We need a
renaissance of wonder. We need to renew, in our hearts and in our souls, the
deathless dream, the eternal poetry, the perennial sense that life is miracle
and magic.
E
Merrill Root
With the year coming to an end, I’m out and about trying to
visit places in Second Life (SL) that like Cinderella’s proverbial coach will
turn into a pumpkin by the end of the year.
So, I’m rushing to visit these before the clock strikes twelve.
One of my favorites is the Renaissance Hunt and Faire which is currently in its second go
round. I visited
earlier this year with Perryn
Peterson ,
the creative and managerial force behind the event but haven’t been back to
look around since its opening on December 1st.
I TP into the landing zone to find only two people
about. (This may have something to do
with the fact that it’s before 2AM SLT on a Sunday morning.) One of the visitors is here for the first
time and I assist her in getting started.
(I actually add value without breaking anything, Significant Other would
be impressed.)
I pass
through the hunters’ reception area and the gate to enter the Faire proper. I find that a lot has happened since my prior
visit. The merchants have really come
out in force and as I look down the merchants’ lane I see that all the shops
and booths are occupied and bursting to the seams with all sorts of period
merchandise.
When I
walk over to the gypsy encampment, I find that there is now a fortune
teller! (On my last visit, there hadn’t
been one. What’s a gypsy encampment
without a fortune teller?) However, I
can’t tell if Madame Zora the Mystic is real or just a prop. No one is about, there is no contact
information and I can find nothing about her in Search. Still, it’s the thought that counts.
At the
food pavilion, several sides of beef are slowly turning on spits over low
fires. I can almost smell the meat and
the burning wood. (One of these days,
I’ll have to write a story about the five senses inworld.)
Not having human company about (Can I even say that in a
virtual world?) to distract me, I notice the landscaping for the Faire and have
a better appreciation for it. Unlike
many sims where a couple trees are dropped in, some bushes stick out, and the
flat ground is colored green to simulate grass.
Perryn and his partner Mike, who also run a landscaping business inworld,
have done an exceptional job. (Definitely
check these guys out if you’re thinking of having any work done.)
Trees with seasonal coloring are grouped together in copses. Bushes, grasses (individual blades no less),
and flower beds are carefully sited to give the effect of a Renaissance
countryside. Other natural landmarks
like brooks and marshes (I find this the latter when I fall into it.)
I walk back to the sign post near the entrance to the Faire and go back
home. The Faire is a wonderful
experience and shows the sense of community and creative skills that make SL a
special place. I recommend all to try
and drop by before December 31st to visit, see and maybe buy the
merchants’ wares, and participate in the mini-hunt which is being run along
with the Faire. I promise that you won’t
be disappointed!
If you have the time I also suggest that you drop by to visit Perryn’s A Christmas Carol which will also close on December 31st.
Below are links to a few pictures from the Faire. They give a sense of what they’re like. But you really have to see and experience
them for yourselves.
As always, I’m grateful to
all for their kindness and time in stopping to talk with a stranger who was
passing through their lives.
I welcome feedback from
readers, please either comment on my blog or
e-mail me at webspelunker@gmail.com
.
If you would like to read about my other adventures in Second Life please click here.
If you would like to read about my other adventures in Second Life please click here.
Photo No. 6 Merchants’
Lane
Photo No. 7 Fortune
Teller
Photo No. 8 Gypsy
Horse Enclosure
Photo No. 9 Side
of Beef
Photo No. 10 Landscaping
I
Photo No. 11 Landscaping
II
Photo No. 12 Landscaping
III
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