Tag: Exploring Second Life 2021

Biné Rodenberger has once again been busy with her home region of Binemust, building a new space for people to explore. Whilst the ground level retains the layout based on the Bungenäs region of Gotland, Sweden’s largest island – and which I visited last September – the winter sky platform that was present at the end of 2020 (see here for more) has been replaced by a setting that offers a mix of of dystopia, sci-fi and fantasy, all sitting with a landscape that has a touch of an alien feel to it.

A strange and barren place where no plant can grow, but where people of all shapes and sizes can enjoy art, culture and good take-away.

Biné Rodenberger, describing her new Binemust sky platform

Enclosed within a mountainous surround that in places blends with the region to give an almost Grand Canyon-ish feel, the setting can be divided into a number of areas that are both separate to one another and flow together as a complete scene. The largest two of these is the ruins of a town perched on the edge of the canyon’s wall to the south of the setting. Beyond this to the north lies a raised table of rock encrusted with black crystal-like rocks that form an uneven blanket.

Casting a shadow over part of the latter is the strangest of structures: a large platform that appears to be resting on the plateau courtesy of a massive column-like foot. “Appears” because multiple motors arrayed along its underside turn four-bladed propellers look like they are giving the platform stability and actually supporting some of its mass. Perhaps they might be intended to even lift it up into the air…

The landing point for the setting sits between the crystal field and the slope that drops down to the ruined township, a set of open gates set into the long wall that divides town from plateau inviting arrivals to descend the slope and explore what lays beyond the wall. Similarly, a narrow path free of crystals runs along the top of the slope to reach the foot of the strange platform.

Looking like it has been cobbled together over time, the platform offers a conglomeration of living space, commercial area, and what might be working spaces. A chain of floating crystals surround it in three sides, rising step-like around it. A bright arc of energy passes from one to the next to reach one floating directly over the platform’s highest roof, as if it is drawing power from the plain of dark crystals below. A buggy and wreck of a car sit on a deck to one side of the platform, with no discernible way of being removed, whilst on another deck sits a literal flying boat.

Below the platform, the remnants of the city clearly point to it have suffered some kind of apocalypse, but whether this is natural or the result of something like a war is impossible to tell. The wall that divides it from the rest of the landscape looks to be somewhat more recent that parts of the town, suggesting it is a more recent and possibly defensive addition.

Similarly, the relationship between the platform and the city is unclear, although the commonality of languages (English and Japanese) visible in both suggests they might be related. Perhaps the platform has been built by the inhabitants of the town; but if so, what is its ultimate purpose? If not, is it a wandering visitor, here to replenish supplies and gather energy? The story behind both is left entirely up to visitors to write.

Beyond both of these locations to the north of the crystal field is another modern structure in the form of what looks to be communications centre that like the town has weathered hard times, Also to the north is an ancient henge that gives a further fantasy twist to the setting. Oval in shape, the latter is dominated by the living skeleton of a great dragon. Possibly becalmed by a ghostly voice that sings quietly, the dragon sits within the stone arches like Viserion raised by the Night King, but with his flesh and sinews, organs and muscles, all long lost to the passage of time to leave only his great bones as he flexes his wings and periodically rises from his haunches to survey the landscape around him.

Pet, guardian or predator, the role of the dragon is also unclear, its story again left to visitors to tell for themselves. Perhaps it is simply part of the artistic element to the setting – more art (notably by Bryn Oh) can also be found at various points in the town. However, the presence of the henge in which it sits does nicely brackets the rest of the setting with a sense of history, being mirrored to the south and within the water of the canyon by another ancient element: the wreck of a Viking long ship, the familiar signature piece Biné always includes in her builds as a mark of her heritage.

As always with Biné’s designs, the setting is rich in detail, the sound scape offer additional, at times almost haunting, depth, with numerous opportunities for photography waiting to be found.

SLurl Details

• Binemust: The Platform (Binemust, rated Adult)

Update: As I posted this, L̶i̶n̶L̶i̶n̶  was preparing to open a new sky level – Western World -, so this article has been updated to reflect this. 

It was off on a visit to a far East themed region for me this week, as I finally got around to dropping into the Full region that is called Exhalt, designed and held by L̶i̶n̶L̶i̶n̶ (Lyndy Lockwood).

