Category: Exploring Second Life

Back in April of 2021, I paid visits to the Zany Zen Railway and the Valkyrie Light Transport Railroad, two members of a small group of railway systems in Second Life called The Great Little Trains of Second Life; the “little” here not being because they are necessarily small in terms of distance travelled, but rather the fact they celebrate narrow gauge trains and rolling stock (with a distinctly English lean to things in places!).

Those interested in learning more about those lines can do so by catching up on the Zany Zen here, and the Valkeryrie here. However, there is a third stop in any tour of GLTSL that deserves mention – and one I should have written about a lot sooner, given I also dropped in a couple of times in April and May, but due to assorted failures on my part, the article has been delayed in leaving the station, so to speak. As such my apologies to Nimoui Chenier (Nimoui) and Lily (LilyChenier), the creators of Dreamshire, home to the Dreamshire village, district and railway.

The overall design is that of an English village dating from the Victorian era, although the old gate towers looks older, whilst other aspects of the village – such as the fires station with its Landrover fire truck, make it clear the village has left the Victorian era so distance in the past. At the time of my most recent visit, the village also lay decorated in the modern style for Halloween., so there is already something of a rich mix here.

The railway system – which runs a narrow-gauge tram rather than steam locos – runs around the island passing through a number of little stations that present the opportunity to hop on and off. The largest of the stations – Winkle – sits just below the landing point and serves Dreamshire village, Other ports of call include Dragonspire, Wobbly Knot, Promenade and Dolphin Bay. Some these  – like Promenade and Dolphin Bay – offer hints at to what might be found on dismounting the trams. Others, such as Winkle and Wobbly Knot might sound like contrived names, but when it comes to village names here in England, do remember we have places like Nether Wallop (Hampshire), Matching Tye (Essex), Blubberhouses (North Yorkshire), and many more, they aren’t that out of place as local names with an English bent!

A complete ride around the tracks of the region takes around 10 minutes if taken without jumping off), and offers a good opportunity to gain visual familiarity with the setting, which in places is rather eclectic in its mix. Dragonspire, for example, not only evokes thoughts of the stories by James E. Wisher, it actually includes both dragons and a fantasy castle (with rooms to explore).

Similarly, the south-western corner of the setting offers an interesting mix of very Victorian steam boat drawn up alongside the stone wharf that sits between Wobbly Knot and the Promenade, with a very 1950’s American style diner sitting at the far end of the latter, the two providing an interesting mix of times within easy reach of one another. In addition, Wobbly Knot offers a nice walk out to the gardens and tower of one of the two lighthouses that watch over the region’s western coastline.

The stop at Dolphin Bay provides access to the beach on one side, sitting below the tall finger of the second lighthouse, and the animal sanctuary and bay on the other. The latter offers the chance to sea a range of waterfowl and and wildlife, but I confess that – not being overly fond of the modern take on Halloween – I found the seasonal elements there a little too OOT, resulting in the use of the Derender option in the viewer when taking photos.

Across the far side of the animal sanctuary grounds, and tucked under the east hills is a small train yard and shed. Here can be found a couple of “traditional” narrow-gauge trains (one a scratch build by Nimoui) and information boards on narrow gauge railways and trams. A short walk from Winkle Station (and the landing point), it might nevertheless be easily missed, but is well worth visiting. And talking of the eastern hills, do please be aware that these are the home of two private residences – one clearly visible, the other cunningly hidden but the path to it clearly signed as private, so do please respect people’s personal space, as either one may be in use.

Gently charming, with touches of whimsy, Dreamshire makes for an engaging visit And should you prefer not to walk, a choice of bicycle or (for couples with the right penchant!) a pony cart is available to ride around the village and outlying paths and roads.

SLurl Details

Dreamshire (Midnight stars (rated Moderate)

DARYA (Da-ry-a) is, we are informed by the region’s About Land description, Persian for “sea”, and given this Homestead region held and designed by Zaffy Kiyori  Bailey (Zaffy Kiyori) sits as a island caught within the calm waters of a broad sea, the name is apt.

