Category: Exploring Second Life

Gentle Breezes – click any image for full size

Having opened in August 2017, Rosy Highwater’s Gentle Breezes is the perfect antidote to inclement weather and the approach of winter – or if you’re in the southern hemisphere, the perfect promise of summer – and a chance to wander carefree, simply enjoying the freedom to be.

A Homestead region, it has been laid out with an eye for detail, and love of nature. From the sandy beaches up through the wooded hills, everything is pretty much perfect for setting the mind at ease and encouraging feet (and camera lens!) to roam. It’s a place for the photographer, the romantically inclined and those seeking escape for life’s weight.

Gentle Breezes

Surrounded by rolling hills and peaks which rise from sandy shores, the region presents itself as a small isle sitting in a channel between two larger islands. It is close enough to one of the latter to suggest that once upon a time, they may have been joined but overtime, the sea has had its way, cutting a path between them. Taken as a whole, the isle and hills around it – as high as some are – give the impression they may have all at some point in distant pre-history been the ring wall for the caldera of an ocean volcano which once pushed its head above the surrounding seas only to fall extinct and, over the aeons, have those seas erode away the weaker point of the crater walls, flooding the space within.

Visitors arrive towards the centre of the region, on the beach forming the lower part of the island, and which faces out to the west and south. Behind this, the hills of the island form a gentle curve from the east around to the north, casting rocky shoulders down to the sands below. The beach is split into three by channels running outwards from where water tumbles from the rocks of the hills, and it is on the central tongue of sand between the two channels that visitors initial land.

Gentle Breezes

With waves lapping against it, the beach here offers an arc of places to sit and cuddle or chat looking out over the waters of the bay. Two wooden walkways reaching out over the waters separating it from the sands to the north and south. The latter is as big as the middle tongue of sand, and is home to a pier-top beach hut built over the waters, offering the active a little exercise in scrambling up to it it’s flat deck. Those preferring a more relaxed time can sit as watch from the rowing boat moored by the pier, or from the other cuddle and seating points scattered across the beach.

A path marked by wooden boards offers a way up the slope of the hills, leading to the first of the cottages and cabins which share the upper reaches of the island with trees and flowers. As it does so, the path passes between great slabs of rock reaching out from the hills like a protective wall, the sand within their arms gently giving way to grass, while a wind-bent tree offers a modest amount of shade to an old rowing boat converted into a lover’s lounger beneath its bent back.

Gentle Breezes

The cabin at the top of the hill is cosily furnished and offers a taste of a simple life – bees for fresh honey, and an outdoor bath. A footpath runs southwards from the cabin, under an arch and to a lookout point overlooking the larger of the island’s two waterfalls and the hidden delight of a hot tub nestled at the foot of the cliffs. On the hill beyond the falls sit two more cabins, each simply furnished. More sitting and cuddle spots can be found spread between and around them, both in the open and under the shade of trees, while a second hot tub overlooks the southern end of the island.

The easiest way to reach the northern end of the island is over the board walk from the middle tongue of beach. This gives access to a set of wooden stairs which climb the cliffs to a brightly-painted beach house offering a grand view out over the island. A pair of wind turbines stand sentinel-like behind the beach house, and further away through the long grass, stone steps offer a way down to the foot of the smaller of the two waterfalls, and a raft floating gently on the water there.

Gentle Breezes

Gentle Breezes is truly a beautiful location – even now I’ve only just scratched the surface of all the details awaiting discovery – keep an eye out, for example for Rosy’s use of a sculpture by Silas Merlin to represent children playing on the beach. The setting is completely by a perfectly balanced ambient sound scape and for those so minded, a nicely considered chill-out music stream.

But there is also something more here as well. With its rugged hills, gentle beaches and offshore lighthouse, Gentle Breeze offers a remind of Rosy’s equally stunning Black Basalt Beach, which was open from 2013 through 2016, and about which I wrote in August 2013. For those of us who recall the latter, Gentle Breeze further offers a wonderful sense of memory whilst very much remaining its own landscape.

With thanks, once again, to Shakespeare and Max for the tip-off.

SLurl Details

• Gentle Breezes (Seaside Shores, rated: Moderate)

~Neive~ – click any image for full size

Update, September 14th: Claudia has made some further changes to ~Neive~ since this article was published. The parade of shops and houses at the landing point (and seen in the image above) has been revised, and the bath house referred to in the text below has been replaced by the automotive garage which used to sit just outside of the shops and their street. To the south-west, one of the Tuscan-style farm houses has been replaced by a pavilion.

~Neive~ is a Homestead regions designed by Claudia (claudia74a Orsini) which Caitlyn and I first visited in late June 2017, when it still appeared to be under construction. We dropped back there at the start of September to see how things had developed, and found the region has grown into a quite pastoral – if slightly eclectic – setting.

