Category: Exploring Second Life

No parent should have to bury a child … No mother should have to bury a son. Mothers are not meant to bury sons. It is not in the natural order of things.

– Stephen Adly Guirgis

Thee words came to mind as I visited The Broken Dreams Project in Second Life, as a result of a suggestion by friend Miro Collas. Created and managed by Jared Palianta, The Broken Dream Project is a memorial to those who have taken or lost their lives in recent times as a result of the intolerance of their peers or the through the hatred  / violence of others.

Set as a simple park occupying one-quarter of a Homestead region The Broken Dreams Project is a place of quiet contemplation and reflection. A place where  – in a world where bigotry, hatred, political violence, zealotry (both religious and political) seem to be once again on the rise (although the question must be asked, did they ever really go away?) – pause can be taken to reflect on the level of senseless violence and hatred can be visited upon others.

This project is dedicated to the memory of
those who have lost their battle from Hatred
and Bullying. Your memories live on in this
sombre marbled garden dedicated to
everyone who has endured Hatred and Bullying
because of their sexual orientation, race,
creed, and religious backgrounds. Free from
persecution, your memory lives on inside
These walls.

– From The Broken Dreams Project dedication stone, by Evan Greymyst.

Flanking the landing point are memorials to young people who have taken their lives as a result of bullying and hatred, together with the park’s dedication stones. Around these are several more memorial areas dedicated to those who have lost their lives or been injured through schools shootings, victims of religious extremism (9/11 and the May 2017 Manchester arena bombing); hate crimes and violent act on the basis of their sexuality (such as the 1978 Louisiana Gay Pride Day fire-bombing and the 2016 Pulse Nightclub shootings), acts of US domestic terrorism (the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma and the 2015 San Bernadino shootings) and mass shootings in the United States, such as the 2017 Las Vagas shooting that left 58 people dead and over 400 (of 851 total injuries) injured by gunfire.

These are simple, plain speaking memorials, some of which can be especially hard-hitting, such as the section listing the  young people who have lost their lives as a result of shootings in US schools in the 17 years 2 months to February 2018 (and which has yet to be updated with the victims of the Parkland attack of February 2018), as well as all those inured as a result of such shootings. This is a particularly sobering corner of the memorial as it indicates that the first 17 years of this century have already seen the number of US school shooting related deaths exceed the number seen in the last 40 years of the 20th century.

As well as the memorials, The Broken Dreams Project also offers information on a range of support groups both without and within Second Life, including rape support, assistance for those experiencing bullying and hatred on the grounds of their sexuality, or who are experiencing suicidal thoughts or suffering mental anguish. This information includes note cards, telephone help line numbers, website addresses, and  (where relevant) landmarks to in-world groups – all of which makes The Broken Dreams Project something of a valuable resource. I would perhaps suggest making the website links given on of the information walls clickable so that people can be taken directly to the pages, but this is really a very minor point.

With an understandable US bias, The Broken Dreams Project is a place for quiet reflection for anyone who has lost a friend or loved one as a result of senseless violence or the result of suicide, no matter what their age. Donations are welcome from those wishing to support the project, and can be made via the donation boxes located around the park’s footpaths.

SLurl Details

• The Broken Dreams Project (Reckless, rated: Moderate)

Ocho Tango Place – click any image for full size

I last wrote about Ocho Tango Place in 2015, as a part of a visit to artist Mistero Hifeng’s gallery space and store. The club and Mistero have long shared a Homestead region, and they still do; but while I’ve written about Mistero’s gallery in the intervening years, I’ve not been back to visit Ocho Tango Place since 2015.

Focusing on the tango, Ocho Tango Place is billed as a location for milonga and romance. At the time of my 2015 it sat atop a plateau above the rest of the region hosting it and Mistero’s gallery. However, whether this continued to be the case after September 2015, when both Mistero and Ocho Tango Place relocated to their current home is unclear.

Ocho Tango Place

What is clear is that today, both club and gallery now share a more integrated space. The latter has always used water in its design, and this continues through to the half of the region used by Ocho Tango Place, as designed by Megan Prumier and Sheerpetal Roussel, who owns the club.