However, this is no mere tropical or temperate isle; the largest among a small group of islands (the rest being elements of an off-region surround), DARYA is very much a place that straddles the lines between realism and fantasy to present a setting that is at once familiar and also full of whimsy and the unexpected whilst mixing into itself a measure of artistic expression.

The latter commences t the landing point, imaginative set on a little off-shore pergola that is connected to the island by means of a short bridge and dark tunnel. A sign at the landing point encourages visitor to enable Shared Environment in their viewer (if not already active – go to World → Environment and make sure Use Shared Environment is checked). This is because the region makes use of several different environment settings as a part of the region’s artistic statement / atmosphere, and these should be properly experienced.

To further this, walking across the bridge from the landing point and into the short tunnel leading onto the island, will prompt visitors to accept the local Experience. The idea here is to allow the scripted environment cubes that mark parts of the region to automatically change your environment settings as yo pass into their influence; as such I would recommend accepting the experience when prompted. However, do be aware that this is not the most ideal way of applying environment settings, although I do understand why it has been used.

The first of these environments is to be found up on the crown of the taller of the islands two hills. Reached via a path that winds itself around the hill from an initial set of steps guarded by a cylindrical folly, this hilltop is marked by the darkness of night presided over by the stars, the path up to it lit by mystical mushrooms that cast a lavender light into the darkness. At the crown of the hill, the path gives way to a stone circle that holds within itself the green swathe of a faery ring to present a place rich in a sense of enchantment.

The second environment cube sits over a circular island that extends from the southern end of the islands’ east headland and reached via a bridge-like causeway. To be honest, I would was simply have parcelled the land here and applied the environment settings rather than use a cube. It’s a minor difference, but it would allow those on this little island to make some adjustments to the environment settings for photographs without getting kicked by into the region-wide settings. However, this minor quibble doesn’t change the fact that this little artificial headland offers another evocative setting that is palpably spiritual in nature.

It is these contrasts from the normal – the cottages (furnished and inviting to guests) and the quaint lighthouse over on the western headland, the arc of south-facing beach caught between the two – and the unusual: the high stone circles, the garden-like eastern setting with its tall fountain statue, the strange mix of plants across the entire region, and so on, that adds a whimsical, engaging and eclectic depth to DARYA that is quite captivating.

Take for example the footpath that winds around the northern shore of the island after emerging from the landing point’s tunnel. Bounded on one side by waters from which lilies and more exotic flowers grow and over which a small pavilion offers a tea party setting with faint echoes of Alice’s tea party; it offers on the other an equally exotic mix of giant mushrooms that cast shade over their more normal-sized brethren and the flowers that grow around them. With all of  this presided over by a gigantic mechanical teapot that is gently watering a spray of flowers growing within a large pink tea cup, visitors are immediately informed in the most natural way possible, that they have entered a place of art and fancy, as well as local beauty.

DARYA is a place that, wherever you wander, there is something awaiting to catch your eye, from the multiple statues and other artistic statements that sit quietly alongside patch or on shingle shore or on rocky outcrop, to the smaller more eclectic touches, such as a the little Shaolin monks carved along the side of the paved footpath or the cheeky winged sprite with dyed hair lurking among the flowers, or simply the pleasure of seeing the island’s wildfowl.

Engaging, photogenic and with places to sit throughout, DARYA is rich in mood and contrasts and very worthwhile the time taken to visit.

SLurl Details

• DARYA (Dark World rated Moderate)

In January 2019, I dropped into -Paradiso-/Cor meum, a quarter Homestead region designed by Cain Evergarden as a restful setting mixing water and islands to create a place of escape for those who needed (see: A quiet corner of Second Life). Some time after that, the setting apparently vanished; so I was delighted to recently learn, courtesy of Annie Brightstar, that it has once again returned, this time occupying an entire Homestead region of its own and offering a very different environment.

Paradiso has always been a personal setting for Cain,  as he explains in a note card available within the current region:

I made the region for my Grandfather who passed away  two years ago. I offer my condolences to him and Reproduce my own heart. The region is always raining because the rain in my heart has not stopped yet. It’s a sad story, but I hope you can feel it and enjoy it freely.

