Fantasy Faire 2023 – Frostweald

On By altathiemenIn Second Life, SL EventsLeave a comment
A woman with long white hair wearing a long sleeved turquoise top kneels at a prayer bench on the left edge of the image. She looks ahead (toward the right side of the picture) where an alter surrounded by candles sits. A living tree with glowing leaves grows from the top of the alter. Two birds are perched on the near two corners of it.

Frostweald

SLURL: https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Frostweald/84/197/62
Sponsor: Roawenwood
Designer: Searlait Nitschke

What a contrast! A moment ago I was walking through spring time glades and woods. A moment later I have stepped into a frost-bound, silent landscape of low snow-covered hills and barren trees.

The contrast is more than just the weather. Where evil witches in The Winding Valley left an ancient curse upon a village, the witches here in Frostweald are of a completely different kind. Here they guard the path and protect the spirits as they travel from one world to the next.

There are also shaman, who “keep to the trees and snow”. If you are seeking the spirit of a loved one you have lost, it is the shaman who can help.

A winter landscape lies spread beneath a clear night sky. Rounded hillocks are covered with snow in the foreground. Occasionally, rocks protrude from the snow but are capped with snow themselves. Barren trees dot the heights. Small lights can be seen in their branches. A rock path leads up the side of an embankment in the foreground.

Frostweald is a between land. Spirits of the departed pass through this space on the way to another world. It is a place of transition, a liminal world that is neither here nor there. The snowy landscape is appropriate. It seems to speak to a quiet, peaceful, resting land. It also gives me the feeling of a waiting.

And yet it’s not all silence and stillness. The designer’s notes speak of how the wind can sometimes rush through the trees, whistling in the branches.

Shops

I’ve read that Patch has extended the availability of the fairelands for one more day. (He does things like that.) So there is at least one more full shopping day on the 8th!

  • Moth & Moon
  • Tirrany Designs
  • Tamiron Forge
  • Poseidon
  • SAIKO
  • Gypsy Wolf Creations
  • Roped Passions
  • Dragonsworn
  • Roawenwood
  • ZFG
  • Dreamcatcher
  • Mindgardens Creations
  • Star Mesh Body
  • Touryuumon
  • Broken ARC
  • [CIRCA] Living
  • Brynn’s BoM-Squad
  • Aelithe

And That’s the Faire

And that about wraps up my Fantasy Faire 2023 ☹ With Frostweald I have completed my circumnavigation of the fairelands. There were so many amazing builds this year. My first impression was that they would not meet the bar set with last year’s faire, but I was quite wrong. This year’s worlds may have been more understated, but they were all just so amazing in their own way, and perfect for the concepts they wanted to express. In short, I really enjoyed this year’s Fantasy Faire. Of course, I’m now looking forward to what we’ll see next year.

(And not to lose sight of essentials, as of even date, Fantasy Faire 2023 has gathered L$20,647,488 toward Relay for Life. That’s something around $82K real dollars. Super work!)

Looking at my dashboard, I also see I’m reaching another milestone today. This is my 100th post! This blog has been going for years, albeit sporadically. But since I’ve been going on and on… and on… and on about Fantasy Faire for the last two weeks plus, more than 20% of its content is about Fantasy Faire 2023. I’ll try to post a bit more often going forward and balance things out a bit!

Fantasy Faire 2023 – The Winding Valley

On By altathiemenIn Second Life, SL EventsLeave a comment
A woman with long white hair in a turquoise top with almost pauldron like shoulder pads sits on a bench on the right edge of the image. She is wearing a visor that shades from green to purple. Next to her, on her right, is a pelican with a fish in its beak. Behind the pelican is the trunk of a large tree. The left side of the image is filled with other trees and dense undergrowth.

The Winding Valley

SLURL: https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/The%20Winding%20Valley/128/195/71
Sponsor: United InshCon
Designer: Eldowyn Inshan

A heavily forested foreground under a partly cloudy, slightly hazy sky partly hides a village of many buildings. Some of the nearer buildings are single story log structures while the more distant ones are built of stone and stand two stories tall.

