Category: Exploring Second Life

Justice Vought opened the next instalment of his journey through region designs over the last weekend in May 2022, and was kind enough to pass me a personal invitation to visit – my apologies to him for taking several days to get to drop in; life is being a little hectic at the moment, and my daily SL activities have been largely confined to logging-in and parking myself for IM’s etc.

This latest design, however, was guaranteed to pull me across to it sooner rather than later because not only is it Justice’s latest build – and I have never failed to appreciate and enjoy his work – it also carries visitors to the Far East, which as regulars to the pages will know is a part of the world I love.

In particular, A Samurai’s Tale presents something of a tribute to Japan’s feudal history and the time of the samurai military nobility, but perhaps not in the manner one might expect.

The samurai came to prominence during 12th century, with their power and responsibilities growing in the wake of their defence of northern Japan against the attempted invasion by the  Yuan dynasty in the 13th century. During the Edo period, (1603 to 1868) the role of the samurai  became a mix of soldier and administrator, steward and chamberlain within the daimyo estates.

However, in the latter half of the 19th century, with Japan formalising / consolidated its military and ruling structure under the emperor during the Meiji Restoration, the samurai’s feudal roles came to an abrupt end. However, they did not entirely from Japanese life as they adjusted to new, professional and entrepreneurial roles, whilst their traditions, memory, culture and weapons remain popular through until today.

So popular, in fact, that when considering the era of the samurai, we tend to often just think of the warrior, his armour, and the palaces and great daimyo estates of the shoguns, together with Edo period walls palaces, towns and so on. And this is why, for me, A Samurai’s Tale is refreshing. Rather than offering a single scene from feudal Japan, it instead presents vignettes that can be said to reflect the core virtues expected of the samurai: justice, courage, benevolence, respect, honesty, honour, and loyalty.

For example, from the landing point, visitors can walk through a small graveyard with shrines to remember the dead, thus witnessing honour.  Over a bridge sits a house representative of loyalty to family and master. Within the house are have period images on the walls, together with a stand holding a pair of katana blades (courage). Travel down the hill from the landing point, and a small fishing village awaits, the kind of little settlement a local samurai would consider as being under his protection (justice / benevolence), and so on.

By not confining itself to a particular period, the setting it allows the music and dance spaces located both close to the house and towards the middle of the region to blend with the rest of the design without looking out-of-place. Meanwhile, there are other numerous elements to be found within the region that fits with the theme – and one which even offers an subtle link to another chivalrous legend, even if it is the purely fictional Arthurian legend.

One of these touches I particularly like comes in the form of stone-carved versions of Kikazaru, Mizaru and Iwazaru, the three Sambiki-Saru (“mystic apes”), whom we better know in the west as Hear No Evil, See No Evil and Speak No Evil. Perhaps most famously represented by a 17th century carving over the entrance to the Tōshō-gū shrine in Nikkō, they represent the maxim of seeing or hearing no evil in others and speaking no evil of them; a maxim said to be the triple dogma of Tendai-Buddhist philosophy which should symbolise a person’s life. As such, their presence within the region underscores the elements of honour and respect within the samurai virtues.

This is also a place where you’ll want to have local sounds enabled whilst exploring, as Justice has created a local soundscape that blends with the various vignettes, giving them added depth.

SLurl Details

• A Samurai’s Tale (Oxygen, rated Moderate)

Hera (Zee9) recently opened her latest region design to visitors, this one taking up the ground level at Island of Jahesa, held by Valéria Celestino (Kara Pendleton), and where Hera’s designs sometimes guest.

Entitled India, the setting is easiest described by using Hera’s own words:

I have been wanting to do something evocative of India for a long while. Recently I was looking at pictures of the red fort in Delhi and thought that the unique colour of the pinkish red stone might make for a very unique looking place.

All the textures are derived from photos of the red fort and there are a load of new meshes. I have used the basic layout of the jungle island I have done a few times before because the layout has some nice varying levels. It has turned out far better than I thought it was going to. I keep painting.

Hera (Zee9)

The “jungle island” in question is the one Hera has used in the likes of her Shangri-La build (see: Losing myself in Hera’s Shangri-La in Second Life), and in truth, there are other elements within this build that offer echoes of that 2021 build. These include the beachside seating places and the bar / club area to one side of the build. However, rather than detracting from India, these elements – to me, at least, offer a sense of, if not continuance, then perhaps sisterhood between the two designs.

