London--Knightsbridge, Kensington, Mayfair, Hyde Park and Westminster/ Camden, West End and Soho

I was recently cleaning up my massive inventory, trying to impose some control, when I was inspired to investigate some of my many LMs.  It seemed to be a good idea to revisit a few landmarks from my earliest days in SL, see if anything had changed, see if anything new and interesting was happening,  For as long as that idea may hold some interest for me, I suppose I will devote a few posts to it.  When I first came to SL, the idea of living in a virtual London seemed to be a ready-made fantasy for my new virtual life.  Since that first time so many years ago,  the London sims do seem to have grown a few more regions.  In addition to the landing hub at Hyde Park, there are shopping and residential areas on Kensington, Knightsbridge, Mayfair and Westminster.  Tonight, I did actually find a few people hanging out around the Hyde Park hub, but what I would really like to see are some events, and especially some events with flavor!  It is pretty, and it seems visually faithful, at least to some of the architecture, so maybe it's just the time difference that explains why it still seems so empty on this particular visit. To the credit of the estate managers and builders of the sim, the Hyde Park sim is set up as an orientation space, and it is a fairly attractive and useful place for new avatars to practice moving in virtual space.  As to considering renting a first apartment there, it sounds like a wonderful fantasy, and perhaps as good a place as any to start.  Surfing the Web, I find out that Camden, West End and Soho regions have been added recently to also represent the metropolis that some still consider the center of the world, and that many events have been sponsored, including recent parties for Christmas and New Year's Eve and a Holiday Hunt.  I'm not sure that the sims are owned and managed by the same people (probably not), but Mainland London has its own blog http://mainlandlondon.blogspot.com/p/london-soho.html

and very detailed information for orientation at its landing hub.  Although the Underground entrance does not lead to a working train, the curious explorer will find some free outfits for clubbing, another plus for newbies, both male and female.  (And I was also pleased to see those women's fashions modeled by an attractive brown-skinned Lizzi Klaar!) I suppose that if SL is truly going to live up to its potential as an inclusive place and immersive experience, it is up to us as residents to occasionally step outside of our comfort zones and regular hangouts to find those new places, experiences and people!  Mainland London is in the Destination Guide, so check it out!

Images of New Orleans Musicians

The Art on the Horizon Gallery at Blue Horizon is featuring a show by artist Theresa Jones with her paintings of New Orleans musicians in French Quarter scenes.  Although the RL art cards that were advertised for sale do not seem to be available any longer, you can still purchase the individual images for your SL home or purchase a catalog of the gallery's show.  The collection includes 20 pieces; some of the titles include "Mama Singing Out," "Doreen on the Clarinet," "Sax at Fritzel's," and "Blues Charmer."  Her vibrant colors and rich textures capture some of the energy of contemporary New Orleans Jazz, as her subjects reveal the creativity and dignity of the many street musicians who perform in the French Quarter.  The artists pay tribute to the traditions of music so important in New Orleans history:  the benevolent societies and social clubs of the nineteenth century sponsored brass marching bands that continue to second line at funerals today; in the twenty-first century, the blue notes and syncopated rhythms of saxophones and trombones reverberate along the same streets where jazz was first created in the twentieth.  They are not simply making a living entertaining the Crescent City's tourists; they express the strong spirit and deep cultural roots that allow the city's residents to survive and endure as they continue to recover from Katrina. http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Blue%20Horizon/200/161/27