Tag: Exploring Second Life 2016

It All Starts With A Smile – click any image for full size

I’ve long enjoyed visiting It All Starts With A Smile, the photogenic Homestead region by Kaelyn Alecto and Maxx (Maxxster). I first dropped in far back in May 2013, and have since blogged about it several times in these pages. However, over the course of the last year, I’d actually lost track of the region, and so was delighted to receive news the latest iteration would be opening in mid-June, and made a point to put time aside to visit as soon as I could.

In this new design, It All Starts With A Smile has become a tropical paradise of five islands. Four of these are little more than idyllic stretches of sand rising out of the water, offering banyan shaded escape from the worries of the world; places where visitors can simply relax under an early morning default windlight. Standing over them like a mother guarding her brood, sits the largest island, offering tiered opportunities for exploration which reach from beach to  grassy plateau, where gazebo and ancient castle await discovery.

It All Starts With A Smile

Nor does it end there. Tiki huts vie with cabins, pergolas, and shacks in tempting visitors to tarry within their comforts, the waters idling gently between the islands further inviting wanders to take a dip or rest on a raft or snuggle on a rowing boat; the latter also form one of the means by which visitors can move between the islands, while bridges also connect four out of the five for those who prefer exploring on foot, with smooth stepping stone crossing the water to the fifth.

The landing point is located on the largest island, offering visitors the opportunity to make their way through lush foliage, over sand and beach and up stone stair to the plateaus and tiers above, where sit the castle and gazebo. Continue northwards, and the first of the wooden bridges will carry you over the water to the first of the smaller islands, where sits a bar offering the chance to quench any budding thirst, the opportunity to dance, or the restful retreat of Tiki huts reach by wooden stair.

It All Starts With A Smile

Continue onwards north and east across the region, and more beaches will offer themselves to you, one with a seaplane drawn up onto the sand, newly offloaded luggage alongside, perhaps destined for the cabins just across the water. Then there is the hulk of an old man-o-war, raised upon rocks, her broken hull offering more shelter from the sun and a place to rest and snuggle.

It All starts With A Smile has always offered consistently delightful designs, guaranteed to please every SL traveller and visitor. But I have to confess, there is something especially delightful about this tropical world Kaelyn and Maxx have created. There is a very natural beauty about it which is wonderfully enhanced by both the wildlife found scattered across the islands and waters, and in the marvellous ambient sound scape.

It All Starts With A Smile

Should you enjoy your visit – and I have absolutely no doubt you will – please consider a donation towards the upkeep of the region so other might enjoy it as well. You can also join the  IASWAS (it all starts with a smile) group for a modest L$250, which gives you rezzing rights for photography props, your payment also going towards the cost of the region. Visitors are also welcome to post their snaps and images to the It All Starts With A Smile Flickr group.

SLurl Details

• It All Starts With A Smile (Rated: General)

 

Hell’s Crossing – click any image for full size

Lυcy (LucyDiam0nd) dropped me a line about a new project she and her partner, Max Butoh have launched in Second Life – Hell’s Crossing, a homestead region they’ve opened to the public.

Max explains it thus:  “It’s for exploration, light role-playing and photography. Periodically the sim will be updated to a new theme, all [of them] based on the common thread of a crossing. Danger may lurk at any turn for the hope of a breath-taking discovery.”

Hell’s Crossing – click any image for full size

Intrigued by the idea I hopped over to join Lucy (Max was at work at the time) to take a look around. “We were talking about Game of Thrones,” she explained. “And he mentioned it would be nice to have a Winterfell inspired place, but not exactly that; just inspired by. The next day he had the builds and the sim, and everything set! He just made it happen!”

The result is – right now – a rugged place called Saltcliffe, a place which might easily be one of the Iron Islands, were we to continue the Game of Thrones analogy. A tall table of rock thrusts upwards from the surrounding sea, flat face turned towards a tan sky. It is home to a stone fortress facing a line of knobble topped cliffs beyond which, on slightly higher ground, sits a small wood, a sturdy tavern lifting its roof on the far side of the trees. Small tongues of mossy rock thrust outwards on the west and east sides of the island, whilst a slender wood and rope bridge links it to a smaller pillar of rock as it also rises, flat-topped, from the sea, crowned by a single wood and stone tower.

Hell’s Crossing – click any image for full size

But to think this is all there is to the island would be a mistake. Scattered around the island are several statues, all of which carry a slightly sinister air about them, suggesting there’s more here than meets the eye. When exploring the keen-eyed may spot further clues in the form of  cavern entrances, stairs which descend behind closed door, or ladders vanishing into the darkness beneath the rocks.