– Cain Evergarden

This is a heart-rending statement, and one with which any of us who have lost a loved family member will identify. Thus it presents Paradiso as a place where we might allow memories to flow free. However, even for those who might not have such memories, Paradiso is also a place for anyone who simply wishes to find a moment of peace, or who loves water-based settings will also appreciate.

The primary landing point lies towards the middle of the region, alongside one of several points of interest that rise from the sapphire waters and reside under a midnight sky that is itself in part cut through by the path of the milky way.  Ringed by clouds that clouds that tick their way around the region with a steadfastness that is mindful of the second-by-second passage of time – and life -, this is a setting without recognisable landform, but with water shallow enough the wade through.

The grassy setting with its single tree alongside the landing point sits as a field of blue roses over which pale butterflies fly spirit-like. Rain patters the water, perhaps encouraging visitors to scuttle over the water to the nearby looming mass of a run-down theatre. Hidden within this is what appears to be a dance club of a most unique styling. The stage stands as a melding of stage, equipment and giant roses, a pair of hands to either side raised almost in supplication towards the projection of a white dove flying against the rear wall. Taken as a whole, it suggests a place of both remembrance and celebration.

A second roofed structure lies to the west of the landing point, a pavilion that is home to  the region’s guestbook in which comments on the setting and / or notes of remembrance might be left. Further off to the west lies a more surreal setting: a portal rises from a bank of wildflowers watched over by a large bird cage whilst a school of fish circles overhead, perhaps ensuring the clouds of hovering fireflies do not stray far from the portal.

This portal – which I’ll return to in a moment – is somewhat mirrored by cloud formation that sits on the northern edge of the region. Forming a vertical ring encircling a shimmering ring that suggests it is a gateway to heaven, awaiting the souls of those who have passed as the continue their journey.

But to return to the stone portal: touching this will allow visitors to teleport up to a small sky platform. This presents a town setting put together by NEOs Klaar. This is a very different setting to the ground level, offering a place that is dominated by the presence of shiro0822’s Matsuri cats – characters who remain as cute as when I first encountered them a year ago – as they run an open-air marketplace with a second DJ stage. It’s a space that offers an interesting melding of Japanese and Chinese influences, with the latter in particular carrying my to Hong Kong and childhood (more than adult) memories of Wan Chai thanks to the billboards to one side of the setting.

With several places to sit and pass the time, and backed with the hissing sound of falling rain, Paradiso’s current appearance is very different to the quarter region I visited in 2019; however, it retains that certain touch of attractiveness that tends to both encourage a visit and to spend time within the region once you’ve arrived.

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• Paradiso and Monster Mansion (My Beloved, rated Moderate)

It’s funny how sometimes the mind sometimes plays tricks on you. I tend to have a pretty good ability to mentally file away the things I write about and pull them back out of the murky depths of my memory as needed without the need to run searches and the likes through the pages and posts of this blog.

I mention this because in coming across a Landmark for The Forest of Mystical Dreams, part of my mind initially responded with a, “Yep! blogged!” and the LM was filed in Inventory. Only the underpinning region name  – Spiked dAlliez – kept gnawing at me, and after looking through notes and posts I realised I was wrong – The Forest of Magical Dreams isn’t somewhere I’d written about. So either my mind played a little trick – or age is finally catching up with me, and the mind is starting to slip! Either way, the fact that I haven’t previously documented the setting gave me cause to hop over and have a wander.

Occupying a Full private region that leverages the additional Land Capacity bonus, the Forest of Mystical Dreams offers an eclectic mix of terms in its About Land description, ranging from fantasy – elves, mermaids, etc., through to the distinctly adult-oriented (D/s BDSM), the latter of which might put some off a visit, although I would hasten to add that if it is present in the setting, it is by no means overt. It is also a place that is not child avatar friendly,  possibly as a result of the adult themes (if present), so I’ll point that out up front. All that said, the description for the region found on the Profile for the region’s holder and principal designer, Jen Volodar Dorran (Jennifer Beverly) is far more reflective of the regions true nature:

This Forest is many moons old now . This forest is what my RL vision of “Romance” is.. there is love , and care , my thoughts and dreams and ideas on this sim as it is my canvas to do anything my heart can come up with .. this forest is every changing small spots but always something new to enjoy.

