Category: Exploring Second Life

Halloween is always a time when ghostly goings on and ghoulish gambits of games and explorations take over many parts of the grid. The Destination Guide can be awash with places to visit, so much so that those who love this time of years have both a cornucopia of places to visit, and a bit of a headache in choosing where to go and what to do.

The Fallen, open for the month of October, offers a destination which includes touches of Salem, Sleepy Hollow and Transylvania gathered around a small urban setting overlooked by castle and mansion. It’s a dark, mysterious place which extends over a rolling, misted landscape – and also under it at the couple of locations.

A visit starts towards the south of the region, beneath the roof of a circular gazebo. menacing sounds grumble and reverberate through the air, echoing hollowly as mist wraps its way around shadowy trees. to the left, the leaded panes of church windows glow strangely, while to the right, rotting piers point broken fingers out to sea. The strains of Speak Softly Love, seemingly played on a trumpet, drift through the air, drawing one along a path to where modern buildings reveal themselves in the darkness.

As one might expect, this is no ordinary town; pentagrams and mystical signs glow on the ground before the entrances to establishments and homes, bats flit and fly, and the locals are somewhat bony in looks. This is a place where you might want to tread carefully as ghouls are prone to rising from the ground, and even some of the plants have an interest in the taste of human flesh; even the local nuns appear to be up to a certain amount of mischief.

Beyond the town, over a rickety wooden bridge, the road plunges underground before emerging into daylight, the great mass of a castle rising from amidst the densely wooded landscape. Does it offer greeting or more ghoulishness for those who step through the heavy front doors? I’ll leave that to you to decide as you explore, and simply say fangs for allowing the visit, to the castle’s occupant.

Back across the river, the castle is overlooked by a mouldering mansion up on a hill above the town, while a path running north and east leads visitors to an apparently sleepy little hamlet, complete with thatched cottages, creaking windmill and farm animals. All seems normal and safe – until a faded proclamation on a sign reveals you are somewhere near a latter-day Salem, or perhaps Sleepy Hollow. Elsewhere, an old mine plunges underground, begging to be explored by the brave, and stone steps wind their way around a cliff to a small Japanese resting house protected by three Kokeshi dolls.

Designed by Lily Poptart Kazagumi (iheart Wonder) and #TeamLazy (who style themselves as The Pirates Who Don’t Do Anything, although this region suggests they actually do!), The Fallen City is an interesting place to visit with lots of little touches throughout, although given all that is going on means it can be a little taxing on systems, particularly when things are rezzing. However, if haunts and Halloween are your thing, why not hop over and take a look?

SLurl Details

• The Fallen  (The Fallen City, rated: Moderate)

TaKe Heart – click any image for full size

Years ago on the BBC there was a kids TV series called Take Hart, featuring artist Tony Hart. intended to encourage children to get involved in art of almost any form – drawing. painting, 2D, 3D. It took over from an earlier show called Vision On, and both  featured a piece of music called Left Bank Two by the Noveltones, which became an iconic part of British culture in the 1980s (and still is among those who went through there early years back then).

I mention this, because when Caitlyn and I explored TaKe Heart, the homestead region Kess Krystal and spazz Tackett have opened to the public, I was immediately put in mind of the show and the music – and once the theme had lodged in my head, I could shift it. Kess told me I’m not alone – there was apparently a lot of humming and singing the theme during the work of designing the region. even to the point of thought being given to adding a little Morph somewhere.

TaKe Heart

While there is a similarity between the region’s name and the show, the former is not directly tied to the latter – the TaKe in the region’s name is a combination of TAckett and KEss. Nevertheless, it does contain an echo of Tony Hart’s passion for art: it is so photogenic, it brings out the artist in anyone who visits.

Surrounded by rugged island peaks rising from the sea, TaKe Heart is a rugged, rural place, with steep cliffs, undulating swathes of grass, long and short, where trees are misted by glowing points of light twinkling like fireflies in the gathering dusk. It’s a tranquil place which can be enjoyed whether exploring on your own or with friends. There’s even a couple’s walking animation. allowing romantics to  walk hand-in-hand.