There is a village in The Winding Valley that stands almost untouched by time. It has a history with hints both of Shangri-La and Brigadoon. Reached by a hidden entrance into a secret valley bounded by high mountains, it appears to the outside world only for a few weeks in a century. But while Lerner & Loewe’s and James Hilton’s creations were ideal retreats from the stress and strain of modern life, the village in The Winding Valley lies under a curse.

Once it was the site of a battle between good and evil forces that drew to a stalemate. As the evil witches withdrew, they left it under a spell. It must remain unchanged, having contact with the outside world three weeks in a hundred years. And no resident may leave the village, or it will vanish forever.

A stone path bordered by logs winds through several large trees in a heavily shaded grassy meadow. The trees stand several feet up on roots that vault to the ground leaving natural archways beneath the tree. In the distance, several buildings can be seen through the trees.

The village definitely does exist in an earlier time. The shops are log structures, but not crude ones. They have wide, open entrances but also glass windows of several lights each, protected by elegantly carved shutters. Window boxes with blooming flowers decorate most of them.

The paths between them are neatly laid stone bordered with logs. The grounds are well kept with short grass, flower gardens and large wooded areas free of undergrowth. (Though some of this may be due to frequent floods, as the trees seen here hint.)

A small gazebo made from roughly shaped wooden poles and fine ironwork sits in the middle of a grassy lawn between two story brick and stone buildings. Branches and other perches for birds have been placed within the gazebo. Several wild birds are sitting around inside.

As the path through the shops takes me to the center of the village, I notice the construction is more substantial with brick and stone taking over as the materials of choice. The window boxes and shutters are even more elaborate; not merely carved now but also brightly painted. Many of the buildings have murals depicting village celebrations painted on their upper walls.

Flower gardens are in raised beds here. Curiously, the grass has been left to grow longer, maybe for the deer and cows to graze?

There are signs of the villagers’ love of wildlife. For example, there is this beautiful gazebo which appears to have been built not for the citizens, but for the wild birds.

On a large rock, statues of two rampant stags are poised to butt heads. The stag on the left is white while the one on the right is black. Both have golden antlers and highlights on their flanks. Both are equal in size. In the background a grassy lawn recedes toward a row of trees, a mix of hardwood and evergreen. The rocky sits in a pond in which water lilies bloom. Boughs of nearby trees droop into the frame from above-right.

After wandering through the village, I take a turn off the main path to another that runs along the southern border of the region. Here is a quiet area with all kinds of interesting places to explore. There are fields, cows, horses, goats, standing stones, a grotto, trees aplenty, and a curious monument in the center. Two stags, one white, one black, both with golden antlers and highlights on their flanks battle each other on top of a large rock in the middle of a pond. The two appear equally matched. Is this a reminder of the great contest that took place here long ago?

Shops

By this time, there are about 0.5 shopping days left in Fantasy Faire 2023. For the record, here are the shops I encountered in The Winding Valley.

  • Sekai
  • Micsha Store
  • Fae Fantasy Creations
  • VRazeTheBar
  • Sparrows Nest
  • Shamon’s Hut
  • Furry Fashion
  • Mythmaker
  • SK
  • United InshCon
  • Kumiho
  • Vanilla Cloud
  • Una
  • Katz Creations
  • Grasshopper St.
  • Sweet Intoxication
  • Pixel Doll
  • VUDU
  • Witch in a Box
  • Spells & Charms To Go

Fantasy Faire 2023 – The Shimmering Fen

On By altathiemenIn Second Life, SL EventsLeave a comment
A woman with long white hair in a black top with beads sits at an open air bar in dim light. Barrels and kegs are in the background.

The Shimmering Fen

SLURL: https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/The%20Shimmering%20Fen/127/187/69
Sponsor: Cerridwen’s Cauldron
Designer: Elicio Ember

The designer’s notes for The Shimmering Fen are really not so much notes as such. Instead, they tell a story; the tale of the settling of the fens long ago by elves in search of a new home. Half of them had already found their new lands in Mythspire (see Fantasy Faire 2022). However, the others continued on their quest for the ideal living place. Ultimately they found The Shimmering Fen and, following discussions with the Frog Prince, made their dwellings here.

