Summer Solstice in SL

While logging in a week or so ago, I received a notecard invitation to a summer solstice celebration and thought it sounded interesting.  The events were taking place over the weekend of June 21 and June 22 on the Rocca Sorrentina sim in conjunction with the Feast of St. Giovanni.  I later learned that Rocca Sorrentina is a historical Italian sim, and I was pleasantly surprised at the welcoming I received from its friendly residents as well as the lovely town.

To start off my visit, I decided to embark on one of the cruises to France.  I boarded one of the last ships out, as I could not get into SL until the evening.  I was the only passenger, but the captain was happy to have me aboard and presented me with some background history on our ports. 

After my round-trip cruise because I wanted to attend more of the solstice events in Rocca Sorrentina, I headed toward the market square and took a pleasant stroll through the pretty town.  I noticed signs for the tarot card reader and found her parlor at the time indicated for the evening readings.  I was a bit early, but she was there, and I scheduled an appointment.  When my time arrived, I joined her in her tent and requested a 3-card reading.  While there was a fee for this service, it was mostly entertaining, although some of her suggestions to me seemed accurate. 

After the reading, I strolled the town some more and visited the church which was festooned with flowers and beautiful religious paintings.  I also found the library that, as a librarian, I especially enjoyed with its lovely decor.  Lastly, I walked among the gardens of the castle and saw the dance area set for the following day's Sunflower Ball.

I returned the following evening and joined the dancers at the Sunflower Ball.  The music was enchanting, and I was welcomed by the town residents again. 

I look forward to future events in Rocca Sorrentina and am told that there are numerous educational and literary ones. 

CVL Travelogue #3 Roleplays in 1920's Berlin

As I've written in two other articles, the CVL Travelogue group continues its tours with #3 on September 18 to 1920's Berlin. The 1920's Berlin Project tour was conducted by Rosemary Thyme who met our group and visitors at the Berlin Teleportplatz where freebie period clothing was available for those who needed them. Although we were told that the Berlin Project is not a strict role-play sim, it's best to look and act the part as much as possible. 

The train ride into Berlin was fast.

The group's favorite spot, the library

Outside the Club Eldorado

From the Teleportplatz, we took the train into Berlin. After disembarking, Rosemary gave us the history of the sim and some interesting tidbits of information as we visited such places as Der Keller (a backstreet where you can dance and listen to 1920's music); Alexanderplatz (where the municipal building, stores, and residential areas are found); Club Eldorado (open every Saturday for Cabaret/burlesque shows and concerts); Magdalenenkirche (the church where services are held each week); the library (our favorite spot); the museum (which is closed now but offers exhibits occasionally); the Odeon theater (that features concerts and performances regularly); the Unter den Linden (famous square in Berlin); Adlon (a luxury hotel that is almost always booked to capacity and where the second anniversary ball recently took place); the school Hindenburg schule (the only place on the sim that allows voice chatting and where language classes are given); the police station; and the final stop, the night club der Keller, where Rosemary told us there is a "happy hour" every night.

The Church

The luxurious Adlon Hotel

The language school

The Unter den Linden with blimp above

Originally posted in "Rainbow Notes" blog

Second CVL Travelogue Visits the Past

In a previous blog, I wrote about the fun and entertainment sims that the CVL Travelogue featured on their first tour. On July 17, the CVL Travelolgue group conducted a second tour of historical sims. The places visited included the First World War Poetry Digital Archive, Virtual Harlem, and Virtual Montmarte. The First Wold War Poetry Digital Archive tour was led by Csteph Submariner and the Virtual Harlem and Virtual Montmarte tours were led by Bryan Mnemonic.

The CVL Travelogue Group and guests at the
WWI Poetry Digital Archives

Touring the Trenches

The first stop on the historical tour was the World War I Poetry Digital Archive where the group and guests, led by Csteph Submariner (Christopher Stephens in RL) of the University of Oxford, visited the camp and trenches. Since time was limited and there is a vast amount of very detailed historical information to see and learn about, it was suggested that participants visit again on their own. A free HUD is available to teleport between sites. Videos and notecards highlight the immersive historical experience. At the campsite, there are realistic illustrations of wartime living conditions on the front down to scary, animated rats. The group and visitors agreed that this is an important and very well-created build. We later learned that funding for this project was discontinued in 2009 and that Submarinar is in need of keeping it going. He wrote an email to the head of the CVL Travelogue group asking her help in sending an email in support of the WWI Poetry Arachive to

stuart....@oucs.ox.ac.uk -- Director: computing Services
katharine.lind...@oucs.ox.ac.uk -- Project manager: WWI Poetry Digital
Archive

CVL Travelogue tour group at the Cotton Club

The Virtual Harlem tour led by Bryan Mnemonic (Bryan Carter in RL), Associate Professor of English at the University of Central Missouri, began at the Dark Tower mansion, the office of Dr. Menemonic. After a brief introduction, Menemonic gave a tour of several sites in 1920's Virtual Harlem, the famous Cotton Club jazz club and two locations that featured student art exhibits. Afterwards, he led everyone across the bridge to France where we visited Virtual Montmarte, a very authentic-looking French village with some nice shops and sites.

