Category: Reviews

Miro Collas recently suggested we drop into the regions designed by Tatjana DeCuir and her SL partner, arvo, which have recently been redesigned to have an Asian / far east theme. Comprising two Full private regions making use of the additional 10K Land Capacity, they form a two-region estate that is home to a range of activities, including DJ sessions and dancing, and some that are more adult-related.

The range of activities is reflected at the skyborne landing point, which features a large teleport board (also to be found at various points on the ground) directing visitors to various locations. Which option you take is entirely dependent upon personal choice and the reason for visiting. However, if you’re dropping in to explore and / or to take photographs, Caitlyn and I would recommend the Bubble Tour teleport as a good place to start.

Located on a beach sitting in a broad bay, the Bubble Tour is a point from which it is possible to complete a full tour of the regions either on foot or via the multi-seat bubble that will fly you around and over the islands to give you a bird’s eye view of their layout and surrounds. The latter is a particularly unhurried way to pass the time when travelling with someone, as the speed ensures you can relax, set your camera position (and rotate it occasionally) and enjoy a conversation, point of the sights to one another and just appreciate the view.

Given the setting does cover two regions, there is a lot to see, and there is more than enough variation in the design to keep visitors fully engaged in travelling from beach to hilltop walk, passing through rain forest or along semi-paved paths along the way, discovering ancient ruins or well-maintained gardens, all the while drawn by the high roofs of buildings perched on cliffs or straddling stone plateaus. The network of paths and trails means that is is possible to find your way around both regions without resorting to the use of the teleport boards, but care needs also to be taken as some of the paths may not be as obvious as others.

This rich mix of settings brings together hints of Malaysia and the Philippines with those of Japan and China (notably through the buildings and the presence of panda). Given the off-sim surrounds, the feeling is very much that this is a place hidden somewhere along the Pacific coast of Asia (the presence of African elephants on the beach notwithstanding); a realm hidden amongst a group of protective islands, shielding itself from prying eyes.

From the bubble tour landing point, it is possible to go inland, climbing a natural “stairway” that looks to have been worn into the rock by the passage of time and feet (or perhaps in the distant past, by water), rather than being cut by hand, or follow the beach to the north. I’d recommend the latter route, as it presents a logical means to circumnavigate the regions, starting by taking the low bridge to cross the channel of water feeding the bay to enter the eastern region. Here the land points a bent-tipped finger out into the eastern sea, home home to a DJ stage built both over a natural pool of water and partially under the protective arc of a natural rock arch.

The finger ends in the tall and foreboding form of what might have once been a fort watching over the bay to the south. Sitting in  its own grounds and elevated in a defensive manner, it is now a location for some of the more adult activities in the estate, being a Shibari house. To one side of its paved forecourt stands a red wall with circular open gateway. Pass through this, and a shrub and tree bordered path leads back to the western region, passing by way of pandas and a bamboo glade into the region’s rain forest.

Here can be found a sense of ancient design – flagstoned ground, a broken statue to Buddha (which appears to have a rock formation sprouting through it!), shrines, water channels and much of the region’s wildlife. multiple paths wind through it, offering opportunity to explore. Some of these lead the way directly up to the plateau sitting above the rain forest that is home to what might be regarded as a former palace or similar official residence, complete with outbuildings, a water garden, reception pavilion and fountains. All are open to public use and make for a striking setting.

Just below this large terrace, however, and nestled into the south-west corner of the region is the most marvellous house and gardens setting. It can be reached by both the rock steps leading up from the beach not far from the bubble tour, or by finding the corner path and steps that clip one side of the rain forest as they descend from the plateau. I’d highly recommend leaving this aspect of the estate for the final part of any exploratory tour, and that you reach it via the path down from the high terrace, simply because the beauty of the design is well worth holding until last.

The path from the plateau will bring you by way of rock and stone arch to a gorgeous hanging garden lit by cast-iron lamps (found elsewhere in the region as well), presenting a shaded path to the house and its broader gardens. With the mix of trees, plants, water and winding paths, it is an idyllic and romantic setting which invites visitor to again relax and appreciate a natural beauty. The house itself does not appear to be a private residence, although I would suggest the best way to appreciate it is from the gardens, where there are several places to sit and pass the time.

Being a predominantly mesh build that has a very high volume of textures, it can be somewhat taxing on viewers, so saving the use of shadows for taking photos and turning them off when walking might be advisable, as might dropping draw distance if you have it set to longer distances.  However, with much to see and many places to sit and enjoy a cuddle or a dance to be found throughout both regions, and additional attractions such as the self-fly bubble cars (rezzers marked by signs), this iteration of LebensRaum is a place that can easily entice visitors into passing their time.

SLurl Details

• [The Dream of Asia] (LebensRaum, rated Adult)

Waterfalls of Dreams recently popped up in the Editor’s Picks section of the Destination Guide, and has prompted a lot of interest from visitors as a result – including from Caitlyn and I. A homestead region designed by Jeramy McMahon, it is around two years old and offers something of a neo-classical look that those of us who have been in Second Life a fair while might find particularly reminiscent.

A place intended for romance throughout and with a fantasy  / fae lean, a good proportion of the region utilises prim builds – the docks, the raised dance floors and walkways overlooking the region from the east, the various pavilions and floating islands. In turn, these use shine on surfaces rather than materials and textures. All of these, together with the use of sculpties, give the region a sense of “old school” Second Life history.

Which is not to say mesh is not present within the region, just that its use has been minimised. This is a conscious decision on Jeramy’s part to “reduce lag”. How well this works is perhaps debatable  – lag itself is a highly subjective subject, given the volume of non-SL influences that can affect it; but it is an interesting approach to take. I will say I found my own experience in three visits to the region no better nor worse, performance-wise, than when visiting many other regions, prim or mesh in nature.