A visit start towards the east side of the region, where a small parade of shops, houses and ruined buildings sit against a waterside road raised above a quay. A set of steps descend from the south side of square in front of the stores, offering the way – over a grass bank  – to a dirt track running between the waters surrounding the region and the large body of water occupying the middle of the region. A Tuscan style farmhouse sits above the track, which ends in an arch formed by two old tree trunks.

~Neive~ – click any image for full size

Beyond this, on the south side of the region, the land changes from temperate grasses and trees to a more tropical beach, complete with palm trees and a beach club built out over the waters. Further across the sand sits a terrace bar, also built out over the water.

The beach curves around to the west side of the island, and a set of stairs leading up to where a terrace sits under the shadow of a windmill atop the highest peak on the land, and overlooking the central pool. A finger of water run by the foot of the terrace hill, connecting inland water with those surrounding the region. A log bridge offer the way to the far bank, where a rocky plateau rises, topped by an old Tuscan villa. Horses graze in the field below the villa, where a deck provides another vantage point looking out over the water towards the south side of the region.

~Neive~ – click any image for full size

From here, the path circles back towards the landing point, passing an artist’s studio in a cabin surrounded by its own little garden. Another narrow neck on water is spanned by a wooden bridge, offering the way to where an ancient bath house sits, clearly still in use despite its age. With an old wooden garage sitting at the top of the slope from the bridge, the path leads the way back to the shops and the landing point.

With sheep, chickens and deer grazing across the land, foxes on the prowl and cats sunning themselves, together with decks and vantage points scattered throughout, Neive offers a relaxing visit. Cuddle spots can be found as well, on land and on the water, and the sound scape and surrounding hills complete the scene. There are one or two visual issues which can bump into view when exploring: walls and rocks which don’t quite meet the terrain below them, together with one or two items floating above ground or deck, but these don’t detract from the region being a pleasant visit and photogenic in nature.

~Neive~ – click any image for full size

SLurl Details

• Region no longer held by Claudia

Mother Road – click any image for full size

“Mother Road is a lovingly crafted Nevada-esque back country, inspired by the original Mother Road sim,” Paul Cutter (Xtreme Paule) says when introducing Mother Road – Mirage Motel 66. “Mine is 1/2 sim size but the work is an experimental showcase which could lead to being full sim size in the future. So far feedback has been positive.”

A half region in size it may be but this build, sitting 450 metres above sea level, offers a genuine feeling of being on a desert road – Route 66 or otherwise – and plenty of opportunities for photography. Visitors initially arrive at the west end of the parcel, the road stretching away to the eastern horizon. An advantage in building in the sky means there is no water on that horizon to break the illusion of a road stretching into the distance, nor does the use of a mountainous or hilly region surround  to disrupt the feeling of being on a broad flat desert plain.

Mother Road

The titular motel sits half-way along the road on the left relative to the landing point. It offers air-conditioned rooms, free wi-fi and cable TV. It faces a gas station and garage on the far side of the road, with an iconic Harvey Davidson-type  motorbike parked at the pumps. The keen-eyed visitors might notice there are bike rezzers at either end of the parcel, allowing them to experience a trip along Route 66 – but those taking a ride should keep in mind the signs also mark the region edges, even though the road appears to continue eastwards and westwards beyond them

Beyond the motel and garage, on either side of the road are cabins and smallholdings, some of which are available for rent, while rugged, sandy hills rise to the north and south. As is often the case, a railroad line runs parallel to the road, but some distance from it, telegraph poles marching alongside it from east to west.

Mother Road

It’s a simple, yet elegant setting, with nuanced detailing and little scenes awaiting discovery. The sun-dried wood of a billboard stands alongside the motel, throwing a shadow for part of the day over an outdoor fire pit, surrounded by makeshift seating of old sofas, a mattress on top of creates, a beanbag and two car seats. A TV and VCR sit on a little bench, the former offering an old little taste of Britain as it displays the old BBC test card. More signs of Anglophilia can be found in the garage across the highway, where the Union Flag faces the Stars and Stripes and Ziggy Stardust floats on the side of a space invaders arcade game.

The garage sits on land which may be part of a farm or ranch, a 4×4 parked alongside an aluminium sided trailer close by, while over the fence someone has chosen to camp out near to some of the rental cabins. One of these is being careful investigated by a small group of young children – or is perhaps being used as their play camp in lieu of adult occupation. They, in turn, are being observed by a scrap metal robot, perhaps built to entertain them among the roadside rocks.

Mother Road

This is perhaps not the most affluent of locations; rusting hulks of cars are scattered around, together with the detritus of civilisation. It does, however offer an ideal setting for photographers, and rezzing rights for props can be obtained by paying L$100 to join the parcel’s group.