Tall, luminous capped blue and brown mushrooms stand above shorter, but still very tall coral mushrooms which also glow white. Below these, and amongst yet more giant fungi, wooden houses with steeply gabled roofs sit. The sky is a deep, foggy purple.

Once more, giant fungi fill the region. (Brobdingnagian mushrooms are something of a Fantasy Faire theme this year.) What appear to be wooden houses built on stilts in the fen are actually, I’m told, made from mushrooms instead of wood. Luminous capped and coral mushrooms light the region while magical glowing, hovering lanterns illuminate the shops.

The sounds of crickets and the piping of tree frogs fill the night air as I browse my way through the shops. There is an atmosphere of life everywhere, all around me.

A woman with long white hair wearing a black bikini top, beaded arm rings, and bright diamond earrings sits at an open air bar. Kegs, barrels, and bottles sit behind the bar. In the background, huge capped and coral mushrooms rise all around. Some are glowing.

Taking the walkway and stairs south from the main landing area, I make my way down to the fen proper. There a statue honouring the Frog Prince sits, a reminder of the pact the elves made when they chose to stay here. Their promise to the frog was to live in balance with the environment and protect it from harm.

On my way back out, I took a few moments to rest my feet and have a drink at The Shroom and Gloom, an open air tavern right along the walkway.

Shops

  • Tir Na Nog
  • SKS Designs
  • Chimaera
  • Mystic Fox
  • Rainy Fey Creations
  • Blueberry Tea
  • ecru couture
  • Mosquito’s Way
  • Astrium
  • The Lost Unicorn Gallery
  • Cerridwen’s Cauldron (do drop in and enjoy the glass floor!)
  • Cats Claw Designs
  • [QE]
  • Dragon Magic Wares
  • Xtal
  • Whymsical Marketplace
  • Lantian Flox
  • The Olde Attic
  • 3rd Eye Perceptions
  • Dreamscaped

Fantasy Faire 2023 – Flambois

On By altathiemenIn Second Life, SL EventsLeave a comment
A heavily tattooed woman with long white hair in ponytails looks toward the left from the right edge of the image. She is standing in a forest in dim light. A stone town wall fills the background.

Flambois

SLURL: https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Flambois/129/99/70
Sponsor: Teegle
Designers: Beq Janus & Elizabeth Jarvinen

A stream runs rapidly toward the viewer in a rocky channel. On either side, a narrow grassy verge is bordered by tall trees. The scene is twilit. In a break in the trees in the distance, the sky is visible and is dominated by a large glowing planet, perhaps a gas giant of some sort? In the foreground on the left bank of the stream, a woman is standing. Incongruously, she is wearing a black belly dancing outfit.

Flambois has something of a dual spirit. Entering from Fungalmire, I find myself walking through twilit woods beside a rushing stream. It looks clean and cold. It’s as peaceful a riparian environment as you could ask for.

However, I follow the path along the stream, cross a rough bridge and plunge into the woods. Eventually I come to a tall stone wall. Around the corner and under an arch, I find myself in a very different kind of place.

A stone paved street recedes from the viewer after vaulting a stream over an angle arched stone bridge. Coldly lit stone buildings with highly decorative windows line either side of the street. On the right, the buildings are built over water, sitting on pilings joined by rounded arches.

Almost immediately, I’ve moved from the quiet countryside into the middle of an urban landscape, also strangely quiet. The architecture varies but is of three main types. The first I encounter has a medieval look to it, built of light coloured stone. The buildings, mostly dormitories I read, are several stories high and coldly lit. This area has an imposing, slightly eerie feel to it. The distant howling of a wolf might have something to do with that.

The designers’ notes tell of three schools of magic, which explains the three main styles of architecture in the city.

In an open area between three or four story stone buildings, five standing stones dot the common. The furthest two are surrounded by trees. Above the scene, the giant planet in the sky can be clearly seen. It is covered in swirling, glowing blue and orange clouds. There are a few bright purple lights on it as well.