The Red Fort Hera refers to is Lal Qila, Delhi, the former residence of the Mughal Emperors, as established by Emperor Shah Jahan in 1638, when he decided to make Delhi his new capital.

The important thing to note here is that Hera is not seeking to represent Lal Qila, but rather utilises architecture seen within it as parts of her India design – and she has done so in an effective, subtle manner, such as the capstones along the walls. In addition, Hera has included new meshes of murals along the walls that are mindful of Hindu designs, as well as including reliefs of Ganesh courtesy of RiderX Spitteler.

The bar area – which appeared with Shangri-La (as noted) and also, with a redress, in Giger City (see: Hera’s Drune Giger City in Second Life) – offers a particular attraction for those looking for a place to hide away, but looking up at the towers of the builds and among the tress around it, and you’ll likely find more.

To the front of the build, elephants (admittedly African, but as I’ve noted in the past, the Asian variety is in short supply in SL) and tigers wait to greet visitors as they pass from the landing zone and climb the stairs into the build, while Shiva keeps an eye on all that goes on. Further inside are open-air passages and walks winding around the main structures, offering a route out to where the bar sits on its own island, and to where a temple-like building points an individual tower into the sky on the opposite side of the main building group to the landing zone.

Compact, easy to explore and with plenty of places to relax, India is again a photogenic build from Hera.

SLurl Detail

• India (Island of Jahesa, rated Adult)

November 2022: What the Buzz has relocated. Willow Creek appears to have closed.

The Destination Guide led me to a little corner of Heterocera called What the Buzz. Designed by Emm (HeyEmm) and located within the larger Willow Creek National Park – a place I’ll be covering in more detail in a future piece.

What the Buzz is, to quote Emm:

An interactive bee/pollinator reserve. Wander the path and stop at the yellow signs to learn about the different ways that YOU can help save and protect our precious pollinator population. Try your hand at virtual farming with the DFS Community Garden or relax at Firefly Lake and take in all of the sights and sounds.

Bees are the major type of pollinator in many ecosystems that contain flowering plants; so important that of the estimated one-third of the human food supply dependent on pollination actually receives it via bees, either wild or domesticated. They are thus a vital – if declining, due to a variety of reasons – role in the lifecycle of plants.

This and more is covered with What the Buzz, a walk through a garden-like setting, rich in plant life and areas in which visitors can learn about bees, their habitats, pollination, keeping bees, and more. Signs along the way can be touch for information, and – if they wish – also learn about the “Digital Farm System (DFS) through the What The Buzz Community Garden, where a number of vegetables, herbs and crops are being grown.

Located on the main trail that winds its way through Willow Creek National Park, What the Buzz can be explored on foot or via horseback (horse rezzer at the park’s main landing zone for those who don’t have their own to wear).

It is clear that Emm has taken considerable care in putting the setting together: areas of interest are clearly marked, and touch signs will either provide well-written information on bees and bee-keeping via note card or take you to website where further information can be obtained on helping bees in the physical world, such as creating your own pollinator garden.

At the same time, the garden spaces, located alongside an orchard, the park’s lake, offer opportunities for a careful walk within a Nature’s lap, places to sit and relax, and sits as a good place to start an exploration of the Willow Creek park as a whole

Rounded-out by a fitting soundscape, What the Buzz is a charming, informative and photogenic setting well worth visiting and wandering through – and I’ll be taking more of a look at the park as a whole in the near future, as noted!

SLurl Details

• What the Buzz @Willow Creek National Park (Muslin, rated Moderate)

 

Occupying a quarter Full region adjoining, but separate from, their private home, The Wylde is offered by Jazaar Silvermoon (Jazaar Heartsong) and Ami and Aeon Silvermoon (AmiAndAeon) as a public garden for people to visit and appreciate.

It sits under a hazy sky in which the Sun sits close to the horizon so as to suggest a late evening or early morning (as the Sun lies to the north, you can take your pick as to which it is), presenting a wooded setting rich in a sense of fantasy and fae through which visitors are free to wander, sit, and pass the time.

