I last visited The Shambles when it occupied a Homestead region and presented a steampunk-come-sci-fi theme (see: In The Shambles in Second Life). But that was a year ago (or, when put in purely Second Life terms – a decade ago!). A lot has happened in that time. For one thing, Tolia Crisp has relocated The Shambles to a Full private region; for another she has once again teamed with Dandy Warhlol (Terry Fotherington) to offer another engaging and photogenic region under the Frogmore banner.
At the time of my visit, The Shambles was open to members of the Frogmore group, who are also invited to participate in a landscape photo competition with a L$8,500 prize pool, including L$5,000 to the outright winner (+a 4-week free stay at Frogmore Cottage). Details on this competition are available through the Frogmore group, and it will remain available for entry by group members until August 4th, 2023. However, The Shambles itself will open to full public access on Saturday, July 15th, 2023, and will remain so through until Tolia closes it for a Halloween redressing – so this might be considered a little advanced promotion for the region.
Those who have visited the core Frogmore regions will find much that is familiar within this iteration of The Shambles. It offers something of a continuation of the rugged coastal environment that mixes touches of England’s Cornwall and Devon with a stirring of European coastal areas, bound together with a touch of summer days perhaps made more bearable by the cooling influence of an light breeze drifting in from over the sea.
This is not to say that The Shambles doesn’t have its own personality or independent looks – it most certainly does. In fact, the overall styling contains more of a lean towards parts of Europe’s multi-faceted coastlines than it does the UK’s, and there is, as ever, plenty to see and discover whilst exploring.
To the west, the land is low-lying and formed by a deep inlet / bay complete with a broad sandy beach to one side, facing an headland which rises as a broad shoulder of rock protecting the inlet from the wilder elements, capped by a small fishing wharf suitable for trawlers at the head of the bay. This sits as one of two guardians watching over the entrance to the bay, the other being the (inevitable? – We SLers do so love them…) lighthouse.
A broad cobbled street parallels the beach, offering multiple points of interest whilst aged steps climb the eastern uplands as they rise to a roughly flat top before falling away sharply to the seas below again.
This highland area is home of a variety of locations, each one with its own charm and beauty. There’s the dirt track running past stables, the horses from which graze both in the field alongside it and the meadow above from which rises the head of a tumbling stream which steps its way down along the east side of the setting before using a waterfall to jump down to the sea on the north side.
Or – and keeping to the north side of the region – there’s the campsite with its mix of caravans and tents. It’s a cramped but clearly popular location, although how the caravans got up there is a nice little enigma. Certainly, the same track as runs past the stables was used for the final leg of their journey, but its southern end ends in a rocky drop descended only by more aged stone steps and by more water tumbling from a small pair of pools.
Watched over by a tall bell tower, the southern end of the island seems to exude a sense of age, a careworn spit of land splitting the waters between open sea and narrow channel. Another fishing wharf sits on the narrow spit, itself crossed at several points by a variety of bridges, whilst its eastern end is guarded by two lighthouses, one of considerable age, the other perhaps one of the more recent structures on the island.
All of which is just the start of a description for what is a genuinely captivating setting, rich in content, with many places to sit and pass the time or enjoy a drink or two. There’s also a bungee jump for the more adventurous, although this may be absent whilst the photo competition is running. As one would expect from the pairing or Tolia and Terry, there is a deep since of natural beauty throughout; a feeling that – as is the case in the physical world – the land was present long before people arrived, the wind, fresh water, sea and rain forming it into folds and turns, high points and lowlands, slopes and drops, humans have in turn used to their advanced in establishing a lasting presence here.
Needless to say, the entire setting is highly photogenic and those of the Frogmore group wishing to enter the competition should find lots here by which to create an entry, whilst those wishing to take avatar-centric photos which are not for the competition but purely for pleasure, can also join the Frogmore group for rezzing rights with props.
Again, the region will be open to the general public from Saturday, July 15th, 2023, but those wishing earlier access can – again – join the Frogmore group. Enjoy.
SLurl Details
- The Shambles (Pismo Beach, rated Moderate)
Inara Pey: Living in a Modemworld 