Sous les Oliviers

Sous les Oliviers introduction: 

As the theme of Tuscany, Sous les Oliviers is a place to relax, explore or simply admire the view, Sous les Oliviers is the ideal retreat. Every nook and cranny is designed to offer you an immersive and soothing experience, away from the hustle and bustle.

 After landing, I could see the resemblance and the inspiration of Tuscany in the design of the sim.  Ely, who was the designer of the sim, did capture the essence and beauty of Tuscany in the different areas, with the beautiful architecture of the buildings around the landscape, to the actual landscape throughout the sim.  I could almost smell the tantalizing and mouthwatering smells coming from the market, once more; which is how amazingly well Ely did with this build.

This sim is wonderful for exploring, fantastic for photography, and the serene and tranquil atmosphere that I found here, is amazing for just relaxing in.  

If you do take photos here, Sous les Oliviers does have their own flickr group, so please feel free to share.

For Old Times sake - Auld Lang Syne

One of the things I love about the grid is the places that are inspired by real places in real life, like Auld Lang Syne.  Created by Eloise Blake and inspired by parts of Shetland, Orkney and the Hebrides, she has brought some parts of Scotland to the grid.

Aptly named Auld Lang Syne, a song which was submitted to the Scots Musical Museum by the Scottish poet, Robert Burns, who claimed the words were taken from an old man's singing.  The lyric's in the Scottish version is about good friends sitting down together and recalling adventures and memories of long ago.

I've tried several times to come up with a description of what you will find but I have to admit, like Scotland, it's hard to describe.  You will find rough terrain and soft gentle spots to rest your feet, which is Scotland.  It's a land of contrasts, with harsh and weathered cliffs that the sea beats on it, day-to-day, and then the soft gentle moors, with the heather sweetening up the air and enchanting you as you walk by it.  And yes, that is what Eloise pulled into SL, the whole atmosphere that makes Scotland such an amazing and beautiful land.  With that said, I think in ending, I will just leave you with the Scottish version of Auld Lang Syne.

Should auld acquaintance be forgot, 
And never brought to mind?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot, 
And auld lang syne?

(Chorus)
For auld lang syne, my jo,
For auld lang syne, 
We'll tak a cup o' kindness yet, 
For auld lang syne.

And surely ye'll be your pint-stowp!
And surely I'll be mine!
And we'll tak a cup o' kindness yet, 
For auld land syne.

We twa hae run about the braes
And pu'd the gowans fine; 
But we've wander'd mony a weary foot
Sin auld lang syne.

We twa hae paidl'd i' the burn, 
Frae mornin' sun till dine;
But seas between us braid hae roar'd 
Sin auld lang syne.

And there's a hand, my trusty fiere!
And gie's a hand o' thine!
And we'll tak a right guid willy waught, 
For auld lang syne.

Credit:
Lyrics and information obtained at Encyclopedia Britannica

The Haunting of Hill Valley

The Haunting of Hill Valley is a fairly interesting build.  It is owned by Cinn Morigi (cinnamonmousse) & Syler Avon (jaiden.nexen), who are the owners of GTFO (Get the Freight out), which I had blogged about previously. 
The Haunting of Hill Valley is located on the Basenville region in the Satori continent, right off of Route 8.  It is a really cool build because Hill Valley is an actual neighborhood, that is located in the next two regions, one with homes and the other region contains townhouses, along with the GTFO HQ.  In the Haunted section, you can click on a bike rezzer and take a little ride around the neighborhoods, right up to the board walk and their store plaza area. 
I really could go on and on about what is there, since there was so much to see.  For the Haunted area, you have a large haunted mansion to explore, a smaller witches house with all the trimmings, a large and small graveyard, along with a haunted gazebo that has dancing ghosts around it. 
Chatting with one of the owners, this is an area that they plan on doing many things with.  They are on the Top SL Haunted Places tour and hunt and they are in the Destination Guide as well, for this season.  This is basically their Event/Display area, which will be changing with the seasons and the different holidays, so this is a place to keep your eyes on. 
The land is rated moderate and a little heads up that the neighborhoods contain rentals, the beach houses, homes, and townhouses.

**A little side notes: While blogging these areas and since I'm a major Halloween fan, I decided I would show off the costumes I like to wear while I'm working on these areas.  The costume I'm wearing is called the Georgina Outfit, from AFI Designs.  It comes with a hat, hair, jacket, jeans, boots, and the balloon, which has the holding pose in it.  It is really super cute on and I was having a blast wearing it while I was doing my landscape photography.  Check AFI Designs out for more Halloween costumes as well.  She has some really great ideas and selection to choose from.

 **WL used was by Jay Battlescare - Special Deco 4.0 (1)

A Love Letter to Mimmo

I admit I did mull over the title for a bit before I came to realize that I had fallen in love with this breathtakingly beautiful region.  As a photographer, I have seen many beautiful and creative places.  Each one that I have visited and posted about, took my breath away in some way, be it visually, emotionally, and/or spiritually.  Mimmo, to me, is a dedication to photographers and their photography.  Everywhere I looked, there was a photo opportunity waiting for you to click your camera and capture it.
Mimmo is owned by Eli Cord (Elise Sirnah), who is a talented photographer herself.  Her gallery shows her work off, giving examples from Mimmo itself, of beautiful works of art.  If you are wondering what Mimmo means, it's an Italian term of endearment for a child or baby, and you can see, this is her baby.  Every inch of the land is done with love and dedication for photography, from the stream that runs through the entire region to the soft rolling hills and the mountains.  You are invited to rest and relax, allowing you to let your creativity loose on the beautiful landscape.
For photographers who need to rezz, there is a group available to join, just remember to clean up after yourself when you are done.  There is also a Flickr group that you can join, to submit your work to, as well.
For once, I find that I just don't have enough words to describe this amazing place, so instead, I think I'll let my work show you.  My only hope is that I did Mimmo justice in my photos.