A collection of standing stones, some in the midst of what look like carefully tended thickets, stands around an open area in the city known as The Bard’s Grove. It looks like the area functions as kind of common or public square.

A distant view of Flambois shows a tight collection of stone buildings, varying in colour from white to brick red. In the center, a larger building is dwarfed by the enormous tree growing on top of it. Above the tree an glowing orb floats. And above the orb, the Fantasy Faire glyph hovers.

Near the center, by the main landing point, sits the central hall (and flagship shop, Teegle). On top of the high roof of the hall grows a well-watered tree. (There are waterfalls pouring off two sides of the hall.) Above the sun tree floats a great enchanted orb that lights the region.

Don’t miss the windows in the Little Big Designs shop across the street from the entrance, very Art Nouveau.

Shops

Flambois looks like the place for tinies and dinkies to shop.

  • FlyingArts
  • Pax Werx
  • Mags’ Min-mall
  • Sterling Wear
  • Dead Umbrella
  • Peeps
  • Lumistice
  • Aether Chrononoauts
  • Tiny Steps
  • Little Big Designs
  • DFS
  • Tiny Inc.
  • Dinkie Boutique
  • ami’s Dinkie World
  • Twisted Whiskers
  • Weelandia
  • Morkus Quill Crafter
  • Designs by Isaudra
  • John Dee’s Emporium
  • Kute Kreations
  • Mothly

Fantasy Faire 2023 – Fungalmire

On By altathiemenIn Second Life, SL EventsLeave a comment
A woman with long white hair in ponytails wearing a beaded top sits, somewhat forlornly, before several faded posters on a pitted wooden backdrop.

Here I sadly sit at the LitFest tour bus stop, hours after the last tour has finished. It will be a whole year until the next one ☹. At least it leaves me plenty of time to scribble some notes about my exploration of Fungalmire, the region that hosted many of the LitFest events this year.

Fungalmire

SLURL: https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Fungalmire/117/152/63
Sponsor: Petrichor
Designer: DaveOSaurus

A wide, deeply worn path recedes into a wooded landscape. To the left, a tall stone outcropping looms over the path. Four enormous mushrooms rise above the entire landscape. In the distance, what appears to be a tree stump a dozen meters across rises on another promontory. A doorway is cut into its side.

Fungalmire is “a forest steeped in legend and myth.” It’s a place “where stories both old and new are waiting to be told.” It’s also a wooded land, where deeply worn tracks wind between amazingly large mushrooms and lead to hidden glades, fairy rings of unusual size, and shops.

In a grassy glade inside half of a gigantic stump, a collection of seats have been made from smaller stumps, stacks of large river worn rocks, fairly substantial mushrooms, and carved tree trunks. A wooden stage flanked by several large mushrooms sits at the far side of the seats. Off to the left of the stage, a long table holds a number of fantasy themed books.

One of the first things I come across, entering from Giggenwhirl, is the Stump Theater. This is where many LitFest events are held. Readings, interviews, and other LitFest happenings all have been taking place in this quiet nook off the main path.

A stump, cut at a sharp angle, stands in a small grassy area surrounded by rocks and a turfed hillock. An image of a fox has been carved into the face of the stump. In the background, improbably large mushrooms can be seen.

Speaking of stumps. Look for the LitFest stumps scattered throughout the region. Touch each of the five to collect portions of a story. Each of the stumps has caved on it one of the characters from the Reynard Fox stories.

The figure of the author can just be made out standing in the middle of a fairy ring tens of meters across. Varied mushrooms, some brown, some red and white, one yellow and peaked, form the ring itself. The mushrooms look to be any where from 2m to 4m tall.

Now this is a fairy ring! They do things properly here in Fungalmire. No mean little rings of fungus some foot or two across. This is a fairy ring big enough for a fey dance company to perform in!

Shops

  • Dreaming Thicket
  • Analog Dog
  • Bespoke Caravan
  • Petrichor
  • Crocodoggle
  • FFS
  • Clover

Fantasy Faire 2023 – Giggenwhirl

On By altathiemenIn Second Life, SL EventsLeave a comment
A woman with long white hair in ponytails sits resting her head on her right hand while holding her curled knees with her left. She looks distractedly off to her left. She is sitting in a rough wooden bucket chair in dim light. The back of an empty chair can be seen on the right side of the image.

