down. Elif suggested that we tried going to the roof and asked for directions. Elif and I took the elevator to the fifth floor and found the door to the roof garden. The view was quite impressive and with a little extra effort, I was able to walk up the ramp to the topmost level with an even better view!

After taking quite a few photographs from the roof, I suggested to Elif to call Jan so that she could enjoy the vista and take some photographs. In a few minutes, Jan and Mina were upstairs enjoying the scenery, mountains on one side and the sprawling city on the other. Elif and Mina walked down the stairway perched on top of the slanted supports. A few minutes later she called and told us that I could easily do it. So, Jan and I started heading down. At the end of the stepped walkway were stairs that took us to the plaza where we started.

We found the car in the parking garage and headed to the marina. As we approached the replica of an old salt bath, Saltair, Elif noticed that the gate to go to the marina was closed. Apparently, in the fall and winter months, they close it at 5 pm. Oh, well, we still stayed there. The girls, including Josephine the dog, ventured out to the salt flat but I stayed behind taking photographs of the impending sunset and changing colors. Of course, I made sure I captured the girls on the salt flat as well.

After we saw the sunset, we got back to the car and headed home. The marina would wait for another day.

We are returning home to Rhode Island tomorrow. I will resume posting after a few days.

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Flight To Salt Lake City – 2018

October 31, 2018 by A. Cemal Ekin

A week ago on Monday, Jan and I flew to Salt Lake City to see Elif and Mina. The first leg of the flight, Providence to Baltimore was about an hour. By a sheer coincidence, the exit gate for us was next to the connecting flight gate to Salt Lake City.

The wait was short and we boarded first along with other passengers who needed special aid. This time I chose to sit in the window seat so that I could take photographs. I have done this quite a few times using infrared cameras and I wanted to try recording the earth once more, this time in color. The clear weather was on my side making both the flight smooth and my photographing easier.

Aerial photography, especially at 30,000′ is very different from shooting landscapes. First of all, there are two layers of airplane window glass of dubious optical quality and cleanliness. Add to this the speed at which the plane is flying, the weather conditions, and unexpected bumps the engagement with the subject becomes a very different experience altogether.

Upon take off, the city and highways provide ample material to photograph. There is not much time to think and compose, one has to rely on one’s instincts. At these lower altitudes, things go by much faster requiring faster shutter speeds and reaction. As the altitude increases the clouds may enter the scene sometimes adding quality elements to the photographs and at others become a pure obstruction. But, be on the alert, a partially revealed scene below may offer interesting photographs.

The camera angle, the exposure settings, lens zoom all need to be carefully controlled. With quick changing light, it is best to use some kind of automation. Either aperture or shutter-speed priority would work so long as the shutter speed does not fall below, say 1/250 seconds. I used aperture priority, auto ISO, and shutter speed not to go below 1/250 seconds. Of course, depending on the changing conditions some amount of exposure compensation is unavoidable. (Also, see the comment by Haluk below.)

The tricky part is the white balance with changing light conditions, clouds coming in and out of the view, ground color shifting. I relied on auto white balance and then tweaked it based on my mental images. The color may not be exactly accurate but “they looked right to me!” You may also notice the wide crop ratio of 1:2 rather than the camera image having 3:2. The wide crop in this case and in the previous instances allowed me to retain the feeling of looking at a wide vista while eliminating the parts that could not be left out when photographing.

You may have noticed in some of the photographs the appearance of looking directly down. A few of them were lucky moments when the plane banked and gave me a very good view of what is down below. In the other frames, I used Lightroom to yield a corrected view. That gave the land a better presentation of its features. Yet, others remained mostly the way I took them except for some cropping to get the window frame out or to remove the extreme rotation of the camera angle. (Thank you Bill for noticing this and commenting on it. Truth be told, this paragraph was in the post. But, thanks to my hosting company’s poor service my site crashed as I tried to save the post causing me to lose a good deal of content.)

These are not meant to be highly accurate reconnaissance photographs but photographs I want to share with you. The detail may be lacking, the colors may not be exactly correct (although I believe darn close to it!) but remember the two layers of dirty airplane window glass, all the clouds that are going in and out. I prefer that you enjoy the colors, shapes, texture, lines, mood, and the feeling encoded in the images. Come to think of it, that is the way to look at and read photographs.

I hope you enjoy traveling with me from Baltimore to Salt Lake City. Let’s fly!

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A Review Of My LensCulture Submission

January 30, 2018 by A. Cemal Ekin

A while back, I submitted six photographs from my Passing Through Anatolia series to a contest on LensCulture mainly to support their work. Another incentive was a review of the submission if I submitted 5+ images, and I did want a real review as they promised. A week or two ago, I received a note that the image review of my submission was available for me to read.