In its current iteration, the ground level of the region offers a taste of the Far East, ancient and modern, but with a few twists – as seen by the African elephants, the giraffes the lions and the Indian tigers that can be found at various points throughout – and it does so with a certain flare that makes it both a destination that offers a fair amount to do and see, and which also offers a range of opportunities for photography, be it landscape or avatar focused.

The first thing to note about the region is that while the majority of it is open to the public, there are rental properties within it, so some caution is required to avoid trespass on people’s homes – although most of these have been kept to the north side of the region (with the exception of one), so can be avoided by not straying off the paths that wind their way through the region. A further point to note is that the region utilises a local Experience; this is not vital for ground-level explorations, but as there are additional settings in the sky over it, visitors will need to accept the Experience to reach them.

The landing point lies to the south of the region, a waterside wharf watched over by an octopus and bounded on one side by a little marketplace and the rentals office and on the other by the local stables, where a horse can be obtained for those who would like to ride around the region and make use of the small riding track off to the west.

The majority of the region presents something of an ancient Japan vibe, the land they stand upon cut by a series of waterways that effectively break it up into a series of islands, both high and low. These channels, spanned by stone bridges, mean the the best way of exploring really is to follow the earthen paths as they meander their way around the landing, linking the bridges and running past the major points of interest, with one in particular leading to one of the more hidden places within the region, a water garden tucked away out-of-sight.

While the majority of the region takes its led from Japan in terms of architecture, there are two exceptions. The first sits atop the highest point of the setting- and is called, appropriately enough Tibet. The other lies to the west of the region, but it isn’t accessed directly by any of the paths. To find your way into it without scrambling up a steep slope, you’ll need to locate the stairs and arch that lead to it – just be prepared to get a little wet (hint). When you have reached it, you’ll find you’ll pass from a sense of ancient Japan and into modern southern Asia, a setting dominated by elements of Eliza Wierwight’s superb PATRON builds that form a suite of exotic bath houses, with a small beach facing the sheltered southern waters.

Following the paths around the region will also reveal the smaller touches that add a living depth to it, such as a further water garden in the middle of the riding trail and the pavilion where you can play the harp to an audience of one – panthera tigris (although the giraffe standing in the shade of a large cherry blossom might eavesdrop)also be listening.

More animals can be found during explorations, ranging from swans and horses to bears, foxes, pandas, stags, deer, lions, and more. A whale circling in the air over the central buildings adds a touch of fantasy to the setting, as does the presence of giant (but friendly) trolls. For those perhaps not so taken by animals, there are table games available in the building up on the central ridge (with backgammon available just outside), while a high hive platform offers a sporting element. Art also waits discovery, with pieces by Cica Ghost, Mistero Hifeng, Qutsal Alex, x1XDanteX4x, L̶i̶n̶L̶i̶n̶ herself, and more.

As noted above, Exhalt includes several skyborne settings. At the time of my visit, three of these were accessible via Experience-based teleports, and a fourth – The Roxy Club – reached via a teleport board mounted on a wall above the landing point, although I didn’t spot an obvious TP back to the ground.

The other areas are reached by walking through Torii gates, one of which is alongside the landing point, with the other two a short walk from it through the main entrance into the ground level of the region. If you’ve not previously joined the region’s Experience, you’ll be prompted to do so when attempting to pass through one of the gates, which will take you, respectively, to the Old West (pretty self-explanatory), to Dark Tokyo (a modern urban setting with an adult lean), and to the Field of Dreams.

The last of these is close enough to be seen from the ground by those with a Draw Distance greater than around 150 metres. It presents a gorgeous walled garden with its own hints of fantasy and storybook elements that are enchanting to wander through – although the ghostly sasquatch wandering through it can be a little disconcerting! Both of these settings – Dark Tokyo and Field of Dreams – offer teleport loops back to the ground.

With all this said, there is still more to be discovered in Exhalt – details that help to bring it to life and which might also be used in exploring; but rather than give away everything here, I strong encourage you to go see for yourself. And if you enjoy SL photography, trying playing with different EEP settings.