Located to the east of the land, the club sits as an island of brick and stone – a former railway station – watched over by the tall figures of steel pylons silently carrying power lines. A terrace before the building offers outdoor seating, a wooden walkway reaching out over the shallow water to the landing point. A locomotive with tender and rail cars can be found at the rear of the club, venting steam as it sits on a single track.

Ocho Tango Place

Trees – most of them slender and birch-like – and grass mixes with the water across the rest of the setting, form  moist islands stretching to the horizon. The are broken into small groups by both clear water channels and the parallel lines of rail track as they curl around the parcel to arrive at buffers, the iron fingers of street lamps marking their route.

In the midst of this, a lone sandy hump rises bearing a denuded tree. Draped with blankets and with blankets and cushions beneath, it is one of several places people can sit and pass the time, along with the club’s terrace and upper floor. More can be found scattered across the parcel (and even higher up – check the power lines!). Further to the west is an outdoor events area lies over another low-lying sandbank offering a place for those seeking a little romantic privacy whilst dancing.

Ocho Tango Place

Wildlife in the area takes the form of origami flamingoes standing in the water or circling overhead, presenting a slightly surreal, but fitting aspect to the setting for those who fancy exploring it. They are balanced by a family of ducks enjoying the freedom to swim on the waters beyond the club to the east.

I’m not sure on when events are held at Ocho Tango – there is no events board available, and while there is a dedicated group for the club, it didn’t have any details of past events when I checked to offer some frame of reference. However, the audio stream carries music in keeping with the theme of the club, allowing those wishing to enjoy a dance to drop in and pass the time whenever they wish.

Ocho Tango Place

Coupled with Mistero’s gallery space alongside it (with TP to his store), a visit to Retrospect and Ocho Tango makes for an engaging visit, mixing art and dance together in a visually striking setting.

SLurl Details

• Ocho Tango Pace (Retrospect, rated: Moderate)

Meadow Rose – click any image for full size

It’s been almost 18 months since my last visit to Meadow Rose, the evocative region designed by Rye Falmer. A lot has happened since then, so a return visit has been on the cards for some time.

The biggest change is that Meadow Rose has relocated. Rye had time away from SL, so the move may have been necessitated by that, but it has given him the opportunity to expand the estate with a second Homestead region directly adjoining it, which he calls Meadow Rose Glen. Surrounded by tall off-sim mountains, and with sandy roads and tracks, both Meadow Rose and Meadow Rose Glen offer a charming, beautifully landscaped setting that will easily please the eye and camera and offer the heart a touch of romance.

Meadow Rose

There is much about the “new” Meadow Rose that draws upon previous incarnations that make a return visit as much a delight as a first-time discovery. Like returning to a place in which happy times were once spent, the region includes elements from past builds that stir memories and give a warm feeling of familiarity, even while the overall layout of the expanded estate offers much more than was previously the case.

This is perhaps most noticeable with the main dwellings within the region. Taking a distinct Tudor lean, they perhaps initially suggest a period setting. However – as I noted when writing about my previous visit to Meadow Rose, there is more than enough evidence surrounding them to make it clear that while the buildings are period, the setting is modern.

Meadow Rose

Meadow Rose is also a place that is distinctly Adult in theme. D/s / BDSM is part of the estate’s offerings, although by-and-large this is not so in-yer-face as to put the sensitive off. Rather the reverse, in fact: with one or two exceptions, most of the Adult aspects of social interaction here and safely tucked out-of-sight, such as in the cellars beneath the manor house.

There are other elements here that remind those who recall Meadow Rose in its previous incarnation: the deer roaming among the wild flowers, the chapel, the castle ruins, the Romany cap and the stables. Although it should be pointed out that the latter now are part of the more adult nature of the region, offering a place where equestrian activities can be enjoyed without the use of ponies of the four-legged variety.