Virtual Montmarte

A slightly larger number of people joined us for the history tour, and we hope that more will come to the next one which may possibly focus on roleplay sims. There are so many places to visit in SL, and the CVL Travelogue is a great way to learn of them and become introduced to the different location themes. The group is always in need of volunteers and has its own Google as well as SL group to communicate its meetings and events.

Originally posted in "Rainbow Notes" blog

Chicago Roaring Twenties

The Roaring 20's has always seemed like a fun period of history to me -- the flappers, Speakeasies, bootlegging era that was portrayed in the famous novel, "The Great Gatsby." This period comes alive in Second Life in the Chicago Roaring 20's sim.

One of the hottest crazes of this time was jazz dancing, and The Flume is the jazz club on the sim. It is an attractive place that hosts a variety of entertainment (you can join the subscribe-o group for information without having to take up a group slot).

One of the 20's clothing shops on the streets of Chicago

Upon exiting The Flume, you can stroll the sidewalks of downtown Chicago passing many clothing shops offering period attire (and quite a few freebies). While the Chiciago Roaring 20's features roleplay only in part of the sim, period dress is expected throughout. The Welcome Center has Guys and Dolls dressing lockers that will give you a folder of freebies for your visit. The Welcome Center also contains the sim rules, an event calenar, and a map of the city.

One of many teleport phone booths on the sim

There's a variety of transportation available throughout the sim. Red phone booths scattered around offer teleports to various locations. There is also a taxi tour that seats four and is conducted by a driver who can tell you the ins and outs of the city including info on where all the Speakeasies are located.

Headquarters of the Chicagoan newspaper

City Park

Some popular spots, beside The Flume jazz club, include a pool hall, Theater, the headquarters of the Chicagoan newspaper, and city park. There are also a few burlesque parlors and Speakeasies around. The boxing center allows you to enter the ring and throw your own punches with a provided HUD. The whole place is quite authentic down to manholes and garbage cans with flies buzzing around them and has some audio clips playing as you wander the streets. So, come along and grab your flapper outfits or Bugsy Malone suits and have some fun in 1920's Chicago, just be careful not to cross the river into the seedier part of town where the gangsters hang.

Slurl to Chicago 1920's: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Rich%20Island/196/178/21
Originally posted in the blog, "Eye on the Grind"

Touring Texas SL Style

Text and Photos by DULCIE MILLS
Machinima by CLARK
Originally published in RezLibris Magazine




The Texas Library Association in Second Life is currently sponsoring an exhibit called Virtual Texas. According to Valibrarian Gregg, Texas Librarian, the idea for the exhibit came about after she met Jacon Cortes, co-owner of the Antiquity Texas and Antiquity Tejas sims, at an ISTE (International Society of Technology in Education) conference that had been held both in San Antonio, Texas, and in Second Life. “The Texas Library Association built an exhibit using his (Cortes’) Alamo façade as a backdrop,” Gregg said. The exhibit also includes SL universities that are in Texas, a few virtual books, and other historical and period items.
The Virtual Texas exhibit will run through April on Info Island and will then be featured at the Texas Library Convention in Austin. Gregg, along with Cortes, is conducting tours of the exhibit as well as the Antiquity Texas sim itself. The tours run for two hours and conclude with fireworks and dancing. There have been two tours and possibly a third will be given in April before the exhibit is taken down.
Antiquity Texas is a role-playing sim that is one of around 40 sims that are part of the Kingdom of Antiquity community of Victorian role-play sims, each of which is privately funded. Some other sims in this group include Antiquity Tejas, Antiquity London, Antiquity France, Antiquity New Europe, Antiquity Harbor, and Antiquity Prairie. Western, Victorian, or period dress is recommended for visitors to Antiquity Texas, and free outfits for men and women are available at the landing point where several tours around the sim originate, including an audio walking tour, horse-drawn buggy tour, and hot air balloon ride.

Describing how Antiquity Texas came about, Cortes explained that he, his rl brother, Tocho Cortes, and a business partner, Pixapao Xeno, had not originally planned on creating a historical sim. They initially wanted to expand their business, Los Texanos Beaux Arts, an ornate shop selling jewelry and other items that is the main shop currently on Antiquity. “When it came time to decide for a building to place our new shops in, we thought about what kind of building we wanted and where it would be located,” Cortes said. “We thought about different buildings, different themes, that would add to designs before we decided on the Texas Capitol Building. My brother and I, both being from Texas and very proud of our state and its history, convinced our partner on the Capitol. Pixapao, in turn, had a recommendation for a builder and we set off to recreate the Capitol. Once we had the Capitol built, I placed a rough Alamo next to the central plaza. Thus Antiquity Texas evolved.”

