For Valentine's Day or any special occasion, or just for a nice night out, the Amorosa Ballroom might be just the ticket.
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Amorosa Ballroom
For Valentine's Day or any special occasion, or just for a nice night out, the Amorosa Ballroom might be just the ticket.
Saturday, January 7, 2012
Exploring Virtually
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| On top of the world, Venice @ Prada |
The scenery here is lovely and is enhanced in sunset setting. From the waterfront to the quaint village shops and buildings, there is lots to see and do here with an emphasis on "see", as the appeal of this place is truly visual.
Before and during exploring the
village, we stopped and chatted at the numerous waterside cafe tables. I felt
like an Italian tourist and had tried to dress the part with my white Stole and
designer SL jeans but made a quick change into a dress for dancing. 
The TP sign by the dock
took us to the New York Jazz Club (yes, even in Italy, I could feel at home).
The warm wood textures and varnished floors of this dance venue along with its
wonderful skyline windows were charming and atmospheric. The only drawback was
that the return TP to Venice was either missing or well hidden, so keep the LM
handy if you want to continue your exploration.All in all, virtually exploring Prada @ Venice was fun and immersive. I felt like I'd traveled to Italy for a few hours with no jet lag to recover from
Originally posted in "Rainbow Notes" blog
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
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.
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| The train ride into Berlin was fast. |
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| The group's favorite spot, the library |
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| 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.
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| The Church |
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| The luxurious Adlon Hotel |
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| The language school |
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| The Unter den Linden with blimp above |
Originally posted in "Rainbow Notes" blog
Thursday, September 15, 2011
A Grand Place to Visit
Text by DULCIE MILLS
Photos by CLARK ABISMO
Originally published in RezLibris Magazine
See Fall 2011 issue for photo slideshow
Originally published in RezLibris Magazine
See Fall 2011 issue for photo slideshow
The history of the Grand Canyon began when Lissisme Dubrovna and her brother, TD Tremmor, purchased TDT Estates in Oct. 2009. In January 2010, Dubrovna, an experienced builder, visited a texture store and fell in love with a texture that became the rock for the Grand Canyon that she had recently visited in RL. After having a dream about the texture and the Grand Canyon, she did a search in SL to see if there was already a Grand Canyon, and discovered there wasn’t. She then went to work and created the Grand Canyon in 18 hours.
In March 2010, she began working with her partner, Tiger Zepp. “The whole idea behind these sims is to give residents of SL an opportunity to get away from shopping and sex and pressures in SL,” Dubrovna said. “It also gives new residents a chance to learn valuable skills in a fun recreational way.” She added that the success of the Canyon sims came about after Zepp taught her his “stickiness theory.” Zepp explained, “. . . it’s about engagement with the environment. It’s all well and good just admiring views, etc., but if you, as a visitor, can engage with the terrain . . . say, with skiing, climbing, swimming, fishing, paragliding, horseback riding . . . you see the place again and again from many perspectives and find hidden places. [It] literally would take you a week here solid to find things. We have over 35 destinations over the sims in our board.”
The three sims that currently compose the Grand Canyon area are the Imago sim that contains Lake Tahoe and Crater Lake and is most known for its winter sports and activities; the Grand Canyon sim that features the main attractions and adventure sports; and TDT Estates sim that specializes in romance and weddings. Some of the things you can do at Lake Tahoe and Crater Lake include ice skating, skiing, slalom racing (sleds and snowboards are free), and even white water kayaking. You should beware of crocodiles and the bears that make this area their home, but some persistent explorers have found prizes in the trash bins by the bears.
The Grand Canyon offers a multitude of experiences and activities. The skywalk is noted to give the “same sense of awe and wonder,” as its rl counterpart in Arizona. For thrill seekers, the hang gliders, bungee jump, human cannon, parachuting, and rock slide are just some of the activities offered. For those who like more relaxing past-times, there is a picnic area, mermaid park, and fishing pier. If games are your thing, you might want to spend some time trying your luck at the shooting gallery, horse shoes, and knife throwing area where prizes are awarded to high scorers. There’s also a yacht club and Indian camp. To top it all off, you can even go on a helicopter tour of all three sims with a friend, date, or partner.
