Day: August 28, 2015

More ruins on the the rock

Posted on by Inara Pey

 

The new island layout. Like the previous island layout, only different :)
The new island layout. Like the previous island layout, but different 🙂

Back in May I wrote about the (then) latest changes on my little island home. At the time, I indicated that I was satisfied with the overall results, but couldn’t entirely rule out changing things again.

Well, guess what?

As a result of a recent project, I’ve ended up with an Inventory containing quite a few things I never expected to own, and which  – truth be told – are unlikely to see much use in the future. However, it seemed a shame that all of them should end up boxed away once more, consigned to the darkness of an inventory folder; and one in particular, the Fanatik Rocky Island, has been  nagging me.

The house sits rather nicely atop the Fanatik rock island, and the footpatth and other flat areas on the plateau mean I have room for garden paces and a nice walk either down to the moorings or to the ruins
The house sits rather nicely atop the Fanatik Rocky Island, and the footpath and other flat areas on the plateau mean I have room for garden spaces and a nice walk either down to the moorings or to the ruins

At 64×61 (ish) metres and 39.5 metes in overall height, this is a piece widely used around Second Life, both for shoreline scenes and inshore, which can blend easily with a landscape to present a dramatic plateau or rocky outcrop, complete with a path winding up one side. If I’m honest, the textures do suffer from being a tad blurry / stretched, but not enough to prevent its use. Fortuitously for me, width and length wise, it fitted into the north end of my parcel with only a little bit of resizing (although I admittedly also reduced the height so as not to completely terrify the neighbours into thinking I was building some Sekrit Island Lair 🙂 ).

The ruins are still there, complete with my pavilion and piano, all now on a slightly lower plateau. The ruins retain Kriss Lehmann’s Forest Tower, still one of my all-time favourite pieces of atmospheric architecture, as the main feature, the archway providing access down to the main quay, as before. I’ve also used Alex Bader’s excellent waterfall kit, to add,well, a waterfall, as hopefully a nice finish.

Couldn't resist adding a waterfall
Couldn’t resist adding a waterfall

I’ve fiddled a bit with the moorings as well, making them smaller, and reducing the number of things moored / parked there, so hopefully the neighbours now feel less like they’re living next door to some kind of air taxi service. There’s a second dock at the foot of the house plateau, but already that spot is nagging me to turn it into a beach; time will tell on that.

But sand and waves aside, am I happy now? Yup. Absolutely. That’s it. Done. Finished. time to relax and enjoy.

Well, for now 🙂 .

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Santaurio’s summer draws to a close in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey

Santaurio, Cala del Barronal; Inara Pey, August 2015, on FlickrSantaurio, Cala del Barronal August 2015 (Flickr)

It was only supposed to be a summer 2014 setting, but Santaurio, Jac and Romy Mornington’s idyllic and mysterious island (originally sub-titled “The Lost Island”, in a nod to a certain television series), has endured for well over a year.

However, Jac and Romy have now announced that the region will finally be closing in a week or so, as they feel it is time move on to a new project. So, if you haven’t visited Santaurio so far, or haven’t been back in a while, now is the time to don your hiking boots, grab a hip flask of water and set out to do so, as the region is gain open to all for a land visit – no group membership required.

Santaurio, Cala del Barronal; Inara Pey, August 2015, on FlickrSantaurio, Cala del Barronal August 2015 (Flickr)

There have been a few changes since my first visit, back in April 2014; some subtle, and a nod to the passing of time, others a little more obvious and which present new little scenes that add more to any back story one cares to create for the island.

So it is, for example, that while the island’s signature crashed jet remains offshore, so the bodies within it have now gone (as has the scattered luggage on the beach), and over the passing of time seaweed has gathered around the wreck, no doubt sheltered by the ebb and flow of the tide by the ‘plane’s bulk. So to, interestingly, have some rocks grown up alongside the wreckage, providing a nice little sandy area on which the ever-patent stewardess now stands, ready to offer her greetings to visitors – well, it has to be better than a wet, slippery wing! 🙂 .

Santaurio, Cala del Barronal; Inara Pey, August 2015, on FlickrSantaurio, Cala del Barronal August 2015 (Flickr)

Just back from the beach facing the ‘plane, there had once been some strange ruins. These have since gone, replaced by a small encampment which indicates the downed jet isn’t the only aircraft to have wound up here: the wing of a light aircraft serves as a table, a propeller, presumably from the same ‘plane, propped alongside it. A radio set on another makeshift table suggests attempts to call for assistance…

Elsewhere, much that was familiar in the summer of 2014 remains: the beach club further along the coast from the crashed jet; the river winding inland to the secret little pools and hidden places, the numerous camps and places to sit and enjoy the scenery. Watch out or the entrances to what seems to be an old pirates’ hideaway; I don’t actually remember that from earlier visits – but it is entirely possible I missed it.

Santaurio, Cala del Barronal; Inara Pey, August 2015, on FlickrSantaurio, Cala del Barronal August 2015 (Flickr)

Santuario is another example of why I’ve always loved Jac and Romy’s builds; there is a wonderful attention to detail, with everything always finely tuned to flow together perfectly. Hence why they’ve tended to be covered a lot in these pages over the years – although admittedly, I’m so far behind in my travelogue visits at the moment that I have yet to make it to Bella Place – so expect to see that in these pages soon!

In the meantime, Santaurio still calls should you wish to visit – just don’t leave it much beyond the next week or so. And while it may well be going, I’m already anticipating whatever Jac and Romy have planned to replace it.

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