I’m behind. There are just too many ways to get distracted at Fantasy Faire. This is not a bad thing.

I’m assembling this post while sitting in the Stump Theater in Fungalmire, next door to Giggenwhirl. I caught notice in the FF group chat of a celebration of Rachel Pollack hosted by Aoife Lorefield and felt I just had to attend. I knew very little about Pollack before tonight but I learned so much at Aoife’s presentation. This is the kind of serendipitous happening that makes Fantasy Faire, and Second Life in general, so wonderful. You can never tell when some gem like this will drop into your lap.

Anyway, back to this post’s subject, the Fantasy Faire region of Giggenwhirl. I presume the world’s name is derived from ‘whirligig’. Living in an area where there’s a long tradition of such things, I’m looking forward to what I shall see here!

SLURL: https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Giggenwhirl/90/126/89
Sponsor: Old World Fantasy ~ Kitty Creations
Designers: Allie Munro, Krystali Rabeni, Peter Locke & Lunar Tripsa

The designers’ notes imply that this world was realized from the imagination of a bedridden child. The child has quite an imagination!

A sequence of four images of whirligigs: A bicycle tire, a squirrel eating a nut, a flying blue jay, and a wasp or bee with four rotating wings.

To the right of the main shops path (having entered from Sipala), a smaller path branches off. And indeed, there are many whirligigs in amongst the trees. And wooden teepees to relax in while you enjoy watching them.

Between two lush trees, a totem pole like construct stands at least 2m high. It is composed of abstract shapes such as spheres, disks, and crescent moon or maybe more banana like forms. In the background can be seen a rotunda in the midst of a pond. The surface of the pond is dotted with may different kinds of objects.

Really, don’t miss the side paths. There are all kinds of whimsy to be found along them. There’s this totem like construct for one. Or you can rez a flamingo floatie and drift peacefully along the shore for a time.

Nearing the bottom of a long water slide by a pink and turquoise clocktower can be seen a figure sliding down on a giant leaf. To the left, a rough rock wall borders the pond at the bottom of the slide. Huge, brightly coloured crystals stick out of the wall.

If you look off to the side as you near the top of the shops path, you’ll see a water slide you can take all the way down to the lagoon filled with a fantastic flotilla of eclectic objects; more whirligigs, giant rubber ducks, crystals, lily pads dot the waters.

A wide view of Giggenwhirl shows a grassy ring around a large clockwork sculpture seated on an enormous orbital gear. Several gears and sprockets appear to have sprung out of the scuplture. To either side and below the grassy ring, clock towers sit. In the distance, a large building surmounted by another clocktower stands with a rainbow behind it. I beaming smiley face composed of smoke floats in the sky to the left of the rainbow.

More than just whimsy, there’s lots of beauty to be found in Giggenwhirl. The power of the child’s imagination has created a realm of brightness, colour, balance, beauty, and peace. This is yet another place I could stay and relax in for days.

My descriptive text for this region is sparser even than usual. The unique vision that Giggenwhirl presents is honestly hard to describe. You really should see it if you can.

A columnar fountain with four spigots poring water into a round basin, in the center of which stands the column. The column and basin are made of pink stone. On top of the column is a set of nested spheres made from sweeping S shapes. At least three such spheres, of varying colour, can be seen one inside another. In the background, a pastel hued palm tree leans to the right and a flamingo whirligig stands. A barren tree to the right has a small cyan bird house on it.

And all around are little gems like this sculpture of nested spheres, which rotate providing an ever shifting view of the inset pieces. There is so much to see just in this one region!

Shops

Yes, this is a shopping region (and yes, I did get myself a whirligig, the hummingbird. And there’s a ladybird group gift).