“We’ve no set rules for role-play,” Lucy said as we wandered. “It’s all very free-form and open to whatever mood you’re in. The sim is very serene and peaceful above, but below the castle there’s dungeons and caves with a couple of ‘creepy’ things so you could go either way.”

The dungeons certainly offer hints for some directions role-play can go; do keep in mind this is an Adult rated region. While the ‘creepy’ elements in the caverns and tunnels offer their own ideas for stories and role-play.

Hell’s Crossing – click any image for full size

But it’s not all about role-play; as we chatted, Lucy echoed Max’s sentiments in his description of the region. “We  thought it would be nice to have a place people could enjoy and take photos,” she said.

Max isn’t sure how often Hell’s Crossing will change in look or theme; it’ll very much be on the basis of as and when the mood takes him. It’ll certainly be interesting to see what else takes form here over time, and I’ll very much be keeping an eye on the region in the future!

SLurl Details

• Hell’s Crossing (Rated: Adult)

La Vie – click any image for full size

“This is actually one I did over a year ago now; I’ve made changes, and decided to reopen it,” Krys Vita informed me when I dropped in to see La Vie, a long-standing region she recently opened to public access, albeit on a temporary basis. “Tre [TreMeldazis] and I did this one together,” she continued, “It’s just too pretty not to share for a while :)”.

“Pretty” is actually too small a term for this beautifully landscaped and presented homestead region. I’d actually be inclined towards “idyllic”. The sandy landscape rises gently from waters which appear to have done much to sculpt its shape, dunes gently inclined across the centre of the landscape from the flat western beach to slightly higher, rocky eastern side, two bays cutting deeply into the land on the north and south sides, wasping the land’s midriff whilst presenting tongues of sandy headlands waiting to be wandered along and enjoyed.

La Vie

This is a place for lovers and couples; swings and hammocks and love seats hang from bent trees, while coves and dunes shelter snuggle spots which range from upturns rowing boats through tents to little treehouses given a new lease of life as they sit out over the crystal blue waters.

There is an exquisite sense of peace and tranquillity about La Vie which is captivating; everything has been placed and the landscape sculpted to present an incredibly natural setting, one which might be found along any temperature coastline on a fine summer’s day. Breakwaters and fences give the region a sense of order; tall logs arranged as piles prevent dunes collapsing into a bay – and stop the waters of the bay from encouraging them to do so. Up on the east side of the land a small summer-house sits, luggage by the door suggesting that for someone it might be time to leave the sanctuary of beach, tree and sand; the lyrics of Birdy’s Wings on the typewriter adding a sense of regret that they have to do so.

La Vie

Quite how long La Vie will remain open to the public is unclear, “I’m not sure yet,” Krys told me when I asked her. “I’m debating some changes ;).” However, if you love beauty spots in Second Life, this is one I really do recommend you hop along to sooner rather than later, just in case.

SLurl Details

• La Vie (Rated: Moderate)

La Vie

The Looking Glass – click any image for full size

One of the most eye-catching fantasy realms in Second Life has always been The Looking Glass, by Marcus Inkpen and Sharni Azalee. The home to their store, the region has always offered a warm welcome to guests, and an opportunity to explore and discover. Hence why I have a habit of hopping back to it and re-visiting (although the last time I actually blogged on it was back in 2013).

Recently Marcus and Sharni completely redesigned the region, and what was once something stunning to the eye and wonderful to explore has become something absolutely enchanting.

The Looking Glass

The new build retains many echoes of the old, whilst also being entirely original and distinct, carrying within it many reflections of the marvellous builds Sharni and Marcus have provided for recent Fantasy Faire events. The great bridge is still there, for example, with huge arches spanning the landscape below and reaching out across the region. Only now it has been made whole, and its once heavy stone pillars re-wrought in iron and stone. Nearby, islands still float serenely in the sky, offering sanctuaries of solitude for visitors.

On the ground, the land looks as if it has been shaken as if it were a blanket, falling into new wrinkles and folds through which waters meander. The old town with its modern stores and wider streets is gone. Instead, and reached via a stony path across bridges and through trees, which leads the visitor to it from the dockside landing, sits a smaller town. This is really a gateway, wrapping about itself echoes of Lucentia (Fantasy Faire 2016), as it climbs upwards to merge into the Great Tower, which in turn ascends into the sky, dominating the landscape like a benevolent Barad-dûr.

