Category: Second Life

Sweet Paradise, June 2019 – click any image for full size

Update: This parcel is no longer open to public access, and SLurls have therefore been removed from this article.

Sweet Paradise to the Darks sounds a rather unusual name to for a location in Second Life; at least until you realise it references a private home that has been opened to public visits – the Darks in this case being Anita Dark (Anita Khaos) and Kiara Dark (kiaraslet).

Occupying a 8192 sq m parcel, Sweet Paradise is one of those settings I like finding / exploring (although in this case, it’s the latter, as I was pointed to the parcel by reader Morgana Carter); the kind of place that demonstrates you don’t need an entire region in which to create a space that can be both home and somewhere for others to visit.

Sweet Paradise, June 2019

Embracing a tropical island feel, this is a location that’s easy to explore, and even easier to while away the time within. A large, two-storey houseboat dominates the setting, the little patio to one side of it forming the landing point. The lower deck of the houseboat is filled with bric-a-brac, much of it focused on art, the clutter giving the place something of a bohemian feel.

A short walk along sandy grass, the path marked by large rocks and the fenced-in form of a VW Beetle that’s clearly not going anywhere soon, will bring visitors to a large, cement-sides beach house that continues the arty / bohemian feel, presenting a study-like environment again filled with the kind of cosy clutter that marks a space – be it a single room or an entire building  –  as a home.

Sweet Paradise, June 2019

Oriented north-to south, the parcel has a westward beach looking out over the open sea, the view it provides shared by both the veranda of the beach house and the little patio fronting the houseboat. Nor are these the only places from which to enjoy the view. An old rowing boat vies for the attention of visitors (with singles and couples / friends poses) together with a couple of rattan loungers under the shade of parasols, while to the north end of the parcel sits an old camper trailer. This sits within a curve of beach and might possibly be the home of a surfer, but is currently the abode of a Siamese cat who is enjoying the sunshine and a nap.

A mix of trees are scattered across the landscape help to both break it up and screen the various buildings and locations one from the next, helping to present a sense a privacy along the parcel’s sandy ribbon. Together with the rocks breaking up the shoreline they also help give the parcel more of an island-like feel, on the east side of which lays another beach house, this one shaded by palm trees that also cast their cooling influence over another waterside nook visitors can enjoy as a box kite flies overhead.

Sweet Paradise, June 2019

Small but beautifully landscaped and with a eye for detail, Sweet Paradise makes for an pleasing, homely visit. There are numerous places for people to simply relax, and  / or take photos. It’s the kind of place that can easily fulfil the greeting given in the About Land description: where people can make a lot of happy moments.

Simply perfect!

Iona Shores, June 2019 – click any image for full size

I’m always a little wary of blogging residential regions for a number of reasons. While many are open to the public to visit, for example, I’m uncomfortable in recommending them where there is a risk that visitor trundling in and out could be off-putting / annoying to those trying to live on them.

To this end, I use a (and admittedly very rough-and-ready) rule of thumb, which encompasses looking at the overall ratio of public and private space(s) in the region, the ease with which a region can be navigated without necessarily encroaching on people’s private residences, general public attractions, whether or not parcel ban lines are in force (often – although by no means always – a sign that people are somewhat narked by the idea of passers-by wandering through the gardens / yards), etc.

Iona Shores, June 2019

Iona Shores is a region that sits almost exactly within in the middle ground between “to blog” and “not to blog”.  A homestead region, the landmass is pretty evenly split between public spaces, in which visitors are invited to space time and explore and take photos, and three large rental parcels with, it would seem, room for a potential fourth.

However, there is no doubting the region has been beautifully designed – the work of Adalynne Romano (AdalynneReed), who along with her SL partner, Doc Battitude, is responsible for the delightful Candlewood (see Touring CandleWood in Second Life) and the designs used for Bay of Dream (see The seasons at Bay of Dreams in Second Life and Destiny Gardens (see Destiny Gardens in Second Life). This alone would be enough to bring me to Iona Shores, being an admirer of Adalynne’s work, but the fact it came recommended by Shawn and Max increased my interest; and the rental spaces are clearly enough differentiated from the public spaces to allow for exploration by those not living there.

Iona Shores, June 2019

The landing point sits towards the middle of the region, on a long south-pointing finger that extended itself from the eastern side of the largest of the region’s three islands. A low, cinder-beached promontory rising from calm seas, the headland is dressed as something of an aged garden, completed with greenhouse (the landing point) and paved terrace before it. To the north sits an dry stone wall with tired iron gates marking the way to where the land rises up to a flat crown of fir trees in the midst of which sits one of the three rental properties.

Two bridges sit on the headland, the first forms a double strand of wood and rope reaching across the inlet cutting inland by way of a little nub of rock, to reach a western promontory. Another cinder uprising, it sits a little higher than the landing points and offers the open space that could potentially be used by another house. For now, however, it is topped by trees and a small wooden deck, stone steps leading down to a rough, dark beach on the seaward side.

Iona Shores, June 2019

The second bridge reaches across a sliver of water to where rocks step their way up to a broad plateau where sits the second of the rental homes. The base of this island offers a public path around the south-west of the rocks, passing stepping stones that breach another tongue of water to reach the three of the larger islands, the home to the remaining rental house.

Throughout all of this, there are places to discover: a little studio space, a rowing boat offering singles and couples seating, horses grazing on the scrub grass, while wolves and deer wander parts of the landscape. All of this is watched over by the revolving eye of a lighthouse as trawlers chug by on the waters below it.

Iona Shores, June 2019

Finished with a gentle sound scape, Iona Shores makes for a photogenic and visually pleasing visit. For those seeking a place to living that offers space and a feel for the wilderness, it come offer the ideal home. For the rest of us, it presents a delightful sense of escape.

SLurl Details

• Iona Shores (Iona Shores, rated: Moderate)