TaKe Heart

Split into three islands, the region offers plenty of space to explore, starting from the west side of the largest island, where sits the landing point.  From here visitors, can wander around the large lake of main island – and try the swan boat or the precarious-looking Ferris wheel cars floating on the water. A picnic table between lake and sea offers the chance for lantern lit refreshments, while further away, and up a sharp rise, an arched circle offers the chance for a twilight dance.

Two bridges connect this island with its smaller siblings. The first and larger of these is home to a tall lighthouse, sitting on a headland, a floating house in its lee and a church sitting on a low hill not far away, spire vying for height with the surrounding trees. The other, and smallest of the island is home to the TaKe Two Gallery featuring some excellent photography by friends Kess invited to display there, and which I highly recommended visiting.

TaKe Heart

Elsewhere can be found more places to sit indoors or out, with opportunities to snuggle. Old barns hide cars – one of which has seen better days, while, for the month of October at least, there are suitable macabre elements to be found.

However, rather than write reams about TaKe Heart, I’m going to encourage you to pay a visit and enjoy it for yourself. Instead, I’m going to sign-off with a little trip into childhood days, those of us of a certain age from the UK will remember with a smile.

SLurl Details

• TaKe Heart (Entre Mares, rated Adult)

Update November 21st: Mont Saint Michel is back on the grid, same SLurl.

Several people have contacted me over the last couple of days concerning Mont Saint Michel, Second Life.

In September 2015, and following Ciaran Laval’s lead, I reported the region would apparently be closing at the start of October, the news of the closure having been given by Moeka Kohime via her Flickr stream.

It seemed the news was premature; come November 2015, Petr Hastings-Vanbeeck dropped me a line to say the region was still alive and kicking. It continued to be that way through early 2016 and on through the year.

However, at the start of September 2016, Tyche Sepherd listed the region as one of 55 removed from the grid at the end of August, 2016 – almost a year after notice was first posted of its departure from SL. It’s not clear why the region remained so long after notice was first given; attempts to contact region holder Moeka kohime without success – but suffice it so say, many were pleased to see it continue well beyond its stated date of expiration.

The build, pre-dating mesh, was a fine example of prim architecture in Second Life, and a beautiful reproduction of the physical world place. It was a region many of us enjoyed visiting time and again (I still remember my first visit there back in 2011, and made a point of returning around once a year thereafter, blogging about it in brief again in 2013). As such, I have little doubt it is a place that will be missed by many.

With thanks to chankingyin_hk (Flickr), Silvana Cassini, Jo Yardley and John Brianna for passing along information about the region’s removal. 

Venta Silurum – click any image for full size

Venta Silurum, a homestead region by Tally (Tallyesin) and Kiana  (kiana Jarman), takes its name from a small town which once existed in the Roman province of Britannia (Britain), the remains of which now lie in the village of Caerwent, Monmouthshire, south-east Wales. It also, in part, reflects its physical world namesake, in that it includes a number of ruins open to the public to explore, while part of the landscape pays homage to the more rugged parts of Wales.

However, a facsimile of ancient Venta Silurum this most certainly isn’t; as the About Land notes state, this region is a place for adventure and exploration – and it offers one or two unexpected surprises along the way.

Venta Silurum

An explorer’s visit commences on the west side of the region, atop a grassy plateau fronted by jumbled rocks dropping sharply to the waters below. A lighthouse stands at this small headland, while behind it are the narrow fields of a small farm, watched over by the whitewashed tower of a windmill. Caught in the spell of a forever dusk, the region inspires and immediate air of mystery, which is heightened by the distant line of ruins and a single  finger of a folly standing before the eastern sky.