SLurl Details

• Exhalt (Caligula, rated Adult)

In checking back through my visit history, I was surprised to see the last time I dropped into L2 Studio & LHOOQ Gallery, the Full region held and operated by Lindini2 (Lindini2 Lane) and Jessica (jessicabelmer) was in 2016.

Surprised, because the region – the home to Lindini2’s store and Jessica’s art gallery respectively – used to be on my list of places to visit semi-regularly due to it being highly attractive and subject to periodic changes, and I enjoyed dropping-in semi-regularly to see what had changed. So this being the case, I took a trip to see had things are today.

No landing point is enforced, although one is defined – and used as the SLurl here – that brings folk down in the gardens between the L2 store and the LHOOQ gallery, allowing quick access to Lindini2’s creations (including teleports up to the demo areas in the sky for her buildings) and to appreciate Jessica’s art

The gallery and store are located on the largest island in the region, where they sit within the south-east corner, forming two of the biggest structures within the setting. The gallery in particularly is impressive, its design light and airy, the two floors offering plenty of space for Jessica’s work to be displayed in a fairly large format.

Surrounding them, the gardens and land beyond are presented as a something of a wildling environment that is both managed and also left to grow fairly free: manicured cypresses mixing with shaggy fir, the grass mixing with scrub and rock whilst being maintained more by the munching of sheep than by any bladed means. It’s an effective, natural environment that climbs westward to where a Japanese teahouse sits within stone walls, the passage through its grounds literally forming the gateway between east and west

The teahouse is not the only structure to be found when wandering the paths around the studio and gallery, nor are the sheep the only animals waiting to be found. Some of the former are obvious, others take a little more discovery as they meander around and climb up and down through the landscape. The easiest to follow will lead you to an old gazebo, the way up to the teahouse close by; others might take you to a folly guarded by foxes or a little fenced garden offering a way down to a shingle beach and a view out to the north-west, or off to the north-east side of the land, of which more anon.

Nor are the foxes and sheep alone in claiming the wildling setting as theirs; horses wander the grasses. An attempt has been made to cultivate a small part of the wildling, but I did find myself wondering how long it might last, given the way some of the sheep appeared to be eyeing things!

The store and gallery are balanced to the south-west by a house with garden and outhouses. A narrow neck of rock connects this headland with the rest of the main island, pools of water feeding waterfalls on either side.

Such is the design here that it is hard not to avoid the feeling the water – whilst crossed by a hump of rock – is there to form a natural barrier to indicate the house and gardens beyond are perhaps private property, a feeling added to by the steep shoulder of a hill rising between the falls and the house beyond that is sans obvious path up or around its slope. There are no signs to confirm this, but is did leave me a little circumspect in my wanderings so as not to trespass, just in case.

To the north, the region is given over to settings that showcase Lindini2’s houses. The first of these is laid one in a manner suggestive of Dutch waterways, although the houses are perhaps more North American in styling. Water forms a narrow basin with walled sides and cobbled road surfaces surrounding it and a pair of little bridges arching over it. Four house sit on the cobbled ways, while across a narrow channel of water, a low-lying, sandy island offers a beach-like setting for more houses.

The final element of the landscape is a little town are that sits sandwiched between the island houses and the store and gallery. Located on its own little promontory, it balances the hill-top teahouse in having a Japanese vibe to its styling (perhaps with the exception of the little hi;;top greenhouse overlooking it, set is it is form a spot of very English afternoon tea!). There is a wealth of detail packed into this little town that it makes for its own entirely photogenic spot.

Finished with multiple touches that help bring a sense of life to it, from boats on the water to the animals and birds and the various places visitors are encouraged to sit and pass the time, L2 Studio & LHOOQ Gallery is richly detailed and a visually engaging visit. The layout allows exploration to be carried out in a single visit, over a course of days, depending on your mood.

However, all this does come at a price; the the vast majority of the region’s land impact has been used, so there is a lot of mesh and textures for the viewer to handle, which can impact performance, so depending on your settings, you my need to make some adjustments. I found it a lot easier to get around by turning off Shadows when exploring, and only using them for photographs.

Even so, I would say the region remains enticingly photogenic, and is well worth a visit be shutter bugs, and Jessica’s photography stands as a very worthy reason for patrons of SL arts to also hop over and visit.