  • Pete’s Peculiar Pieces (this looks like one of the region builder’s shops)
  • Love
  • Emmi’s Attic
  • Cygnet’s Dreams
  • Dreamland Designs
  • Evolving Images
  • Grumble
  • Unstable
  • Ever Green
  • Old World Fantasy
  • Kitty Creations
  • Kannor
  • Birth
  • Eclectic Stars
  • Jury Pop
  • The Little Bat
  • Schelm
  • The Crosstime Garage
  • Omise
  • Tardfish

Fantasy Faire 2023 – Giraphoria

On By altathiemenIn Second Life, SL EventsLeave a comment
A heavily tattooed woman with long white hair wearing a black belly dancing outfit stands at the left edge of the frame gazing to the right. Her left hand is raised almost to her face as if in thought. Cartoon like rocks and trees line the background.

Giraphoria is another arts & entertainment region. Here’s where you find the big stage.

SLURL: https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Giraphoria/25/82/78
Sponsor: The Lost Unicorn Gallery
Designers: Lilia Artis & Haveit Neox

On the left side of the image, a dozen or so giraffes, standing in a pyramid three high, reach for a distant Fantasy Faire glyph that floats high above the ground. In the center foreground, eight or nine giraffes swim in a lagoon bearing giant butterflies on wands. On the right, a cascade of water falls from a rocky height. There is a shipwreck at the top of the falls. On the deck of the wrecked ship stand several more giraffes.

But what you’ll really find here is, giraffes. Giraffes wandering the grounds. Giraffes swimming while holding up butterflies, gazing down from improbably placed shipwrecks, browsing art galleries. Giraffe heads bracket the entrances to bridges throughout the place. There is even a tower of giraffes standing on giraffes apparently trying to reach the Fantasy Faire glyph high above the ground.

A series of broken concrete wall segments hold several dozen pictures in heavy wooden frames. A blue bordered orange and gray path runs between the wall sections. Vari-coloured giraffes, some wireframe, appear to be browsing the artworks.

Descending from the landing point, there is an art walk where you can admire a number of 2-dimensional artworks. You will have to dodge around some other patrons, giraffes naturally.

There is one place here that is nearly giraffe free. If you walk down to the stage, and then turn and keep walking down into the water, you’ll find that you can stroll through the depths to a balcony overlooking some dancing octopus. There are other structures underwater as well including a couple gazebos and a cave with a dark octopus (whom I did not visit).

I don’t have any pictures to post of the underwater section because they all turned out rubbish. Don’t know what got into my picture taking routine then.

Tomorrow it’s back to the shopping regions starting with Giggenwhirl. Six regions left to explore in as many days. I can do this!

Fantasy Faire 2023 – Sambeaubee

On By altathiemenIn Second LifeLeave a comment
A woman with long white hair standing on a green lawn looks out over a beach and brown orange island. Green trees and orange arches can be seen in the background.

Another art and events region, Sambeaubee is where all the really big events like the masked ball take place.

SLURL: https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Sambeaubee/170/147/66
Sponsor: The Akipelago
Designers: Gidgette Adagio, Lilia Artis & Haveit Neox

A pair of pink flamingos sitting on a rock in the foreground kiss making a heart shape with their necks. Giraffes wander in green fields in the distance. In the far background, glass domed stone towers rise above some arches and trees.

Right at the start we have a beach, flamingos, and giraffes. How can this region lose?

In the foreground, a woman stands in a large stone gazebo. Stairs go up the hill behind it to a short stone tower with a glass dome.

As with Sipala, there’s no one route through this region. As you wander about you’ll find all kinds of special little spots, like this pair of gazebos/towers on the hill toward the north.

A long, stone paved way bordered by slim stone arches runs past a fountain where statue giraffes turn around on a hidden mechanism. In the far distance, a tower made of giraffes standing on one another rises high above the fairelands.

Sambeaubee is a transition region in terms of design. It starts out lush and green like Sipala but starts to transition to the much warmer tones of Giraphoria, which borders it on the other side, about midway through.

I missed the first masked ball, with luck I’ll be able to make the backup one and see this region in its full glory.

Fantasy Faire 2023 – Sipala

On By altathiemenIn Second LifeLeave a comment
A woman in a gray square necked gown stands in a grassy meadow with stone structures behind in the middle distance. A blue flowered path leads back and to the right to a set of over grown stone stairs.