However, for me, what makes a visit to Waterfalls of Dreams attractive is that sense it being a place built upon that historic style and approach to design; one that has in some ways passed. It offers a deep sense of nostalgia and a sense of history, all the way through to the use of pose balls within some of the seating.

The landing point is located down at the harbour, which itself offers something of a faint echo of the prim docks in Nautilus – although those docks are more Greco-Roman in feel. A teleport board here offers the way up to the elevated dance floors, while a Teagle horse rezzer sits close by for those who fancy a ride around the region’s lowlands, or a balloon ride located on the far side of the piers presents the opportunity for an aerial view of the region.

Paths wind around the lowlands, leading to various points of interest – pavilions offering places to sit and  / or cuddle, statues to admire, and rivers of flowers to roam amongst. The waterfalls of the region’s title tumble from the cliffs behind the high dance floors to feed the waterways that also wind through the region. Their presence is augmented by falls tumbling from the more distant mountains of the sim surround (although issues of alpha blending can leave these bleeding through the sculpts of the region’s trees, requiring a considered use of edit linked and derender when taking photos under certain lighting).

The dance floors are watched over by two huge angel-like figures standing to the north and south of the high walkways. The dance areas are themselves split between two levels, a large blocky tower sitting to the east behind them forming a bath house that in turn holds aloft a large crouched angel under a domed roof. However, this is not the tallest structure in the region; that honour goes to a great tower rising to the north-west. Reached via teleport board from the dance floors, it offers places to sit and to pass the time with a loved one or for the adventurous, the chance to fly around the region da Vinci’s glider via the rezzer.

A flair for the exotic is also offered within the region through the use of elements by Elicio Ember and Noke Yuitza. There presence is few, which makes coming across them all the more effective; Elicio’s rune stones in particular give a certain air of mystery and suggestion of fae that is well in keeping with the overall tone of the region and its statues whilst also offering an otherworldly aspect to the setting that adds to its depth.

An unusual and engaging location with opportunities for dance, rest and photography.

SLurl Details

• Waterfalls of Dreams (Husky Tails, rated Moderate)

It’s been 3.5 years since we last visited Countryside, the full region designed by Dick Spad (see A trip to the Countryside in Second Life). I’d been attracted to the region as a result of visiting Dick’s The Back 40 even earlier (in 2014 to be precise), and as it has been a fair amount of time since our last visit to Countryside, I suggested to Caitlyn that we hop over and see what has changed. The answer turned out to be “rather a lot”, but in a way that preserves the look and feel of the region as it appeared back in June 2016.

In 2016, Countryside appeared as a farming location surrounded by a rolling, hilly off-sim landscape that joined with the region to suggest the setting is far inland. Marked by a train line to the north and a cut by a stream towards the south, the bulk of the land given over to crop rich fields and woodlands to the north and south, and Dick’s private home tucked into the north-east corner.

Much of this is still true today: the sim surround remains in place, the stream still cuts through the region from the falls and pool not far from the landing point, and the rail lines and fields remain. However, the differences are also present. For one thing the landscape is caught within a late winter, the snow slowly receding, although deep banks remain – presumably cleared from the tracks that run through the woodlands and around the fields.

Another change can be found with the fields. They are now less regular than before and bereft of crops – the latter point hardly surprising given the time of year represented in the region. More than this, however, is the the fact that two of the fields no longer appear to be used for crop growing, having become home to the region’s mix of diary and meat cattle and horses. A third looks to have been flooded, the water still frozen to offer a skating rink.

The farm is still much in evidence – the workshop and windmill still sit to the north-west, beyond the end of the rail lines. They have been joined by a line of grain silos I don’t recall from 2016, which give a new edge to the east side of the region. Also to the north, the field the cattle used to occupy appears to have at one time been the home of a winter market or faire, but which is now all but cleared out, with just a few things awaiting their time to be put away.

The woodlands in the region seem to be more extensive than I remember from our 2016 visit, and there appear to be more places to sit across the region – a further camp site (with a cave close by), a tree house, and  places that sit close to the local wildlife – perhaps a little too close in the case of the bears around the beaver pool!

A nice touch with the region is the placement of pose points. These use traditional poseballs (gold for singles, coloured for couples) – a point in their favour, as it makes them easier to spot among the tress and rocks – and I particularly liked the balancing act along the rail lines. For those who like a view from the air, a static hot air balloon is tucked into one corner of the region, offering a mix of singles and couples poses. While it might not offer the best sight when looking immediately down – that of the little rail yard – it does offer good views over the trees and back towards the landing point.

Another aspect with the current design that continues the core theme of the region is the feeling that this is really part of a much larger setting. It is possible to wander the tracks and trails and feel like you’re walking for miles, while all the points to sit encourage visitors to perhaps tarry a while and appreciate the views and the sounds, while there are lots of little touches that make careful exploration worth the effort.

I will admit to having a few minor niggles with the landscaping – some of the plants could do with Full Bright being turned off, and some of the snow banks appear to be floating over the ground on which they should be sitting – but these issues are easy to overlook or – when taking photos – avoid. While the default windlight appears to be set to early evening / night (or at least, it didn’t change during the course of three visits), the region really does naturally lend itself to a range of windlights; for the picture her I tried to set one that suggests a crisp winter’s day, in keeping with the snow on the ground, but with enough sunlight to sit with the idea of the snow being in a state of thaw.

Overall, we found our visit as pleasing and enjoyable as the first time we dropped in back in 2016.

SLurl Details

• Countryside (Habitat Springs, rated Adult)