Whether or not this current iteration of Mother Road leads to Paul realising a new full region version remains to be seen. In the meantime, this build stands an easy-to-explore design, and going on the numbers present during my visit, a popular hang-out.

With thanks to Shakespeare and Max (once again!) for pointing me to this parcel.

Mother Road

SLurl Details

• Mother Road – Mirage Motel 66 (Mishiland, rated: Moderate)

Brand New Colony – click any image for full size

Update, January 1st 2018: Brand New Colony has relocated. The SLurls given here have been updated to reflect the new location, and a tour of the new build is available here.

Brand New Colony is an Adult-rated homestead region designed by Bunny Blessed (Svelte Blessed) and Mimara Blessed (Mimara) which is open to visitors to explore and enjoy – and it is a wonderfully picturesque setting in which to spend time.

Divided into three islands linked by bridges and surrounded by surf, the region sits in a broad channel of water sitting between two rugged mountain ranges rich with fir trees on their flanks. A visit begins on the plateau of the northernmost island, which extends a slender finger westwards, stone steps offering the way down from the gazebo in which visitors arrive. This sits above a large pool of water feed by an arc of waterfalls. Bridges span the water to the gazebo, which is also carried away by falls which drop down the side of the plateau to feed a large pool and a stream below.

Brand New Colony

Footpaths run either side of the stream, bridges connecting them one to the other, both offering ways to explore the island, and  to reach the summer-house sitting on wooden legs above the stream. Rich with flowers and the shade of trees, with benches and swings to be found along the paths overlooking the water feature, the island on its own offers a picturesque setting in which to spend time. However, there is more to be found in the region.

Just down from the arrival gazebo is a wooden bridge spanning the channel between this island and the larger of the two to the south.

Brand New Colony

A villa with whitewashed walls and a red-tiled roof sits on the plateau forming the central peak of this second island, steps near the bridge offering a way up to it. Sitting beneath the villa and visible from the arrival point is a sandy beach, complete with a tiled pool set back against the rocks of the plateau,  reached by a grassy path sloping down from the villa’s hilltop location.

Two further sets of stone stairs curl their way down the west face of the plateau, allowing explorers reach a stone bridge offering a way to the smallest of the three islands. This is home to the adult aspect of the region: an old (but functioning) lighthouse has been converted into an adult club – so, for those not fond of such things, proceed with care.

Brand New Colony

There are many points of beauty within this region. The three island have been designed with care, and their rocky nature is entirely natural in look and feel, as are the many water features. Trees and plants are used with equal care and finesse to present a setting which is not just picturesque, but also serene. This is a place to be explored and enjoyed at leisure, with plenty of places to sit and relax – or cuddle. It’s also a place which demands photography.

As noted, Brand New Colony is adult rated, and a part of it does have an adult theme; but this doesn’t in any way detract from the sheer allure of the region.  All-in-all, a delightful visit.

Brand New Colony

SLurl Details

• Brand New Colony (Sol, rated: Adult)

Savor Serenity – click any image for full size

Update, July 2018: Savor Serenity has relocated. SLurls in this article have been updated.

“What seemed to be a forsaken land. Ruins of a former kind, left behind in the over grown forest. The morning dawn illuminated the waterfall. In that moment, she knew this would become the new home for her elven people. She savoured the serenity.”

So Tári Zephira (Gidgette Adagio) describes Savor Serenity, the homestead region she and her partner Tár TuT (Valleyofkings) opened to the public at the end of August 2017. Caitlyn and I were graciously allowed to visit the region ahead of its public opening, having thoroughly enjoyed a visit to Tári’s Hobbiton in February 2017.

Savor Serenity

As Tári’s introduction suggests, Savor Serenity is modelled after an Elven enclave – one which, much like Hobbiton, has been inspired by Tolkien’s Middle Earth without actually directly lifting from it. Sitting within a ring of tall mountains misted by a twilight Sun, the region presents a wooded sanctuary in which sits ancient ruins linking by partially overgrown paths and from which great Mallorn-like trees rise, adorned by high telain offering spaces for meeting and dancing, and where elven buildings and domes reside.

A visit begins in the south-east corner of the region, atop a portion of the ancient ruins. Steps descend from the platform at the for points of the compass, with the west side steps leading the way to a path passing through a tunnel made from the bent trunks of trees. The path passes westwards to more ruins among the trees, and places where couples might choose to tarry. Follow the path far enough and it will lead you to a point where you can access the centre of the region. This forms a walled pool of water, with a pavilion pointing westward, behind which a flight of steps rise to a throne sitting beneath a great dome.