Meadow Rose

Water played a significant role with prior designs for Meadow Rose, and this is perfectly reflected – and expanded upon here, with both Meadow Rose and Meadow Rose Glen encompassing natural inland water features whilst Meadow Rose  also includes a little coastal mooring area and boatyard. Meadow Rose Glen, meanwhile offers a counter to the old castle ruins, an intact castle setting (which again has some D/s / BDSM undertones).

Exploring the estate really is a case of arriving and then following the dusty roads and seeing where they lead. There’s no risk of getting lost, and the roadways are laid out in such a way as to carry the visitor right around and through the estate, revealing all the little touches, all the settings, all the places for sitting, dancing and romancing along the way.

Meadow Rose

Back when I last wrote about Meadow Rose, I mentioned that one of the most striking aspects of the design was that it felt like a visit to one of the grand estates managed by the National Trust here in the UK, noting:

That is, lands held for generations by a family, bearing all the hallmarks of their long ownership during which the passing of time gave rise to different forms of house – castle to manor, for example – but which are now maintained for the wider appreciation of the general public, their gates and doors open to visitors to enjoy them in their natural splendour.

With the estate now expanded across two regions, this is perhaps even more true with it today; there is very much as feeling that This is the setting long occupied by a landed family that may have started life here in what are now the ruins of an old castle guarding the waters leading into the bay in which the island sits before moving eastwards to the slightly higher ground where the more imposing bulk of the intact castle lies, before moving back to the centre of the land to build the grand manor house – and then spreading outward from there as the generations passed.

Meadow Rose

Impressive in its design, appealing in its beauty, expansive in its size, Meadow Rose is a treasure to visit. Should you enjoy your visit as much as I did, please consider making a donation towards the estate’s continuance in Second Life, and perhaps also consider contributing photos to the estate’s Flickr group.

SLurl Details

• Meadow Rose (Forever Neverland, rated: Adult
• Meadow Rose Glen (Coche, rated: Adult)

{ Glenrosa } – click any image for full size

Update: {Glenroas} has closed. SLurl have therefore been removed from this article.

The Destination Guide led me to { Glenrosa }, a stunning Homestead region designed by Brandi Monroe and her SL partner Gabriel (gabriel4botto) which – at the time of writing – deservedly sits within the Editor’s Picks section of the DG.

It is a place specifically designed to encourage exploration; a countryside location caught in the early bloom of morning, where the rising mist drifting across unpaved paths and between wooded hills gives a siren call for us to eat a warm breakfast, don thick coats and hiking boots and set forth before the Sun gets too high above the horizon. The region description adds to this call, inviting visitors to “set off down the winding road or take the shoreline,” and noting that whichever route is taken, surprises await discovery.

{ Glenrosa }

The winding road in question lies close to the region’s given landing point, located just above the shoreline on the north coast. Two dry stone walls cup the landing point within their arc, the shingle coastline presenting a view of the broad, flat sea watched over by a squat off-shore lighthouse just away to the east, framed by the rising Sun.

The two dry stone walls are prevented from touching one another by the tall pillars that between them support wrought iron gates guarding the road. The stone stags atop the pillars, together with the region’s name, give the impression this is some landed estate, with the overall ambience of the setting giving me the feeling I could be somewhere in the remoter parts of Scotland – although admittedly, banyan trees aren’t typically found in Scotland.

{ Glenrosa }

This feeling was heightened during my wanderings by the discovery of a single-track railway line running the short distance from a tunnel to a set of buffers, passing a small country station along the way. Clearly a spur line, it is not hard to imagine a small regional train – perhaps a privately owned steamer – pulling into the station with one or two vintage rail cars, so that visitors might alight and explore before the train reverses its way back down the track.

The feeling that this is – or once was – a private estate is further heightened by the presence of a grand hunting lodge at the end of the road leading up from the landing point. Furnished throughout, the Lodge shares the setting with a small chapel a short distance away, atop a  rocky hill. No longer used as a place of worship, the chapel is surrounded by gravestones, giving the impression it may have once been a family chapel and burial plot.

