Category: Exploring Second Life

Voile (Flickr) – click any image for full size

Voile is a relatively new residential region to Second Life, and a place I was recently invited to explore by Maddie (MadisonRaelynn), who is both a resident there and a reader of this blog. I’m glad I took her up on her offer – although she has my apologies for taking a while to actually get a post properly written-up.

Designed by Heloise (Heloise Evanier), Voile presents an exquisite landscape focused on a central craggy plateau of mixed elevations, with low-lying coastal areas below, not quite encircling it. Houses are scattered across both the plateau and the low-lying areas, seemingly at random; however, each has been placed with a careful eye to ensure it enjoys a comfortable degree of privacy from neighbours and a view out over the sea. All of the houses are beautifully blended with public areas awaiting exploration by visitors and open to the enjoyment of residents. As the welcoming notes in About Land state, everyone is invited to spend time in Voile – just so long as the privacy of residents here is respected.

Voile (Flickr)

The houses on the region are an eclectic mix, ranging from rustic cottages through farmhouse and Tuscan villa to large manor style homes, with a converted church and even a tree house mixed in for good measure. Yet all work together to offer a seamless whole to the region.

The properties on the high central plateau are arranged around a central orangery / pavilion. Paths of old stone paving meander through tall grass to link each residence with its neighbours and also offering paths to the ramps and cuttings which lead to the low parts of the plateau or down to the areas just above sea level.

Voile (Flickr)

The public areas within the region are as diverse as the houses; on the main plateau one can find places to sit and paths leading down into sheltered coves,  while wooden board walks run around the feet of the high cliffs to more places to sit. A single knuckle of rock stands aside from the main plateau, the ruins of a castle perched atop, reached by a single bridge. This, and it’s ruined twin, stand sentinel over the grassy lands below, a switch back path etched into the side of the plateau offering a way down to it.

Voile is genuinely a place of beauty, somewhere to be called home by those who reside there, and explored at gentle leisure by those who visit; a place not to be missed. My thanks again to Maddie for dropping me the invitation.

Voile (Flickr)

SLurl Details

• Voile (Rated: Moderate)

It’s a New Dawn (Flickr) – click any image for full size

It’s a New Dawn is the evocative name of Silvermoon Fairey’s new homestead region in Second Life. Like its name, this is an evocative place to visit, filled with sights and sounds to delight the eyes and ears; a place where exploration on foot is greatly encouraged.

I first became familiar with Silvermoon’s work through her region Dawn of Radiance, which you can read about here and here, an enchanting region beautifully designed and constructed and which could reflect the passing seasons of the year, but which passed into memory. It was a place I admired greatly, and given this, I was eager to see what It’s a New Dawn might hold.

It’s a New Dawn (Flickr)

From the start you know this is a special place; a rugged island where time has almost stood still in some ways, and where the pastoral life holds sway. A tiny hamlet occupies the island, although the population here seems to be chiefly horses, sheep and cattle, together with the local wildlife and birds. There are no roads, only rough tracks and footpaths worn into the rock by the passage of feet down through the years. Two lighthouses vie with a windmill perched on a tall plateau to be the sentinel of the island, while small inlets and coves around the coast offer sheltered beaches and rocky coastal paths around the base of tall cliffs and craggy slopes.

The contrasts in landscape and elevations here is remarkable and does much to give It’s a New Dawn a stunning natural look and feel. Exploring the island, I couldn’t shake the sensation I was walking across one of the Scottish islands, or perhaps another of the mythical islands in the chain once thought to lie within the North Atlantic may years past, and which includes Frisland, another popular Second Life destination.

It’s a New Dawn (Flickr)

This is very much a place to be enjoyed in foot (flying is disabled, and it’s really better to walk than override), and with local sounds enabled. As with most scenic and well-designed regions, It’s a New Dawn has an accompanying sound scape to add to the sense of immersion, so make sure you have local sounds enabled.

Those who remember Dawn of Radiance may notice a few familiar motifs from that region – the windmill mentioned above, the cottage on the escarpment nearby, the use of water and falls to enhance the lay of the land, and so on – all of which serve to give something of a feeling of familiarity whilst presenting somewhere wholly new.

It’s a New Dawn (Flickr)

Photography within the region is welcome, and those taking pictures are invited to add them to the Dawn of Radiance Flickr pool. Should you enjoy your visit – and I have no doubt you will – please consider making a donation at the landing point to help with the region running costs.

SLurl Details

• It’s a New Dawn (Rated: Adult)

Aspen Fell – Endless – click any image for full size

Aspen Fell – Endless is the latest iteration of the always evocative region of that name. As the last time I blogged about a visit there was in early 2014, a return was long overdue. Thus we set out to both renew an acquaintance and explore a new setting.