Sipala is one of the few non-shopping regions in the fairelands. It is the home of Fantasy Faire Radio and the Live at the FaireChylde events. In short, a party region.

SLURL: https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Sipala/184/146/61
Sponsor: Melodic Effect
Designer: Gidgette Adagio

There are no designer’s notes or backstory for this region on the web page. So I’ll just have to make everything up!

A stone and glass bridge leads to a green shore. A series of free-standing stone arches, each about 30' tall, mark a blue flowered path that runs away from the viewer. On the left of the first arch is an ancient hardwood tree, fully leafed out. An evening sky with high clouds arches over the scene. Flying toward the arches, giant luminous cyan butterflies surround the foreground.

The first thing I notice is that butterflies are a thing here. Immediately on entering from Isles of Aquarius, I’m surrounded by giant luminous cyan butterflies. They’re making their way in the same direction I am, toward the path marked out by yet more free-standing stone arches. The butterflies are beautiful and eye catching. I wonder if there are equally large flowers around for them to feed on.

The second thing that strikes me is that this region may not have an explicit backstory, but it sure looks like it has history. These arches are all partly or mostly overgrown with vines. They look aged, as though they have stood here for hundreds of years. The pathways are smooth and well laid out, but are covered in vegetation, mostly blue flowers. Stone stairways have been built at steep places along the paths, but the land and plants have started to reclaim them. I wonder what the original purpose was for all these structures.

A flying wooden ship with a halo of triangular sails floats in the center of the view. The ship is white while its sails fade from bright orange and yellow at the top to cream at the bottom. Leafy patterns are printed into the sail fabric. Several avatars can just be made out dancing on the deck of the ship. Below , stone arches mark a pathway in a green landscape. Rocky islands float in the sky in the background.

The FaireChylde party ship is back this year. Follow the signs to FaireChylde. Climb the overgrown stone steps up to the ridge and follow it along to the boat. You can check the party schedule to see when a DJ will be rocking the ship.

A series of free-standing stone arches mark a blue flowered path that recedes in the left center of the view. A monarch butterfly with a wingspan of several feet clings to the right column of the nearest arch. A luminous blue-cyan butterfly, only slightly smaller, is perched on top of the arch. Another giant yellow and black butterfly can be seen a ways past the arch emerging from its chrysalis which is hanging from the branch of an ancient willow oak. Yet another huge butter fly is resting on top of an arch to the right. In the sky can be seen some floating boulders and a large floating rocky island in the upper-right.

Walking further along the path, toward what looks like an interesting collection of gazebos (I’m a sucker for a nice gazebo), follies, or some sort of large garden constructs, I begin to see that butterflies are more than just “a thing” here. They’re part of the theme of the whole place. (There are vendors near the main landing area where various butterflies can be purchased to support Relay for Life.)

A woman in a full, floor length gray gown stands in a green field dotted with blue flowers. Two heavy stone pillars are on either side of her. A series of tall, free-standing stone arches recedes into the distance. A stone stairway, partly covered by tree roots rises to the right in the background. Large old, hardwood trees are scattered about the landscape, mostly on the hilltops.

Unlike the shopping regions which have well defined paths that take you on a single route from an entrance to an exit, or from the main landing site to either exit, arts and entertainment regions are much more freeform. Numerous paths lead to lots of locations throughout the region. In some places you’ll find an assortment of vendors where you can buy butterflies and other items while supporting RFL. In others you’ll find gazebos, glass enclosed domed constructs like king sized summerhouses, seating areas for events. I ran across a cave that runs under a hill to emerge by another building where you can have a nice sit and contemplate the butterflies and landscape.

Love this region and its aged charm. It all has a elvish feel to it, what with the eternal late summer afternoon and the perfect spread of greenery and stonework. The only thing lacking is someplace to get some tea.

Fantasy Faire 2023 – Isles of Aquarius

On By altathiemenIn Second LifeLeave a comment
A woman with long white hair wearing a gold bikini rides a seahorse. She looks slightly off to her right from the left side of the frame. Behind her, sunken stone arches stand on the sea floor. Sea plants and grasses can be seen in the background.