The landing point sits in the south-west corner of the woodland, next to a round gate leading into Jazaar and Ami and Aeon’s private gardens – so please don’t try passing through it. Instead head north, following one of the arms of the footpath as it divides a few metres from the landing point. Which you take is down to choice; both offer multiple points of interest.

As you explore, you’ll find the stream that runs from the southern highlands to the northern coast, a rocky path that winds up a portion of those southern cliffs, glades, fountains, wall-side walks, caverns that pass under hills, and multiple places to sit and pass the time. Also waiting to be found both on the ground and up on the cliff sides are pavilions, statues, drifting lights, creatures from fact and fantasy, and plant life that is an equal mix of the real and the imaginative.

This is a place that is mystical in its look and feel – although admittedly, some adjustment may have to be made to the viewer for those on low-to-mid range systems in order to appreciate it fully when exploring and taking photos – which actually speaks for itself rather than need a lot of exposition through text. Simply put, the richness of the setting lies both within the natural beauty of the design and through discovering the more mystical elements during explorations such that I really don’t want to give everything away here.

So instead, I’ll Leave you with the images here – offered with the side-not that I did tweak the environment settings a little in taking them to offer a little more light – and encourage you to go pay a visit yourself.

SLurl Details

• The Wilde (Club of Friends, rated Moderate)

Tilheyra (the name being Icelandic for “belong”) is a Full region utilising the private region land capacity bonus to offer a mixed public / residential environment. Designed by T Lefevre (Teagan Lefevre) to showcase her TL Designs brand, it was brought to my attention by Shawn Shakespeare.

Whilst it may well have an Icelandic word for its name, it shouldn’t be inferred that this is in any way an Icelandic themed setting. Quite simply put, it isn’t; rather, it drawing on influences from across northern Europe to produce an engaging, picturesque environment – albeit one with the potential to give some a few viewer issues when visiting.

Given the public / private nature of the setting, effort has wisely been put into keeping the two somewhat separated: the major public elements of the region sit to the north on an island of their own, a broad channel separating them from the larger part of the region, wherein can be found the rental properties – together with some further, more rural public spaces -, with the two connected via a stone bridge.

The landing point sits at the western end of the public island, sitting alongside a small pond shaded by trees. A walled path passing under a glass roof points the way to where steps climb up to a paved terrace, the home of a garden café. Two sets of steps run down from this, one into the main street running the length of a small business district, the other down to a promenade running eastwards and directly above the channel separating the two islands.

There’s a lot to take in along this little township, with various businesses (including the local rental office) among the building façades. Most of the businesses are built around the three sides of a little square within its own pond. Meanwhile, the promenade offers a pleasant walk along the waterfront, complete with steps down to a small wharf and views across to the southern island.

The eastern end of the island is dominated by a café bar with a walled outdoor seating area sitting beyond the bar building (the café part fronts the promenade). This seating area in turn gives way to a rugged headland guarded by a pergola that makes for a cosy retreat for couples at one end, and a deck running down to the water on the other.

Across the bridge, the southern island is far more rural; grass bridleways replace paved roads. As noted, this island is home to the region’s rental homes (and what may be a couple of other private residences – these are without rental signs but sit inside their own parcels, so without actually trespassing, I was unable to tell), so exploring should be tempered by the need to avoid intruding on people’s privacy. However, there are some public spaces here as well.

Chief among the latter is a stone walk leading down to an over-the-water deck and, somewhat opposite it along one of the bridleways, the ruins of a old house, perhaps once a manor home for the local land-owner, but which now remains only as a few broken walls within which sits a gorgeous wild garden and retreat.

The problems I referred to at the top of this piece come down to the fact that this is a region that is texture heavy – and many of those textures appear to be high resolution. This can make rendering scenes somewhat painful for those on mid-to-low end systems; even with DD reduced from my usual 256 to 128m and with shadows disabled, I had both issues with slow texture loading and texture thrashing (textures swapping from sharp to blurred and back – the first time I’ve had this on a persistent basis for a while) on my 4Gb GTX 970 (hardly the most modern GPU, I know – but pretty middle-of-the road for SL). So, if you are on a less-capable system, do be prepared to make some viewer adjustments.

Nevertheless, Tilheyra offers an engaging visit, and plenty of opportunities for photography.

SLurl Details

• Tilheyra (rated Moderate)