Thank you for enjoying my Romantic Dream ♥

This description opens the door to a setting that is caught beneath a twilight sky (under which it should be seen for the best impressions, which I hope the photos herein are indicative of. To describe the region would in some ways be a waste of time; the care put into creating the atmosphere found within it should be experienced, rather than seen. Wandering the trails and climbing the steps and stairs to be found within the setting, I kept expecting to hear elements of Howard’s Shore’s music for The lords of the Rings Trilogy or come across Cate Blanchett’s Galadriel, such is the sense of fantasy woven into the region.

Surrounded by off-region hills, this is a place that extended upwards from the ground level to high plateaus and even island floating amongst its clouds, and which plunges under the surface of its waters to offer the havens for merfolk promised in its description.

At the time of my visit, a large new pavilion was under construction on one of the plateaux, but otherwise the region was wide open to exploration, with paths meandering under the rich canopy of trees and passing over the waters cutting through the land via bridges of wood and stone.

Lit by glowing stones and plants dotting with firefly-like lights, or which glow with their own natural luminescence and are frequently marked by circling spirit-like sprites, the paths offer the best way to explore, linking-up all of the regions spaces and places of interest, revealing along the way the rich vein of music, dancing and romance that is promised in Jen’s description of the region. The paths will also bring to light the region’s variety wildlife, whiles a climb up into the hills can bring you to settings that vary in form from distinctly Tolkien-elvish is style through to more fairy-tale in form (you also might want to check under some of the rocky plateaus as well!).

But as noted, this is a region that should be seen, rather than described in words, and so to that end, I’m going to round out this piece with a couple more images and the SLurl details once more!

SLurl Details

• The Forest of Mystical Dreams (Spiked dAlliez, rated Adult)

Earlier in September 2021, I took a tour of Oxygen: The Rock, Justice Vought’s homage to the island of Alcatraz and its famous former federal prison (see: A trip to The Rock in Second Life). Whilst I didn’t come across Nicolas Cage and Sean Connery trying to stop Ed Harris in his evil plans, much less Clint Eastwood planning his escape or Burt Lancaster (slightly apocryphally in historic terms) keeping his birds – it was an engaging visit, and one I encourage those who haven’t done so to also partake.

At the time, I noted that the start of a tour of Justice’s Alcatraz starts on wharf abutting his main region (co-held and designed with Six Vought (SixDigital)) of Oxygen, and that it was high time I took another look around it to see how things are. particularly as it is now some two years since my first visit. And I’m delighted to say – albeit without any surprise, given Justice’s eye for region design and detail – it remains as engaging as ever, offering a setting that carries forward the design first seen during my October 2019 visit, but with a number of small changes and touches that make a re-visit worthwhile.

While it is not enforced, the landing point is given as the railway station that sits to the east of the region. and which contains one of those little anachronistic juxtapositions I like finding within region designs, this one in the form of a very British red telephone box facing off against a very US Postal Service mail box sitting across the narrow street that splits the station buildings.

From here, steps lead the way down a flat-topped ridge running along the region’s south side, the home to a little parade of shops fronted by a cobbled street marked by a fountain. A similar parade, complete with the Justice League Comics shop was present in the October 2019 version of Oxygen, but overall offered a slightly different mix of businesses.

Two further elements retained within this iteration of the setting are the harbour and The Mystic. Facing north, the harbour sits directly behind (and separate from the wharf that marks the start of a visit to The Rock. On the landward side of the harbour, the ground rises upwards to the plateau that is home to The Mystic, the regions hilltop lodge. Wooden stairs climb the rocky face of the hill from the Harbour Master’s building with its arched sign, to reach the lodge by way of passing pelican and seagulls at the steps rise upwards.