I am sharing the review not only because I enjoyed the comments and the words the anonymous reviewer wrote but also to let other interested photographers read as a way of looking and reading photographs. I need to clarify one thing, the reviewer mentions that had I submitted them as a series they would even be stronger. Truth be told, I thought I was doing that, but I probably clicked on the wrong button, or put a check mark in a wrong box. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the commentary.

Here are the photographs, Somewhere in Anatolia, followed by the review. My thanks to the reviewer!

Hi, Cemal

Thank you for sharing your work by submitting to Lens Culture. I can see some beautiful pictures here, and it seems to me you are a talented photographer with high aesthetic criteria and a thoughtful and organized person. Your images are individual shots, but most of them are shared common features as their balanced compositions, their artistic quality, and also same subject, aesthetic and presentation. This is great because it testifies to the existence of the same person behind the camera.

These landscapes could belong to a series talking about your thoughts we read in the statement. If you had submitted them as a series with a title and the submitted statement and not as individual images, your work would become stronger, and the jury would pay attention to the content and your relationship with it. This does not happen when judges have to see single images where they look more for external virtues as technical excellence, aesthetic quality, autonomy, and originality because the number of the single submitted images is significant. Of course, your pictures have most of the above virtues and can stand perfectly as individual images. However, their opportunities are fewer because they have to compete with images that are impressive and with more considerable originality in the subject and its approach even if they do not have the depth and the sensitivity of yours. For this reason, I suggest you resubmit your work in the future to the series category.

It is remarkable the perfect way you have composed your pictures and their clarity while you were on a moving train. The color palette is attractive and relaxing, and the whole atmosphere exudes a sense of freedom and meditation. The repetition of the wide frames gives a cinematic sense to the work and strengthens the concept of travel. Your presence is dominant in these images even you have not realized it yet. We can learn things about you, and we can build the content of the collection in this basis: These are pictures shot by a sensitive, calm, stable, organized person with open horizons and spirituality. As you understand, I could not say anything from the above if I had started to speak for every one of your images separately. It would be easy for me because I could tell only kind words about them (they worth it anyway) but my role here is to help you see your work critically and go forward by speaking to you openly and honestly. Many photographers are only asking for kind words, but I think these are not enough if you want to help someone. I hope you agree.

However, I do not want you to think I avoid talking about your pictures and indeed if I needed to choose one it would be difficult since objectively everyone is impeccable. So, I would say that I am more affected by 3 and 4.

Cemal, you are a promising photographer. You have the talent and the aesthetic criteria for creating a remarkable work if you continue shooting, but in my opinion, you have to show it as it deserves. Through a series that speak on a subject of your interest through your visual style. Single images cannot help you to distinguish at a higher level even if you reward a single image category contest. Everyone can make beautiful pictures but cannot create a challenging story. Nowadays with an enormous amount of individual images uploaded every day, talented photographers should express their thoughts and concerns through projects consisting of a series of pictures. Think about it.

Overall, my engagement with your work was an exciting and pleasant experience. I wish you good luck, and I’m looking forward to seeing more from you in the future.

All best

See below some useful recommendations

Additional Recommendations

Recommended Books & Photographers

Ways of Seeing, by John Berger

The Artist Statement: How and Why to Write Yours by Jennifer Schwartz

The Art of Photography: An Approach to Personal Expression, by Bruce Barnbaum

Doing Documentary Work, by Robert Coles

Street Photography and the Poetic Image, by Alex Webb and Rebecca Norris Webb

Street Photography Now, by Sophie Howarth and Steve McLaren

Why People Photograph, by Robert Adams

The Pleasant Sides of Istanbul

November 28, 2017 by A. Cemal Ekin

As much as I wrote about the discomfort and stress I get in Istanbul, I should also mention the comfort zones, the pleasures even if they may be in the midst of the dreaded construction everywhere. There are still pleasant sides of Istanbul and you can find them.

Around the house, we always had a good time; dead-end street, open field in front of the balcony, cats and kittens everywhere, and the comfortable atmosphere were all enjoyable. The house cat, Gündüz, is a very pleasant cat and a good photographic model. You will meet him in one of Jan’s photographs below. The outside cats and their kittens are all taken care of but they don’t enter the house. We were bound to see them anywhere, all eight kittens and two mothers, even in the field as Jan captured them under the trees.