The Looking Glass

Within this mighty tower can be found the Looking Glass store, and above it, the magnificent Flying Eye Gallery, with all the memories of Fantasy Faire as captured by Alisaundra Andel. Also hidden within its lofty heights lay the Library and its courtyard, a bedroom / workplace and eyrie-like perches  where people might sit and cuddle.

Remain outside of the tower, and you might find your way to the ground-level ballroom, within which sits the memory of Ichi-Go, Ichi-E (Fantasy Faire 2015). Across the water from this, and nestled beneath the great tower lies the familiar sweep and rise of The Dark Tower, one of the commercial buildings offered for sale by The looking Glass. It sits perfectly within the new landscape, and in doing so it also harkens back to the previous incarnation of the region, where it also once stood. Close by sits a house which in turn carries a reminder of Blackwater Glenn (Fantasy Faire 2014), further giving the region that feeling of familiarity – and perhaps a smile – to the seasoned explorer.

The Looking Glass

To help visitors get around, there is a system of teleport boards which highlight the major locations in the region. But exploring The looking Glass really is best done on foot, with the odd bit of flying. I did this by following the path from the docks to the great tower, then up through the tower to cross the great span of the bridge, and thence back to ground level.

This route has the virtue of keeping your feet dry and minimising flying, while offering some superb views out over the region. It also brings the floating islands within easy reach, as well as directing the visitor on their way to the little coves along the coast with their secluded beaches, and also towards the open-air ballroom. The loop can then be completed up winding path and back to the town clustered at the foot of the great tower, then around and through the streets there.

The Looking Glass

The Looking Glass has always been a marvellous place to visit, full of visual riches and a special hint of magic. This new design for the region beautifully enhances everything which has always made it a place to visit and re-visit, and added to it a depth of memory for anyone who has loved Sharni’s and Macus’ designs for Fantasy Faire which makes it simply irresistible.

SLurl Details

• The Looking Glass (Rated: Moderate)

Khaled – click any image for full size

Not so long ago – March 2016 to be precise – I wrote about my visit to [G]aio, the charming homestead region designed by cambiamento Radikal which beautifully lived up to its name (“cheerful”).

Now Cambiamento is finishing a new region to showcase – Khaled (Arabic for “eternal”) – and he graciously invited me to hop over and take a look. “For me, it’s better that [G]aio!” he informed me as we chatted about the new region, and I have to say, there is an elegance and rugged beauty to Khaled which does make it as memorable as [G]aio – although I would suggest the landing point needs slight adjustment! 🙂 .

Khaled

Surrounded by tall, steep peaks partially hidden in the misty windlight, Khaled is broadly split into two. The landing point places new arrivals towards (or perhaps on, if the landing point is adjusted!) a rugged tongue of an island.

A single ribbon of beach on one side of the island faces the rest of the region, a curved set of stone steps providing a gentle ascent up the rocky shoulder of the isle to its flat top. Here, a sandy, rugged path cuts west to eat, connecting a small cabin house close to one end of the island with a sturdy stone bridge at the other. Tall and slender Scots pines point skyward across the island, and surround the old Victorian folly standing on the highest point of the island – just a scant couple of metes about the main track.

Khaled

Across the bridge, the landscape is seamlessly blended with the region surround to present a low-lowing headland thrusting gently out into the water of a lake. This is the home of a small farmstead and a rural railway station. A freight train is passing through, emerging briefly from one tunnel before dipping into the next as it makes its way through the tall mountains. Facing the station, at the water’s edge, sits a landing stage, a rideable motor boat alongside. The dirt road between landing stage and station passes an oval of market stalls.

Rural and serene, with a perfect ambient sound scape, Khaled is also a place with a secret – one that might easily be missed without proper exploration. I’m not going to say too much more on this, as it’s worth discovering for yourself. All I will do is offer a photo and say a trip out on the water is required to reveal it.

Khaled

I visited Khaled at a time when Cambiamento was still working on the region; he was considering adding further Wildlife and one or two other nips and tucks in order to finish things off.  Event so, at the time of my visit, the region was already eye-catching and suited to a wide range of Windlight settings. I can definitely say that anyone who enjoyed visiting [G]aio is bound to enjoy and appreciate Khaled. Should you do so, please consider making a donation towards the upkeep of the region so that others might enjoy it also.

My thanks to Cambiamento for inviting me to visit 🙂 .

Khaled

SLurl Details

• Khaled (Rated: Moderate)