“We started off by being a Linden Lab community gateway sim, for Turkish Orientation.” John Zelnik, whom owns the sim, explained to SL Newspaper. This was in April 2007. The sim at one time had a replica of the Bosphorus Bridge, but later took on a different look, “We have teamed up with the football club Inter SL. It is actually authorized by the real club to use the naming rights, etc, in SL. We have been working with them for about a year now. But they have been around since 2007. We decided to bring forward virtual soccer and make it our sim's main attraction.““The Inter players take this very seriously,” John continued, “It's no different to real soccer for them. They train every single day, a few hours every day. They use special huds to actually play the games. We also have a Football academy which we teach residents to play virtual football. It’s a bit of a change from the club scene. We are getting more and more females who are interested in playing as well.”
John explained over time a total of “a few hundred” players entered Second Life’s soccer league through Bosphorus, “It is not widely known within SL apart from certain cultures who have teams. There are national teams which we conduct national championships. We have one due in June.” John explained Argentina won last year’s tournament, “There are a few teams in Second Life created by residents. However as we are the official inter-team, there are not many like us, with authorization from the actual club itself.
John went on, “This is only one of the real life/Second Life interactions we have. We have also now made an arrangement with one of Turkey's most famous artists to have her gallery here in Second Life also. Hulya Kupcuoglu who has had many showings in Europe and Turkey, we will show case her art work here at Virtual Bosphorus. Another real-life group we work with is “Remove the Barriers.” It is a Turkish movement which we are the official sl representatives of, an organization for raising awareness for people with disabilities. Their aim is not to collect donations, but it is purely to raise awareness and change simple living conditions in Turkey for those who are living with disabilities who can not get around due to the infrastructure, etc.”
Eve1209 Qunitessa, whom helps John out, commented, “Don't forget to tell him about our live concerts too, John.” John smiled, “Yes, we do have live concerts here every week.” Eve added, “The soccer field actually converts to a concert stage” John offered to show, and heading to the soccer field, a large white stage appeared, bluish lights shining down, and covered with a half-dome in the pattern of a soccer ball.
Eve brought up, “Oh, also the shopping: we have some of the best designers in Second Life here. No freebie stores. ... We have some big names like UK Couture and Myth.”
“We are not a sim with 75,000 traffic with bots,” John commented, “I have a allergy to things like that. ... I prefer to keep things real. I'd love to see this place buzzing one day, because we have put in a lot of effort, time and money. We aren’t funded by bigwigs, nor am I one. I’m just a little man trying to make a difference, with the great people around me.”
Eve pointed out, “If you zoom up, and look at the soccer stadium, it's shaped like a heart. John does this sim with his wife.” John smiled, “Ahh yes, my one and only Second Life wife, who is also my fiance in real-life. ... I don't look at things here as just a game. Real people, real projects, real goals.” Eve, “That’s what makes working with John and Princess (Dikes) so special to me. Just like this heart shaped stadium - they've both put their hearts into this place.” John answered, “Thanks Eve. The way we see it this is not just our sim ... This is the sim of everyone who comes here whether it is the store owners, the visitors, the players, the newbies. We have faced a lot of challenges to keep this sim up and running, both financially and emotionally. But our dream remains the same, to share this place with Second Life residents.”Bosphorus was recently remodeled, with a grand reopening ceremony on April 1, John saying, “Yes we changed the entire sim, renovated, and what you see now opened on the 1st. But this sim itself has been around for over two years.”
The sim has it’s own website (still being worked on) at http://www.virtualbosphorus.com , and also it’s own Facebook page.
“Virtual Bosphorus & F.C Inter SL welcomes all visitors to come and experience soccer in Second Life. They have provided an atmosphere to please people from all walks of life. Whether it is playing soccer in their fully functional stadium, shopping from SL's biggest and best brands or listening to live music from SL's most amazing live vocalists, Virtual Bosphorus & F.C Inter SL aims at providing a great experience for all.”
The entry point for Bosphorus is at: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Bosphorus/194/125/22
Bixyl Shuftan
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