How one reaches these may not immediately be apparent; wooden steps offer a way down between the rocks beneath the lighthouse, and thence out across the reedy waters that cut into the land, pointing the way to a lone farmhouse to the north. However, a careful examination to the south and east, over the still waters of a flooded quarry, will reveal stone steps winding their way up the ridge on which the ruins sit, and which are reached by following the rutted track past the squeaking sails of the windmill.

Venta Silurum

Following the track will bring you, by way of a narrow gorge spanned by a covered bridge and a gated fence, to the foot of the stone steps. These in fact lead both up and down – up to the ruins, and down to a secluded southerly beach with ramshackle bar and places to sit and cuddle or lie quietly on the sand. Beside these stone stairways sits one of wood, dropping away into the heart of the region.

Climb the stone stairs and you’ll find your way through ancient walls of square-cut stone and flgstone floors to the folly, now apparently the lonely sanctum of someone interested in the sciences – or perhaps magic. Take the wooden steps and you’ll be led under rock to where more mysteries await beneath the boughs of trees, and onward and northward to where more ruins sit under the shoulder of the sheer ridge, a stone bridge spanning a channel of water, leading the way back to the small farmhouse first glimpsed from the landing point. Venta Silurum

Set beneath a marvellous windlight, filled with ambient sounds and rich in opportunities for photographs, Venta Silurum offers an intriguing and delightful visit, sure to conjure up stories about its various sights and offerings, ancient or more modern.

SLurl Details

• Venta Silurum (Aisling Myst, rated: Moderate)

It All Starts With A Smile (360-degree view) Play the video and left-click / drag to pan around

It All Starts With A Smile, Kaelyn Alecto’s Homestead region, has been a regular Second Life destination for me since 2013. My last trip there was in June 2016, when Caitlyn and I enjoyed the tropical summer beauty of the region. But the year has moved on since then, and with autumn now upon those of us in the northern hemisphere, It All Starts With a Smile has transformed itself to suit the season, making a return visit very much in order.

The land lays under a mantle of autumnal colours: yellow and brown leaves cover the ground, whilst those on boughs have turned ochre in preparation for their own spiral down to the grass and tracks below.  Even the red hues of wooden barns and cabins add a feeling of the shortening days and winter’s approach as they sit under a suitably beige sky.

It All Starts With A Smile – click any image for full size

From the landing point, visitors have a choice of routes to be followed – around a small central lake, or up into the low hills to the east and north, dusty tracks pointing the way. Either route will take you past cottages, barns and little cabins, while the track around the lake presents opportunities to wander a little further, out over low wooden walkways spanning an arc of water to connect to a trio of little islands to the west and south, each joined to the next by walkways of their own.

All of the cottages and cabins are open to the public, and each has been comfortably appointed, encouraging visitors to tarry for a time under their roofs. More places to sit and ponder / spend time with a loved one can be found outside as well, with lots of little spots scattered across the region, be they in the backs of wagons or old pick-up trucks, offered by blankets spread on the ground or on a pier, up on platforms or rocking gently within rowing boats moored on the waters. For those seeking a little fun, bumper boats can be played on the lake, whilst thirsts can be quenched at the bar-in-the-barn alongside the landing point.

It All Starts With A Smile

As is always the case with Kaelyn’s designs for It All Starts… this autumn look is highly photogenic and lends itself naturally to many different windlight settings – I opted to go with a variation on an Annan Adored preset for the middle two images offered here.  Those wishing to rez props for their photography can do so by joining the region’s group at the landing point,

With goats calling from the hills, birds singing in the trees and horse grazing near the lake as dogs bark and puppies yap, autumn at It All Starts With a Smile is very much a living thing, and somewhere in which time and troubles can be forgotten; a place where the slant of sunlight through a canopy of autumn leaves to dapple a path below, reminds us that while summer has now passed, it will return again.

It All Starts With A Smile

Should you enjoy your visit, do please consider a donation towards It All Start’s  continued existence, via one of the tip jars offered across the region.

SLurl Details

• It All Starts With A Smile (Heavenly Groove; rated: Moderate)