Savor Serenity

This central area appears to be the remnants of a great fortification, possibly of elven origin, but now long fallen into disrepair. Steps lead up onto the tops of the walls in place, in others the walkways are broken,  offering an alternative mean of accessing the darkness passages down between the walls – or a route onwards around the region. The first of the Mallorn trees rises from the banks of the waters within the walls, an ornate stair providing access to a platform where ladders provide a route up to the telain built in the branches of the tree. These are connected one to another by further ladders and stairways, with bridges arching over the gaps to telain sitting within the branches of the Mallorn growing to the north and beyond the high walls guarding the central waters.

These additional tree platforms can also be reached by a mix of ladders and stairways which rise from the open lands to the north, where the ground is dusted by flowers and the smaller trees are festooned with lights. A wooden pavilion can be found here, offering a further place to dance, while on the north side of the great wall stands what might have once been the grand entrance to the elven fortification.

Savor Serenity

To say Savor Serenity matches its name would be an understatement – it more than does so. It also enfolds everything that is quintessential about Tolkien’s elves: ornate stonework, geometry, harmony with nature, love of water, and longing for the West. There are touches to refined beauty to be found everywhere – more so than I’ve described here, so it is as well to take your time when exploring. Also, if you haven’t explored Hobbiton recently (or at all), you might find a visit to both it and Savor Serenity present and ideal double visit with which to immerse yourself in  a personal look at Tolkien’s world.

SLurl Details

Savor Serenity (River Hill, rated: Moderate)

 

De*cid*u*ous – click any image for full size

De*cid*u*ous is a full region designed by Trip (TrippingDaisy) and landscaped by his partner, Tate (Tate Ghost). It needs only one word to describe it: enchanting.

Sitting under a Windlight suggestive of an early morning, when the Sun’s rays cause a gentle ground mist to rise of the dew gathered on grass and leaf,  De*cid*u*ous is a mix of stunning landscaping and personal expression on love, life, relationships and the passage of time given in words of prose and  poetry – and it is a place deserving of careful and thorough exploration as there really is a lot to see.

De*cid*u*ous

“What if a virtual land could represent a real life?” Trip asks those arriving at the landing point in the north-west corner of the region, before he continues with an invitation: “Take a journey with me. Enjoy the meticulous landscaping designed by my partner, Tate. Stand in line at my heart to witness the fate of some.” And thus we’re off on a journey, following paths and trail, crossing bridges, exploring settings and passing through caves and caverns.

Along the way – most notably in the caverns and tunnels connecting them, but elsewhere as well – are easels visitors are invited to touch. Doing so will offer up a note card with a passage or poem intended to complement the scene where it is found. Collectively, the shape moments from a life – happiness, love, melancholy, regret, anger, freedom – and all should be read as a part of any deeper journey through the land.

De*cid*u*ous

Following the path down from the landing points takes visitors to first of several water crossings: a bridge and deck where time can be spent sitting at cable roll tables or sitting in the rowing boats moored alongside. Beyond, the path winds through trees, forking before an ancient ruin, one arm leading to a Romany camp between ruins and water, where restful times can be had.

The other arm of the path points the way onwards to a second bridge, joined on the far side of the channel it spans by wooden boards marching over the grass to where they also fork. Turn left, and the way leads to Trip’s heart, as mentioned in the welcoming note card, and another poem of life  and reflection. Continue onwards from the path to the heart, and the trail leads to a clearing and another choice: left and out to where a Ferris wheel sits in the light of the rising Sun, or onwards to where the entrance to the caverns awaits.

De*cid*u*ous

Neither option should be missed. The Ferris Wheel sits within another scene, an easel offering up a poem. The caverns wind up through a pyramid-like hill, each offering a scene or settings, each with at least one poems to accompany it. As Trip hopes the scenes and settings throughout the region will speak personally to all visitors passing through, I’m not going to shade your thinking on encountering the caverns by offering my thoughts here.

From the top of the hill, and the cottages sitting on it, the way back down to the lowlands takes the form of a switchback path – but do check around the slopes of the rocky crown carefully, lest you miss the fort built into its southern face and the cosy hideaway it offers. From the foot of the path down the side of the hill, it is possible to continue onwards and discover the remaining secrets of the region and the various places for contemplation and quiet company it offers.

De*cid*u*ous

De*cid*u*ous is, as noted, a stunning region, offering a series of individual scenes beautifully brought together as a whole through the landscaping. The default Windlight throws the region into a misty half-light, but the land lends itself comfortably to a wide range of environmental settings, and Trip and Tate encourage photographers to experiment. They also ask that those so minded consider submitting their work to the De*cid*u*ous Flickr group. Those requiring props for their images can obtain rezzing rights by joining the region group – but do please remember to pick up your items afterwards!

All told, an eye-catching visit for any Second Life region-hopper. Mix in the poetry and prose that accompany many of the scenes found across the land, and you have a new level of engagement when visiting.  Definitely not a place to miss.

SLurl Details

• De*cid*u*ous (Deciduous, rated: Moderate)