{ Glenrosa }

The house can also be reached along the coast, following the shingle beach towards the Sun and where it broadens alongside the lighthouse before turning south. Along the way, it passes steps leading up to the chapel and one of the surprises in the region: a grand piano sitting under the banyan tree; one of several places where time can be spent in quiet contemplation.

More such places can be found scattered across the landscape, from a little deck built out over the cold-looking waters close to the lodge, to up over the train tunnel, where a little vagabond camp has been set up. This is reached by way of a small house overlooking the railway line on one side, and out across the fir trees and rocky hills of the estate on the other. Down the slope from this little house, possibly once cared for by whoever many have at one time lived in it, is an orchard, still very much being cultivated, although the house itself no longer appears to be a working home.

{ Glenrosa }

A cinder track continues beyond the beach behind the main house, arcing slightly up and away from the coast before dropping back to rejoin the shingles. It leads the way to where part of the land has been flooded to form a natural inlet, its narrow neck spanned by an old bridge. Here the setting, with reeds and trees growing from the water and the wooden shack to one side, is perhaps more mindful of a Louisiana swamp than a place sitting somewhere on the Scottish  coast – but it still feels very much a part of the overall landscape, and it offers more places to sit and spend time in the region.

Caught by the rising Sun, { Glenrosa } also lends itself to other daytime windlights – although for once I’ve tended to keep to the default in the images here. Those who do take photos are invited to add them to the region’s Flickr group, and there is more than enough here to keep anyone’s camera busy.

{ Glenrosa }

Although sitting within a sim surround, I confess I found the rolling, rocky landscape dominated by fir trees, to be more attractive with it derendered to present a more coast-like setting (although just having one side of the region open to water would have really done the trick). Nevertheless, with its gently undulating landscape, this is a place of beauty rounded-out by a gentle soundscape and is definitely not a destination to be missed.

La Frontera – click any image for full size

La Frontera, a homestead region designed by Zaffy Bailey (zaffin) and Pete (PeteSunny), opened its doors to the public recently, offering an opportunity for visitors to spend a little time in a setting inspired by Spain’s autonomous region of Andalusia.

Focusing on a terraced village setting among the steps of high, sandy hills, the region presents a simple, elegant setting visitors are invited to explore and photograph – there is an invitation to upload images to the region’s Flickr group – and to enjoy the general relaxed ambience of the village and the beach below.

La Frontera

The little village is split into two by the steps of the hill, with the landing point set in the terraza of the large part. As befitting the location, the building here are adobe-fronted, with some offering a nod towards Moorish architecture again in keeping with the inspiration for the region, while others are perhaps a little more Tuscan in styling. Bicycles are racked to one side of the fountained square, but to be honest, the cobbled and stone-stepped paths winding between and down from the village’s buildings are better followed on foot.

There are several of these paths, ranging from simple dirt tracks cut into a hill, others ancient stone steps, carefully cut and placed and suggestive that there may once have been something far older than the current houses sitting upon the hill, and still others rough stones loosely planted in the sandy soil. Each offers a route of exploration, either up or down from the terraza, making any exploration a matter of following where your muse leads.

La Frontera

Nor are the paths alone in finding a path down the hillside; a stream, rising up above the village, tumbles by way of falls, channel and sloping path down to where the sea awaits (a second waterfall drops more directly to the sea on the north side of the island). With its rushing, turbulent water crossed here and there by bridge and steps, the fast-placed stream may have, over time, played a role in helping to separate a low-lying sandbank from the rest of the land.

The home of scrub grass, a scattering of trees, wild flowers and tall reeds, the semi-circular sandbar offers a beach where a tan can be gained, and the skin cooled by either a dip is the sea or in the pools to be found on the sun-dried earth of the bank.  It is connected to the rest of the land by two humpbacked bridges that stand almost guard-like, one either flank of what might have once been a walled orangery. This appears to have once been a part of a larger formal garden, although only the flagstones of a terrace and a central water feature now remains.