I’m starting out today with something different. The Isles of Aquarius region is this year’s mer-region; everything in it is either in or very close to the sea.

SLURL: https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Isles%20of%20Aquarius/64/128/60
Sponsor: Safe Waters Foundation (appropriately enough)
Designers: EchoRayne Ayashi & Liz Corryong

The designers’ notes tell us that the shops and other structures we see were forged beneath the waves and have magically surfaced for the faire. They are still wet, and given all the sea spray around, are likely to remain so. The illumination from the orbs around the area bathe the region in life-force.

A lone tented stone archway stands in the foreground. A wet stone and glass path recedes to pass under another such arch in the distance. The way between them is lined with shops in smooth, wet stone buildings. In the foreground, a column supports a glowing orb that provides illumination. A wave has crashed against the walk throwing spray up in front of the viewer.

The shops and main path are above water, if only just. At the edge of the walkway, I can see there are but a few centimeters between the surface of the path and the sea. Even well along the path, there’s still plenty of sea spray. You might want to dress in bathing attire or waterproofs.

Signboards remind me that much of the region is below the waves, but for now I walk happily browsing the shops, looking in wonder at the gleaming, smooth, wet stone that everything is built from.

A rotating panel display sits on a wall amongst product vendors.

And what do I see in the first shop I peek into? They’re using one of my displays! 😊 As I’m sure I’ve mentioned before, and no doubt will again, I’m always tickled when I find somebody using one of my products. I just love the thought of contributing part of the world we’re all enjoying. Anyway, shout out to Hawkers House! Thanks for such a great use of the display!

Another lone, tented stone arch stands in the foreground. Through it can be seen in the distance, a very large sculpture of a hand grasping upward. Nearly in its grasp is a large glowing orb. Mer-horse statues rest on walkways to either side of the arch. Likewise, columns supporting smaller glowing orbs sit by the mer-horses.

As I round the back of the shops walk, I get a good view of the above surface source of much of the Prana shining across the region. What happens if and when the hand reaches and seizes the orb? Will everything sink below the waves again? Or has the hand just released the shining sphere?

Looking from under water, a set of stone stairs descends from the surface. At the fifth step, the stairway begins to come apart. Each successive step sags further until they come apart entirely in a cascade of paving stones. Spirals of blue white and a cloud of glowing points surround the collapsing stairs. In the distance on the left is a submerged, round stone temple.

As several signs along the shops walk say, much of the region is under water. Getting there is all to easy. Just walk through any of the lone stone arches and you will find yourself on a descending stairway… briefly. Just a few steps down — and they’re big steps — the treads begin to cant forward. Just a little further and the stairs fail entirely. You arrive at the bottom by the simple expedient of falling there!

This is the heart of the region. There are many areas to explore down here and I have so far had time only for a very few. In the center is a submerged stone temple where information about the Safe Waters Foundation and its partners can be found. Just follow the stone arches, can’t miss it.

A woman with long white hair and wearing a gold bikini rides a red and yellow seahorse. She looks to her right into a grotto of white stone inside which is a floating, glowing orb.

Off to the side is what looks like a white stone grotto with something glowing in it. Drifting over I notice that this in fact the base of the giant hand that rises above the surface to grasp the largest of the glowing orbs up there. Here at the base is a much smaller such orb, right at the heart of the root of the arm. I wonder, what is the relationship between the two orbs?

It’s look but don’t touch. I can’t get closer than this to it. Probably for the best.

Shops

Of course this is a shopping region! (As my L$ balance can tell you.) Shops I found along the way:

  • Hawkers House
  • Muu
  • Mer Made
  • Soleil et Lune
  • Birchteeth
  • Midnight Diva
  • Jade Dreams
  • SR Design
  • Boudoir
  • Venge
  • Antaya/Misteria
  • Living the FantaSea
  • atame
  • Fantasy Pixels
  • Lily of the Sea
  • Lenore/The Needle
  • Tonkati Head
  • MPP
  • Since1975
  • So Silly
  • Second Moon