Two markets we always visit, Kuzguncuk and Kadikoy markets are always colorful although there may be fewer vendors in the fall. Kuzguncuk is one of the rare districts that has managed to retain its character with older houses, a shopping strip, a few restaurants that remain about the same as before. Kadikoy market is a bit larger with more permanent structure and stores.

One day, Jan and I went to Galatasaray to visit the spice shop Nuh’un Ambari (Noah’s Pantry, loosely translated.) The area has changed quite a lot, and there was the new Yapı Kredi Bank building with a glass façade that let the passers-by enjoy the interesting architecture and the Akdeniz (Mediterranean) sculpture by Ilhan Kuman. It is visible in one of Jan’s photographs. When it stood on the street, it looked more impressive because of its scale which lost a little impact high up and behind the glass façade. Nevertheless, it was good to see a tasteful architecture example of the new structure, a stark contrast to many new buildings.

Then, there is Istanbul Modern which was one of the sites of Istanbul Biennial in addition to having its own exhibits. You will see many photographs from Istanbul Modern in both Jan’s and my collections below. Ergun arranged someone to drive us to the museum, and later on, to pick us up. The weather was very good as you will see in the photographs. We entered the Biennial shows on the first floor with interesting work and some installation art. Without reading about them, some are hard to decipher even though they may be attractive. Then, we found the elevator and went up to the second floor, bought our tickets, and entered the exhibit hall. The main exhibit there was “Artists in Their Time” which contained some retrospective and some new works by various artists. I tried to identify them as much as I could, you will find the information in the title if available.

We had a nice lunch in the museum restaurant. Even though the balcony seating was not available initially, they came and offered to take us out to the open air in a few minutes. We could see the Bosphorus, the Anatolian shore, the Sarayburnu peninsula that houses the Topkapi Palace, the Blue Mosque, and St. Sophia Basilica. I enjoyed trying to capture seagulls behind the sun shades and even managed to accidentally capture a helicopter!

After lunch, we completed the tour of the interesting show with many interesting pieces. One, in particular, was noteworthy. Bring Yourself To Me was a collection of 19 suitcases, 19 chairs and many magnifying glasses arranged on the floor with a sign that invited the visitor to interact with it. The old beat up suitcases dated back to 1890s and were partially painted with gold paint. The essential point seemed to make the art accessible to the visitors and making them feel comfortable in front of art installations.

A really interesting piece was a video installation, Undressing by Nibar Güreş, in which she removed layers of headscarves depicting different personalities and revealing herself in the end. I constructed the following video from the still images I captured at certain intervals to give a sense of her original work which was far more fluid and moving. I have obtained permission from the artist to show this derivative work. I am not aware of, nor have I been able to find a Web site for Nibar Güreş to share with you.

On the way out, we faced the view that was invaded by construction all around. The Kılıç Ali Paşa Mosque looked as if retreated or pushed to a corner, with the construction site and equipment covering much of the ground. Even when we had lunch, we saw construction down below the balcony.

Start with Jan’s photographs then move on to mine. Fair warning, there are many photographs, if you don’t see them all the first time, come back and finish the tour.

These are Jan’s photographs covering a range of subjects

Here are my photographs from Istanbul Modern

Discomfort of Istanbul

November 8, 2017 by A. Cemal Ekin

This photograph has been in the making for about 20 years, maybe even more. When I first thought of taking a photograph from this point, on the exit connector from the freeway, the trees were not nearly as tall nor have the looming towers were built. The apartment buildings are situated on the slopes of a hill and a little lower is a graveyard now covered by the trees. The transition from the facades of the apartments to the gravestones was allegorical but the impact has diminished considerably. However, a metaphor of Istanbul burying itself is still there, from the tower to the grave!

Small Town vs Large City

I grew up in a small town in southern Turkey, Adana, and now live in an even smaller town of Warwick. Of course, the size of your town is a relative concept. The population of Adana was around 100,000 when I was growing up but it was spread over a wide area. The center, Seyhan, where I lived was much smaller than that. When I was in college in the 60s, the population of Istanbul, the largest city in Turkey, was about 1,300,000. Although the city boundaries have not changed, the current population of Istanbul has grown to somewhere between 14 to 17 million, including the commuters from outside! Just for comparison, the population of New York in 1960 was 7.8 million and today it is around 8.1 million, a sensible growth rate.

The reason behind the population statistics is to provide context for the discomfort I feel in Istanbul. First, there is the sheer size of the city with its huge population and sprawling settlement. This, I feel partly in a time comparative way from the 1960s to today, and in part location comparative from my tiny town of Warwick to Istanbul. Second, the growth in Istanbul has happened in ways that make no sense at all, with high-rise buildings popping up at unexpected places while the infrastructure remaining mostly unchanged. The roads are still narrow, the traffic is heavy, driving 5 miles can take 1.5 hours which is why distances are mainly measured in time rather than miles!