La Frontera

A wooden board walk also spans the arc of water separating the sand bar from the rest of the land. Follow this and it will take you to the near-hidden secret of the region: and underground music venue. Located inside a high-ceilinged cavern, this offers plenty of space for those wishing to dance. Zaffy tells me the plan is to make this the venue Whether this will be a “formal” venue for dancing / music is unclear to me; during my visit, Zaffy was either engaged in building or AFK, as my enquiry went unanswered.

Throughout the region are plenty of opportunities to sit and appreciate the setting, from the beach, through the gardens up to the village – including up on some of the roof tops and verandahs, all the way to the highest peaks (or higher still in the case of the windmill standing well above the land to the north-east). There is also a subtle sound scape to add aural depth to the region as one wanders the paths and trails.

La Frontera

Offering uncluttered charm, plenty of opportunities for photography and perfectly suited to being seen under a variety of warmer windlight settings, La Frontera is a delight to visit, and a reminder to those of us sitting on the cusp of winter that warmer days and days in the Sun really aren’t that far away.

SLurl Details

• La Frontera (Forest Haven, rated: Adult)

With thanks to Shakespeare for the pointer!

Cold Ash – click any image for full size

Leaf (Peyton Darmoset) and Julz (Juliette Rainfall) are among my favourite region designers. Their region designs of Erebos Harbor (read more here), Cloudbreak (read more here) and Ash Falls (read more here) is among the best natural settings to be found in Second Life. So when I received an invitation to pay a visit to their latest creation, I made sure I had the opportunity to spend a fair about of time visiting, and hopped over to take a look.

Cold Ash is the in-world home for the Cold Ash brand of menswear, and the latest iteration of the region has been fabulously designed by Leaf and Julz as both the home of the store and a photogenic place to visit and appreciate.

Cold Ash

Visitors arrive, appropriately, at the store itself, located towards the north-east corner of the region. This sits on a large plateau that is typical of the rugged nature of the island and resembles a large, converted warehouse. A railway track runs past the front of the store, separated from it can a broad gravel road that narrows into a winding footpath. Both the path and the railway track form an integral part of the region’s design.

Running from a tunnel on the northern extreme of the island, the tracks to where a metal framed truss bridge spans a watery gulf to reach a southern island. The gravel path gently curves its way down the slope alongside the bridge to also span the water, this time via a low-sided cement bridge, before curling up the slope of the second island, passing under the railway bridge as it does so.

Cold Ash

Both track and path lead the way to a lumber yard that takes up the larger part of the second island, the land falling gently on the north side, where the trunks of felled trees lie, already stripped of their branches. Wooden steps run down the slope as well, offering a way down to the single beach running along the coast. This arcs back to another set of steps leading back up to the gravel footpath, offering a small loop around this part of the island.

Which is not to say this is all there is to see on the island. The lumber yard includes a workshop where the logs from cut trees can be cut and worked, prior to being loaded onto rail cars outside. A car workshop sits alongside the lumber shed, looking perhaps a little incongruous given there are no open roads here, but it does actually work within the setting, lending further character to the region.

Cold Ash

The main island also offers routes down to the coast. The first is another winding path reached via a crossing over the railway tracks close to the store.

Two more are to be found to the water’s edge, both wooden walkways. The first commences close to the rail bridge and passes under it to reach the eastern coast. The second is hidden from view up-slope from the tracks. However, while it offers a way down to the western waters and provides a view back along the channel between the two island, it also leads to a private residence. Be aware the security orb guarding the house is on a short fuse, so keeping a distance is recommended.

Cold Ash

Walk along the eastern coast of the main island, and you’ll find a little hideaway made from a converted railcar doubling as a little warehouse, a wooden porch offering a place to sit.

Carefully married with its sim surround, with a balanced soundscape and a subtle use of wildlife – such as the gulls flying between the two islands – this is another marvellous setting, richly photogenic. With the look of a coastal headland thanks to the way it joins with the surround peaks, Cold Ash is another truly eye-catching design by Leaf and Julz, one that should be visited and appreciated, whether or not you’re looking for apparel; and for the men, it offers the perfect excuse to try out new clothes while enjoying a walk around the islands.

Cold Ash

SLurl Details

• Cold Ash (Cold Ash, rated, Moderate)