SLurl Details

• L2 Studio and LHOOQ Gallery (LHOOQ, rated Moderate)

It’s been a while since I’ve visited Luane’s World, the estate held and operated by LuaneMeo, but a recent blog post by Rig Torok of the estate’s main Full region – Le Monde Perdu (The Lost World)- gave me pause to take a jump back and take a fresh wander.

Le Monde Perdu is a beautiful, romantic Island far away from everything. A place where you can find inner peace, enjoy and relax. Landscaping by LuaneMeo and Gorba McMahon.

– from the region’s About Land description

I first visited the region in 2016, and then again in 2018. At the time of both of those visits, Luane’s world occupied a different location as an estate with two regions encompassing public spaces, Luane’s store and Luane’s Magical Garden. Today, the estate comprises five regions  – the main public region of Le Monde Perdu, and four residential regions gathered to the north of it, and both the store and Luane’s Magical world have shifted into the sky, reachable via teleport.

The ground level of Le Monde Perdu presents itself as a rugged island with a high horseshoe of hills skirted from south to north via the west coast by a sandy beach, with the eastern side falling to a narrow ribbon of rocky, shingle waterfront sitting between cliffs and shallows. At roughly the mid-point along the island’s south side, the hills break, allowing the sand to flow inland and cup the waters of a freshwater pool at the heart of the island, fed by falls that tumble down the cliffs that form the pool’s north side.

Within this setting there a a lot to see and capture, thanks in part to a use of altitude and landscaping – the hills aren’t all of a single height but offer stepped rises that present natural shoulders that present spaces which Luane and Gorba have used to the fullest. To the south-east, for example, the hills rise from the entrance to the inner pool to offer a choice of routes: one around the statue at the top of the rise and then down to a ribbon lake that sits on a lower shoulder, or left along a cobbled path that branches at the foot of a further rise.

The right branch of this path curls up around the the next rise of the hill reaching its top and the small farmhouse sits there alongside a sparkling, fast-flowing stream that tumbles down along the spine of the hill to help feed the freshwater pool below via its own falls. The left branch of the path, meanwhile, descends along a gentle slope to where a dining table has been set out beneath a net awning that also overlooks the central lake. The path to this dining area also offers a way down to (or up from) the lake via steeply-set steps, so giving visitors a further route of exploration.

The top of these steps is also home to a zipline that spans the mouth of the southern cutting, giving a means to reach a cabin that sits above the beach to the south-west, nestled under a truncated peak that feeds another stream that runs around the ridge of the hills to reach the north side waterfalls..

The shelf on which the cabin sits runs west and north around the island to reach a cavern, passing steps that climb up to it from the beach, whilst also offering visitors a further option to go horse riding within the region (there is one at the landing point, alongside a bicycle rezzer, although options for comfortable riding are a tad limited due to the lie of the land).As a further attraction, a little pond sits just down from the cabin, the home to a family of otters.

These otters are just a touch of the wildlife to be found across the island, and part of the fun in exploring is that of coming across the various animals and birds / waterfowl. Some are easy to spot, others might require keen eyes; some might even appear a little threatening / intimidating – the shark casually swimming alongside a part of the beach where paddling is clearly encouraged, and the bears within one of the island’s caverns (the second of these runs through the western hills between inner and outer beaches).

The richness of detail across the region cannot be over-emphasised; wildlife, plants, overall design, placement of buildings and structures, and places to sit have all been carefully considered to present Le Monde Perdu as a perfectly natural environment that flows from point to point, whilst also offering numerous individual locations that are either highly photogenic or offer places to sit and appreciate the surroundings – or both. And if you want to catch a different perspective of the island and its surroundings, try hopping up to the hot air balloon that floats serenely above it.

Finally, don’t forget that there is also Luane’s Magical World awaiting a visit in the sky overhead as well. You can reach it via the SLurl here, or via the experience-based teleport sign alongside the ground-level landing point for the region. I’m not going to delve into that here; suffice it to say it is another engaging setting, and I’ll leave a little taste of it with an image.

Captivatingly set and with a lot to see (and do), Le Monde Perdu remains a thoroughly engaging visit.

SLurl Details

Le Monde Perdu is rated as Adult.

• Le Monde Perdu ground level
• Luane’s Magical World