A visit starts in a skybox located just above the region – follow the arrows through the little shack and use the teleport to reach ground level in the south-east corner of the region. Here a clock floats in the air, time ticking slowly and eternally as rain falls from a pale sky and sunlight is reflected off of surrounding snowy peaks.

Gates set into the remnants of a wall lead you onward, up and out of the rain to where an old boxcar sits on the rusting rails of an old railway siding. The aged state of car and rails are a sharp contrast to the pristine white of a chaise lounge close by, the first indication that Aspen is still a place where visitors are welcome to come and while away the hours.

Aspen Fell – Endless

Walk back around the boxcar and down the slope facing west, and the rain gives way to snow which is slowly drifting on either side of a winding path. If you prefer, you can follow the railway tracks northwards along the edge of the island and see what they might bring. There are no rules here; only the freedom to explore.

Should you follow the track, you’ll find yourself led to a rocky outcrop, another wall and gates – something of a motif within the region – standing guard over the end of the tracks. A tunnel has been cut through the rocks, rectangular in shape and perhaps once the route trains may have used to deliver trucks to the siding you’re leaving behind.

Aspen Fell – Endless

With tracks now gone, the tunnel offers a way down to the north corner of the region, bathed in sunlight and washed by rain, the tall finger of a lighthouse standing sentinel, familiar gates marking your path north and west.

Follow the path westward from the boxcar, and you’ll find it forks and forks again. The fist fork will take you north once more, through trees and on the opposite bank of the river flowing alongside the train tracks. Continue west and you’ll be shown the way over a stream via a bridge suspended by balloons, before the path branches again, pointing you either on westwards or to the north and over a conventional wooden bridge and then around another tall rocky plateau, from which waterfalls tumble.

Aspen Fell – Endless

If you haven’t already surmised, this a rural setting, bordering on the Great Outdoors. The land is a beautifully compose mix of lowlands, gentle slopes, high outcrops and plateaus marked by slopes and paths leading up to them, and meandering streams and pools of water which natural break up the land.

The entire setting is, in a word, idyllic,  complete with a rich mix of ambient sounds which greatly enhances the feeling on immersion: rain patters and splashes against the ground and water, bids sing from the trees in the sunlit areas, water splashes and sucks against wooden board walks, horses whiny, while in the distance a piano plays, deep under the trees, and here and there the ticking of a clock can be heard – time being another motif within the region. While for those who prefer, the audio stream offers music to match the mood of the region.

Aspen Fell – Endless

Aspen Fell is a region which has never failed to present an evocative, atmosphere environment, and with Aspen Fell – Endless, this continues to be the case. A visit here is to lose oneself, with lots of opportunities for sitting and contemplating, and especially for sharing with someone close. If you’re with a loved one, we can recommend the wishing well in particular – we liked it so much, we bought a copy for the garden at home!

Should you be as entrance by a visit as we were, do please consider a donation towards keeping the region open for others to enjoy.

SLurl Details

• Aspen Fell – Endless (Rated: Moderate)

Saint Pete City (Flickr) – click any image for full size

Saint Pete City is the latest region design by Neva Xenga (Neva Crystall) to open in Second Life.  As the name suggests, this is an urban environment, one with a strong Dutch influence in terms of architecture and feel.

The landing point places visitors on a small coastal cove sitting between high shoulders of rock, a lighthouse standing guard to one side. Facing this across the street, is Saint Pete, awaiting your pleasure under a slightly sombre evening sky. Here the streets are largely cobbled, and the architecture very much modelled on that of The Netherlands, with copious numbers of bicycles scattered around to add to the feeling that one is not a great distance away from Amsterdam, Rotterdam or Utrecht.

Saint Pete City (Flickr)

Walk through the streets and you come across coffee shops, bric-a-brac stores, bookshops, a bicycle shop, hotel, art gallery (where some of Loverdag’s superb images are on display) – in short, everything you’d expect to find in a cosmopolitan environment. There’s even an old industrial unit, now empty and perhaps awaiting being put to a new use.

Such is the design of the region, it’s easy to imagine you’re walking through a much large area than is the case – a feeling enhanced on the west side of the region, where, between the town and a rocky plateau, sits a walk under denuded trees, apparently caught in early winter, with benches available for warmer days, when strolling couple might want to set and rest, all of which gives the feeling of walking from one part of town to another as one passes through it.

Saint Pete City (Flickr)

Many of the houses and stores here are empty, but others – such as the coffee shops and stores mentioned above are not, and visitors are welcome to enter them and sit or browse – and the wine shop / bar comes particularly recommended. For those with local sounds enabled, Saint Pete is another of the many regions in SL where care has been taken to create ambient sound scape to enhance the feeling of walking a busy community.