Offering a place to relax or enjoy music events at the outdoor deck stage, The Mystic still offers a commanding view over the west side of the region as it falls away to the beach, which appears to be perhaps a little narrower than I recall from 2019. Getting down to it remains a choice of zipline or wooden steps, the latter leading both down the lower slopes of the hill and also presenting a route to Six Vought’s photo gallery as it sits tucked into the region’s gorge.

The major shift in emphasis within the region’s design is that where it once included a number of rental properties, these have now been reduced to just a single property, tucked away into one corner of the region. This gives explorers more room for wandering along the lowland areas inland, and along the western beachfront.

The lack of additional rentals gives the impression the beach and its surrounds are a little more open than previously, although the drive in theatre remains. Similarly, the hills rising towards The Mystic seem a little more wooded and perhaps have some additional points of interest to find, such as the old bathtub watched over by a pair of peacocks or the sculptures sitting in the shade of trees.

With the subtle changes made to its design, Oxygen remains an engaging visit; the kind of place you can visit and catch your breath, take a few photos and enjoy the ambient sounds and just be.

SLurl Details

• :oxygen: (Oxygen O2 rated Moderate)

It’s only a month since I wrote about Hera’s Shadezar and Venesha (see: Sharing in Hera’s dreams and visions in Second Life), so returning to a build by Hera (Zee9) so soon after that might seem a little too eager, but both settings were recently closed for a time which gave rise to thoughts that as Hera had indicated they would both only be available for a limiter period, they may have permanently closed. However, nothing could be further from the truth; the period of closure was to allow Hera to take down the skyborne Venesha and replace it with a new build, Drune Gotham. This being the case I accepted an invitation Hera extended to I might hop over to have a look around and offer what is really a “part 2” for the article mentioned above.

Accessed via the Neverworld X (as Hera calls the world in which her creations reside) landing point, which has also undergone its own redesign, Drune Gotham – as is likely to have already been spotted by fans of Hera’s work – returns to her fabled and always engaging city of Drune to offer a further twist on that design, based upon a recent iteration of that city.  Back at the start of the year, Hera offered a design that – for me – stood as one of the first regions to attempt to delve into the world of dieselpunk and its sub-genre of decopunk; genres I outlined in Drune’s diesel-deco delight in Second Life:

For other unfamiliar with the genre, dieselpunk (and it’s sub-genre of decopunk) is based on the aesthetics popular in the interwar period of the 1920s/30s and extending through to the end of World War II, with some exponents also including the early 1950s.  It is broadly defined as the era in which the diesel engine replaced the steam engine as the focus of technology. Within it, decopunk centres the aesthetic of art deco and streamline moderne art styles particularly prevalent to design and architecture in the same overall period. 

Within that setting, Hera included a model of a Batmobile from the Michael Keaton era of Batman films. As she notes. it was added on a whim, but seemed to fit the overall aesthetic of that build – something Hera notes she found surprising. I’ll have to state that at the time, I was not: there has tended to be a strong decopunk aesthetic to be found within most of the Batman films such that a Batmobile should feel and look at home in a dieselpunk / decopunk setting.

Drune Diesel was, sadly, relatively short-lived; it also encompassed multiple influences – Blade Runner, hints of dieselpunk films such as Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow, references to Karel Čapek’s 1921 film Rossumovi Univerzální Roboti (Rossum’s Universal Robots) and even the Sirius Cybernetics Corporation from The Hitch-Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. With Drune Gotham, which Hera also notes was perhaps inevitable once she had set down the Batmobile within Drune Diesel, is more focused on the Gotham City / Dark Knight vibe, including touches from both the films and the Gotham TV series – although the regions should not be taken to be purely as reflective of the Batman / Dark Knight mythos as presented on screen.

One of the first things I noticed with this build is that it includes several elements from Drune Diesel: awaiting (re)discovery are both the Shanghai Dragon restaurant and the marvellously deco Black Pussy nightclub, both of which deserve a further breath of life given how brief a time Drune Diesel sadly had to breathe. There’s also a noticeable difference between this and earlier versions of Drune in that this does not have any “outer” / “coastal” elements, instead it  is enclosed, with a backdrop of densely packed tall buildings to give the impression of being in the heart of a massive metropolis like Gotham.