Besides the Capital and the Alamo, there are many places to see and visit on Antiquity Texas, including the Governor’s Mansion, Presidio Nuestra Señora de Loret, and the Port Isabel Lighthouse, to name a few. Cortes described the process of recreating historical details for the buildings: “The majority of buildings were built by Master Builder Powder Pinkenba. Powder has a fantastic eye for detail. He used original blueprints that we found on the Library of Congress website to plan and build the buildings. For the Capitol, my brother, mother, sister, and I drove to Austin to photograph the Capitol to use for the textures. As for the other buildings, we tried to make them as close to possible, in our minds, as the building looked like in the early 1800's. Using images from the Net, Powder would work to create realistic reproductions.”

“I think the reason the librarians got involved in this,” Gregg said, “is because Antiquity Texas is such a wonderful example of an immersive learning environment where one can actually enter an historical era. The TLA SL group is very appreciative of the hospitality shown by Jacon and Tocho Cortes.” Cortes added, “If somebody in real life who could not come to the Texas Capitol building or to the Alamo could come and visit and learn about Texas history in this sort of way, I think it’s good on all different kinds of fronts. It is the goal of Antiquity Texas, and Los Texanos, our group, to continue to build on our historical foundations and be able to offer a fun community of role-play to enjoy it in.”

Slurl to Virtual Texas Exhibit: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Info%20Island/61/94/23
Slurl to Antiquity, Texas: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Antiquity%20Texas/153/38/22

Links for Further Information on Texas and Historical Sites:

Alamo http://thealamo.org/main/index.php
Governor's Mansion and Texas Capitol http://www.tspb.state.tx.us/tspb.htm
Presidio Nuestra Señora de Loret http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=754&ResourceType=Building
Port Isabel Lighthouse http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/spdest/findadest/parks/port_isabel_lighthouse/

Antiquity, Texas

View across the water at the Landy of Antiquity Texas

Maybe I'm in a cowgirl mood because I recently purchased two Amaretto horses, but I think anyone would enjoy visiting Antiquity Texas, an 1800's role playing sim in the Antiquity Community of Victorian Sims. The sim itself is beautiful from the lovely landscaping to the detailed architecture. You can see the Alamo, the Governor's Mansion, San Jacinto Plaza, Texas Capitol, and many other historical places.

When you land at the landing in Antiquity Texas, you will be on the docks. Maps and several tours begin here. You can tour by foot, horse-drawn carriage, hot air balloon, or bicycle.

Visitors can tour by foot, air, on a bicycle, or in a horse-drawn carriage

Of course, there is also a shop, Los Texanos Beaux Arts, home to the designs of Jacon Cortes, co-owner of the Antiquity, Texas sim. Jewelry and other items are on display in an ornate building, an attraction in itself. There is also shopping on the first floor of the Capitol.

Los Texanos Beaux Arts shop

The Alamo at Antiquity, Texas

It is recommended that visitors wear Victorian, Western, or period dress, and it certainly adds to the fun. Also, look for freebies at the landing point The Texas Library Association, though the Community Virtual Library, is offering a tour on Sunday, March 6 from 2 - 4 pm SLT. The will include a viewing of the Virtual Texas exhibit that will remain on display up through April on Info Island. For more information about the tour, contact Valibrarian Gregg.

Slurl to Virtual Texas Exhibit: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Info%20Island/61/94/23
Slurl to Antiquity, Texas: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Antiquity%20Texas/153/38/22

Originally posted in "Eye of the Grind" blog

Runaround Sue's Sock Hop

I know many of you, including myself, were not around in the 50's, but some of us remember watching Henry Winkler as the Fonz on Happy Days and/or seeing John Travolta and Olivia Newton John in Grease. In Second Life, you can go to a place that recreates that rockin' era when you visit Runaround Sue's Sock Hop.

Rurnaround Sue's dance floor is always jumpin

Rurnaround Sue has a full calendar of events

The checkerboard dance floor at Runaround Sue's always seems to be jumping with guys and gals in 50's clothes and Elvis and other rock n' roll tunes playing. There is a full calendar displayed that lists events, too, and photos of famous people from that era line the walks.

Lots of familiar 50's faces line the walks of Runaround Sue's

But the sim is not only for dancing. It is home to a Jetdolls shop and other stores selling all types of 50's accessories, memorabilia, and clothing. There are also several ladies and men's hairstyles that you can don (or try the free demos first).

Elsewhere on Ruanaround Sue's is a 7 Seas Fishing area, a beautiful lighthouse, and a lover's lane. There are restful benchs to sit on, and the small town atmosphere makes for a pleasant outing any time of day to get you in that summer mood.

Runaround Sue's is a fun place to get in that summer mood

Slurl: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Five%20Sisters/54/154/22

Originally posted in "Eye on the Grind" blog