All of Neva’s sim designs demonstrate a wonderful eye for detail and offer environments rich for exploration and Saint Pete City really is no exception. Caitlyn and I spent a pleasant time wandering around, bumping into to people and enjoying the sights and sounds, and took time out to rest on one of the many benches found in the various squares, listening to the birds and the sounds echoing up the street, before rounding things off by sitting in the local wine bar, enjoying a glass of wine and one another’s company – just as we all might do while enjoying our time immersed in a visit to somewhere new.

Saint Pete City (Flickr)

SLurl Details

• Saint Pete City (Rated: Moderate)

 

Endless Summer (Flickr) – click any image for full size

Endless Summer, designed by Kiddo Oh, is the home to her Dead Dollz store and brand, offering mesh apparel for women. However, it is also much more than this; it is a region which has been beautifully crafted to offer visitors not only a store to browse,  but a beautiful place to be explored and discovered.

The main landing point is in the walled courtyard of Kiddo’s store, which presents the first hint that there is much to be enjoyed here. The store charmingly sits within a Tuscan villa complex built around the spacious courtyard, the walls of which are either whitewashed or stone (or a mix of both) depending on who last touched where. Between the villas and outbuildings, archways pass through the walls, enticing visitors to explore the land beyond.

Endless Summer (Flickr) – click any image for full size

Through the arch to the north side of the store courtyard. closest to the landing point, a dirt track winds its way down a gentle slope to follow the line of the island’s rocky edge as it faces the sea, leading you to a stone bridge arching its way across a narrow channel of water to a smaller rocky plateau.

Here, within the appropriately entitled Trompe Loeil Wedding Barn, can be found Kiddo’s range of bridal gowns, a little brick-built café nestled close by offers a place for unhurried contemplation of which to purchase for that special day. Sheltering under the outcrop is a sandbar where a little ice cream concessions resides, complete with parasoled seating. However, to reach it, you’ll need to return to the main island and descend the steps next to the bridge and wade through the shallow waters of the intervening channel.

Endless Summer (Flickr) – click any image for full size

These steps also provide access to the ribbon of beach which almost encircles the rocky cliffs and slopes of the main island. Follow this to the west, and more will be revealed, be it the events stage looking out over the sea, the wooden stairs climbing back up to the plateau and store above, Kiddo’s workshop house lying just off the coast, or places to just sit and watch the ebb and flow of the tide.

Around the villa complex, the fields give a hint of the time of year: grapes are heavy on the vine, apples sit ripening on the orchard trees, and corn cobs are almost ready for picking. A rippling lake of golden grass to the west of the store tells of a summer that has been rich in hot, dry days. A tall finger of a windmill rises from the midst of this grass offers a cuddle spot cradled between its feet, while the rear portion of an old pick-up positioned against the store wall nearby presents an alternative resting place for those returning from a walk around the island.

Endless Summer (Flickr) – click any image for full size

And this is just scratching the surface; there is more to be discovered as you explore, be it the little tram café  or the love seats or the offshore lighthouse and shack as they enduring a very local downpour, or inside Kiddo’s store itself. This is a place as beautifully crafted as the rest of the region; one which encourages slow browsing,  apparel displayed in such a way it’s as if one can reach out and touch items and feel the materials under fingertips.

All told, Endless Summer packs and incredible amount into it, and Kiddo deserves praise for creating an environment which is such a delight to the eye and camera, and fully deserving of the time taken in exploring it.

Related Links

• Endless Summer SLurl (Rated: Moderate)

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

Update: October 10th, 2016: almost a year after it had first been indicated the region was closing, Mont St Michel has now gone from Second Life. Tyche Shepherd noted its depature during her August end-of-month survey of the grid.

Reader Petr Hastings-Vanbeeck contacted me on Monday, November 2nd concerning Mont Saint Michel in Second Life, and passed me some – for the time being, at least – good news.

In September, 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.

“I just discovered that Mont Saint Michel is still open,” Petr informed me. “I am standing at the cathedral on the hill.”

And indeed, a quick hop across to the region reveals that it is indeed all intact, complete with Moeka’s *Edwelweiss* next to the landing point.  So what has happened? Has Moeka decided to keep the region operating following the outpouring of support which followed the closure announcement, or is this just a temporary reprieve?

Answering these questions isn’t easy; Moeka doesn’t reply to IMs, and her Flickr stream hasn’t been updated since the announcement was posted. However, questions have been left in the comments in the hope she will reply.

In the meantime, if you’re keen for a further (or first) visit to this marvellous reproduction of the famous French historical landmark, now might be a good idea, just in case it may still be scheduled to vanish.

My thanks to Petr for contacting me about the region’s continuance.

SLurl Details

Mont Saint Michel (Rated: Moderate)