But it is in the Dark Knight references in which this setting really shines. From the elevated tracks along which trams, rather than speeding trains, clank bump, to the gates of Arkham Asylum, there are multiple motifs from the films and the TV series (and touches from the comics) awaiting discovery.  These trams rumble past the tall finger of the Wayne Enterprises HQ, for example, a place you can enter through the street-level lobby  and then ride the elevator to the CEO’s office, a place that has the sense of being the workspace of Wayne Senior rather than Bruce – although the scribblings on the desk tend to suggest the sometimes distracted mind of Michael Keaton’s Bruce Wayne. There is also a secret to be found within this office, of which more in a moment.

The aforementioned Black Pussy can be found across the street from Wayne Enterprises, as can the lobby of Drune Diesel’s Hotel, reached via the stairs that sit between the Wayne building and the diner next door (there’s an alternate route via a far escape that overlooks Gotham Park on the other side of the Wayne Enterprises building, but I’ll leave you to discover that). The hotel appears to have been expanded  since its Drune Diesel days, now offering a deco spa as well as rooms above its lobby.

Across another road from the hotel entrance and diner is the headquarters of the GCPD. On stepping through the front doors of this, it is hard not to expect Ben McKenzie’s Jim Gordon and Donal Logue’s Harvey Bullock from the Gotham TV series turn towards the doors in response to your arrival. Elsewhere in the city, the Arkham Asylum carries within it the Gothic menace that marked its appearance in the films, whilst the Apex Chemical Plant also awaits discovery. Whilst this appeared in the comics (the Case of the Chemical Syndicate), Apex was actually combined with Ace Chemicals (from Man Behind the Red Hood!) to form Axis Chemicals in the first Keaton Batman outing, the place where Jack Napier was transformed into The Joker.

In continuing a walk around Drune Gotham’s streets, visitors might also come across the Gotham City College (from the TV series), with interior spaces to explore, the Gotham City bank (complete with vault) and a new burlesque club (which I have no idea as to whether it is tied to the Batman mythos) and which again offers interior spaces. These, with the likes of the plant, Wayne Enterprises, the hotel, etc., serve to give Drune Gotham a greater depth than perhaps has been present in other Drune iterations. Also, as a Brit I couldn’t help but smile at the English lean towards things: adverts for Cadbury’s chocolate, Fry’s Chocolate Cream (which had me wanting to rush up to the local shop and buy a bar or two, it’s been so long wince I’ve enjoyed it!) and more, all of why give this Gotham an slightly anglophile feel to it which simply didn’t feel out-of-place.

Nor is this all: look hard enough and you’ll find Bane’s office and, perhaps more interestingly, the Batcave, that sits with the Batmobile parked at the ready on its turntable (despite also being parked outside the Wayne Enterprises offices!) and various consoles providing assorted information as well as the expected bats circling around it. However, the closet for the batsuit is empty, suggesting Bruce is out and about as his alter ego! While this can be found by camming, the “proper” way into it might be a little harder to discover; all I’ll say is that it is to be found back within the Wayne office, and that bookcases may not always simply be for books (or posing).

Offered under an environment setting which really should be used when visiting (as I have for the pictures here), and finished with a truly fitting sound scape, Drune Gotham really does make for a an engaging visit, one that carries within it a wonderful noir-esque feel that also carries over from Drune Diesel, and which is even more suited to the core theme of this build. In this respect, Hera additional offers a noir-style story in the setting’s introductory note card for those who grab it.

In closing, I would add that a major part of the magic of Hera’s builds  – along with her imagination – is that Hera creates many of the elements and textures found in her builds herself, rather than using available kits, etc., available through the Marketplace. This adds up to an incredible amount of work on her part, all for our benefit; so if you could offer the bat bears to be found within the setting some Linden Dollar love to further Hera’s efforts, they would very much be appreciated.

SLurl Details

• NeverworldX main landing point (The Attic) (Cloud Lake, rated Adult)
• Hera’s (Zee9) builds in this blog