Join the Treasure Hunt at Saminaka!

My friend Tamsin has been very busy adding new amusements and displays at Saminaka, Nigeria in SL. To celebrate the creation of an interactive exhibit on animal life in Nigeria, a Treasure Hunt started yesterday. This is one hunt that has its own unique and culturally appropriate touch, because she had a scripter make calabashes the participants wear on their heads to show they are participating in the hunt. As you make your way around the sim (balancing your calabash carefully, of course), bright, juicy oranges holding a variety of prizes accumulate in the calabash as you find the 20 markers which are set out in and around the new exhibit. Clues are contained in the slideshow exhibit itself; come by and get yours! And before you even begin the hunt, Tamsin has some generous gifts waiting for you in the hut right at the landing point at http://slurl.com/secondlife/Saminaka/79/61/30 to make all visitors feel right at home. When your calabash is towering full of oranges, you should return to the starting point to collect a grand prize! I learned how much the flora, fauna and geography of Nigeria resembles some of what I grew up with around the Gulf Coast, so I did feel right at home. More importantly, contrary to all those Tarzan and other fake Hollywood movies, THERE ARE NO TIGERS IN AFRICA! In addition, today Tamsin is launching The Saminaka Compass, a virtual weekly newspaper for the Diasporic community in SL. If you go to http://saminaka.blogspot.com/, you can catch up on all the events at Saminaka, and also learn even more about RL Nigerian culture, with direct links to YouTube videos about Nigeria, news stories from the Web about Nigeria, and some photos (that I expect will become a slideshow over time). And to top it all off, this coming weekend, on June 13, Tamsin has planned a Remembrance for the Ancestors ceremony. She invites everyone to participate in the experience honoring those who were forced to take the Middle Passage. From Saminaka, take on the role of an African from the past who survived that painful journey from the continent, losing your people, identity and culture; as you arrive at the beach, you will reach America, the New World, the place where a new life, a new identity and culture has been forged. That new life of creativity and struggle will be symbolized by a live ceremony of drumming, libation and prayer to be held at Sunrise Mansion 12 SLT, also beginnining on June 13. Go to Safe Haven Landing, Isla del Estrella (219, 15, 21),( http://slurl.com/secondlife/Saminaka/94/69/30 ). Tamsin suggests to all participants that if they wish to immerse themselves in the whole experience, they should arrive at Saminaka at 11:15, going directly to the Remembrance NIGERIA IN AFRICA starting point, Saminaka (50, 90, 28), ( http://slurl.com/secondlife/Saminaka/94/69/30 ). I'm looking forward to this event, and I hope everyone will come out to be a part of the African Diaspora in SL!