Uncontrolled Construction

Second, there is the eye-hurting construction in every direction you can look. It is not possible to drive without seeing a construction with one or more cranes perched on top of it or a building being razed. There also seems to be a competition to erect rather ugly towers as each one surpasses the previous one in some respects. Now in vogue are the buildings with curves, curves, curves everywhere! Some even look like fun-house mirror distortions, I kid you not as you will see one example among the photographs below. Gaudi, they ain’t! Gaudy? Yes! Interestingly, in a very strange way, many of these buildings are empty, they cannot sell or rent them but the construction moves on!

Wainwright Building, St. Louis, USA (Used by permission from its owner, Irina Hynes) — Louis Sullivan, Wainwright Building, St. Louis, USA
Used by permission from its owner. Irina Hynes

I read a couple of books on and by Louis Sullivan, the father of skyscrapers, and mentor to Frank Lloyd Wright. He preached and practiced the use of decorations that organically fit the architecture (see left) and “form ever follows function.” In most of the new buildings in Istanbul, the decoration is the main reason and belongs to a strange aesthetic school, or so it seems to me. Search for Sullivan and his work, you will marvel at his style and use of decoration.

So, given the extraordinarily crowded city, narrow roads, and eyesores where you look, Istanbul is a stressful place for me bar the dead-end street where Ergun and Binnaz live in their two-story house with a large field in front. If it weren’t where we spent most of our stay it would have been even more stressful for me. I know many Istanbulites and many of my friends love Istanbul. I used to, but the Istanbul I loved is not there anymore!

About The Photographs

Now a few words about the photographs. The first few are the new Acibadem hospital at Alutnizade, near where we stay when in Istanbul. It displays good lines, interesting glass side, but the roads on all sides are traffic traps with narrow two-way traffic and unusual parking! The fancy exterior is matched by its fancy and posh interior, apparently appealing to the wealthy healthcare tourists from the Arabic countries. The lobby is immense where a half a dozen people greet and direct you where you want to go. The translucent doors between the waiting areas and the offices have no door knobs, just wave your hand in front of the sensor on the wall!

The next several photographs present the Bosphorus Bridge, its traffic, and surroundings. I took most of these photographs from a moving car except a few. You can see the “towering towers” over the city, one I titled Istanbul Behind Bars is a metaphor for the city being taken prisoner by the construction. Then, pay attention to the image I used in the opening, which links the towers to the graveyard connected by an array of about 25-year-old apartment buildings.

Then you will travel with me on one of the highways decorated by many construction sites and more “towers!” Some finished, some still under construction, yet others are just starting. You will see the curved buildings, round ones, some even look like fancy Lego structures. Don’t miss the one that looks like a fun-house mirror distortion and the one that has the title at the gate “Istanbul Medeniyet Universitesi” or Istanbul Civilization University! One of the dozens of “universities” in Istanbul. The series will end with a few sensibly designed buildings. The Toyota building reflects some Japanese simplicity and elements and the side view of the new Yapi Kredi Bank building shows an effective use of glass and clean lines.

Come, ride with me! The virtual ride will be far faster than the real one.

St. Augustine Chapel

October 12, 2017 by A. Cemal Ekin

Our friends invited us to Fenerbahce Dalyan Club last week. As we arrived we saw an old stone building which I later learned was an old seminary attached to a church. During the dinner, I excused myself and started searching for the church which led me to a couple of strangers who directed me to an iron gate. The young man who brought me there rang the doorbell and a lady opened the door. I expressed my interest to see the interior and she said she would be glad to open the door for me.

As I entered the main gate, she greeted me and invited me inside. While I was looking around, she was busy putting the lights on for me. Monica Zeynep Oztoprak is the caretaker of the chapel, following in the footsteps of her late husband. The chapel was very well kept, clean, tidy and decorated with a large painting of St. Augustine at the altar and statues on the walls. A large statue of Christ the Redeemer with open arms was looking from the balcony in the back.

Zeynep took me to the sacristy behind the altar and allowed me to photograph inside. In one small frame was a facsimile of a page in Ataturk’s handwriting on the religious freedom in Turkey. You will see a photograph of that page among the photographs below.

She told me that the building we saw earlier was the seminary. Currently, that and other structures on the premises are rented or leased to the Dalyan Club, which helps with the maintenance of the chapel. After a pleasant visit with Monica, I thanked her and got her permission to share the photographs on my site. Thank you, Monica Zeynep Oztoprak.