TDT Estates offers all you need to plan a romantic date or the perfect wedding – a bridal shop, romance ballroom, hot air balloon rides, a drive-in theater, and a dance club. Throughout all the sims there are campsites, caves and waterfalls, and lots of pose and dance balls. As stated in “The Grand Canyon Magazine” published by Imago Builders, “GC is a place of beauty, health, open air, RL sports, and skill enhancing activities.”
When asked what she personally likes most about the Grand Canyon in SL, Dubrovna replied, “I have to say I love it all - it has been a wonderful project but one thing I truly love is seeing others have fun and relax and the loyalty they show the Canyon.” The Grand Canyon group is free to join, and members are scouts. Events are announced through the group such as the Friday night dances at the Canyon Club. Dubrovna also said that singers and live performers appear often and that, besides weddings, many engagement parties, rez days, and meetings take place at the Canyon. They are also about to launch a series of educational events on the topic of global warming and its effects on the environment. The sims are solely supported by visitor donations, and Dubrovna mentioned that she will soon be seeking sponsorship for a “very amazing build – totally new to SL.” A few new additions are also planned for the Grand Canyon – a Cable car and video documentaries of the real Grand Canyon.
To visit this lovely and fun place, search for The Grand Canyon in SL Places or take this Slurl: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Grand%20Canyon/99/194/111
Friday, July 29, 2011
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 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
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.
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
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| The CVL Travelogue Group and
guests at the WWI Poetry Digital Archives |
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| Touring the Trenches |
stuart....@oucs.ox.ac.uk -- Director: computing
Services
katharine.lind...@oucs.ox.ac.uk -- Project manager: WWI Poetry Digital
Archive
katharine.lind...@oucs.ox.ac.uk -- Project manager: WWI Poetry Digital
Archive
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| CVL Travelogue tour group at the Cotton Club |
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| Virtual Montmarte |
Originally posted in "Rainbow Notes" blog
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
History Meets Art on Museum Island
| Originally published in RezLibris Magazine See Summer 2011 issue for Slideshow |
Text by DULCIE MILLS Photos by DULCIE MILLS and CLARK ABISMO  There are so many creative sims in Second Life, but imagine one that is a museum filled with statues, buildings, and other artifacts illustrating historical places and times, all arranged artistically with gardens and other plants, walkways, and paths. Visit ancient Egypt, Rome, Babylon, and Greece by boat or walking tour or just fly through the sim. This is Museum Island, the creation of Carlolello Zapatero, an Italian builder who works with computer graphics in RL. Zapatero joined Second Life three years ago but didn't begin work on Museum Island until last year after some people saw his builds at a sandbox and pushed him to create something inworld. "I built Museum Island to give people the chance who can't travel the world to have an idea of these beautiful ancient sites," he said. Zapatero says the most popular attractions on Museum Island include Petra, Nefertari's Tomb, Babylonia, and the Library of Ephesus, but he believes all the monuments are interesting, especially the tall ancient sundial in Rome which he says "is built seven metres under the modern city in RL." His favorite build is the House of the Tragic Poet in Pompeii. "I painted all the walls in watercolor after I scanned them for SL," he said. "Many archeological teachers visit this house. All paints are original. I restored this home. In RL it was destroyed." Other sites to see on Museum Island include Ara Pacis (Alter to Peace); Tholos of Apollo, Delphi (Greece); Arch of Septimius Severus; Arch of Constantine; Ishtar Gate (Babylon); Canopo, Villa Ariana (Tivoli); the Acropolis; Hanging Gardens; Colossus of Rhodes; and even a pet memorial called Memory Gardens. After all the sightseeing through ancient times, you can take a nap on a hammock in the relaxing area. Regarding what readers of RezLibris should know about Museum Island, Zapetero replied, "I hope your readers like my land. I built an ideal city with archeological monuments representative of the ancient civilizations of the Mediterranean sea." Many signs in both Italian and English describe the various builds on the sim with historical background. Zapetero's next build is the site of Abu-Simbel in Egypt, which is currently under construction.
While no formal events take place on Museum Island, there is a SL group, and art exhibits are displayed there. Zapetero wanted to thank several people who helped him with the Museum Island project: Pille Bikcin, Miky Canning, Alex Sigal, Azyxel, Rigi, Frontrunner, Vonkalbert, Roja, Manuelita, and other friends. For a place to learn about ancient history and art, Museum Island is the place to visit.
Slurl: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Sunny%20Breezes/211/151/22 |
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