If you don't already know it, Jay T Muir updated and released a large pack of wl's that he had available in his blog for free.  He now has it packaged all together, so there is 26 wl's in one pack.  Most of my photos were taken with his wl's here, with the exception of the last one with the painting on the easel, which was taken with Ambient Realism.  The link is to his FB page, just scroll down a little way and you will find the post where he released them along with the download link.

Ville de Coeur

One of the things I have found to be inspiring is individuals creativity and the ability to bring real-life places, into Second Life.  People have recreated or been inspired by real-life places, building them on amazing, scenic regions and bringing them to life with their creativity.  Ville de Coeur is one of those places in Second Life.  It covers 7 regions, each one showing off the creativity and talent of its owners, Bedrick Panacek-Guisse(Bedrick Panacek) & Ayla Panacek-Guisse (Ayla Guisse).

Places like Ville de Colmar, Cote d'Azur in France, and Chateauneuf-en-Axios in Bourgogne, France, have been used as inspirations for creating this amazing network of regions. You will find beautiful villages dotting the rural landscapes, with little quaint shops and homes, tucked in between the mills, hills, and canals.

As you walk or drive through each region, you can see that everything has been built with an amazing eye for detail, with each region seamlessly connecting to the other region.  Whether you do the walking tour, ride in a carriage, or take the trolley tour, the experience is smooth and beautiful to behold.  If you don't want to use those methods of travel, there are bicycles and horses that you can borrow, where you can ride the many horse trails or ride your bike down the many roads and pathways that you will find in each region.  No matter which method of transportation you decide to go with, you will be offered a cornucopia of scenic views to enjoy along the way.

Ville de Coeur is also very active.  They hold events, dances, get-togethers; along with having rentals for both residents and shop owners.  The list is long, on the many things you can do and interact with.  The people who live here are warm and friendly, as are the owners of this amazing place.

I visited the different regions and took a sampling of photos, to give an idea of what awaits you at Ville de Coeur.  I hope you enjoy them as much as I enjoyed taking them.

Edit:  I noted this after writing the article that Ville de Coeur also has a Flickr group for their regions.  If you take photos, please consider adding them to their group and sharing with them your experience there.

Petit Lac Des Cygnes

Petit Lac Des Cygnes, which means Little Swan Lake in English, is inspired by the Southwest French countryside, near the foothills of the Pyrenees mountain range, according to the introductory notecard you receive, upon entering the sim.  It is the private home of Cougar Sangria & Henry McAuley, who have graciously opened their home to the public, Wednesday - Sunday.
There are several areas that you can visit on the sim.  There is a quaint cafe, a private dining area called Antoinette's, a maze, the L'Orangerie, and a swimming pool.  The Chateau that you will see on the land is the owners private home, which is not a public area, but with all the things to see and experience, you will be kept quite busy.
There is a group, with a small 25L fee to join, if you need to rezz something for photos, with only the small request to clean up after yourselves.
They do have a 75 script limit and a 200,000 complexity limit active there, so please keep that in mind when visiting and sex is prohibited.
They also have a Flickr group that you can join so you can share with them any photos that you may take of the sim. 
There are many areas for some fantastic photo opportunities.  The landscaping is incredibly detailed and well thought out and the feel is both rustic and quaint, at the same time.  A lot of love, time, and effort was put into the creation of this sim and it's obvious in the amount of detail that you will see here.

Up, Up, and Away!

The airplane stays up because it doesn't have the time to fall. Orville Wright

It's been a while since I had a chance to write in my blog.  Life likes to throw you some busy periods and I have had a long stretch of one.  Since I have had a little more time, I have been keeping myself busy finding some new and interesting things to do and see.  Through some friends, I was introduced to two amazing groups, GTFO(Get the Freight Out!) and Drivers of SL.

Through these groups, I have been exposed to some wonderful places on the mainlands, like Aniak Airfield.  While there, I was able to take some photos of the decorative skills of Syler Avon & Rurua, who are responsible for the amazing look and feel of Aniak Airfield, which is owned by Cinn Bouchard, the owner of the wonderful GTFO game.

The airfield is a fully functioning airfield, where you will see planes coming and going.  They have a monthly competition going on for the pilots, the Flyer of the Month and a system that is unique to their airfield, called a STOL runway landing sensor, which measures the accuracy of landings and take-offs.

As for the setup, the whole area is set up with a quaint rustic, vintage-style of feel to it.  All of it is tastefully done, including their little rental homes and parking/storage areas for your planes.  The entire airfield is not just well thought out but wonderfully put together, so there is consistency through the entire area.

For photographers, this is a fantastic area for vintage style photos and if you need to use a pose stand, you are able to do so here.  *Remember to clean up after you are done and keep in mind, there is active planes coming and going in this airfield.*

The Ippos Collective: Nymphai

This is the 3rd installment of the Ippos Collective, the Nymphai sim.  The best way to describe this sim is to think of an old town charm, with rustic cabins and campsites through it, along with corner stores to add charm and appeal and dirt paths to wander down.  There are areas where campers can gather together, to catch up and enjoy each others company, along with a landscaping that begs to be seen.  They have a corral for horses, so if you are a horse enthusiast, they are set up for you very well and pets are allowed here. This sim is set up for you to literally walk around it and is connected to the other sims, so if you are on a horse, you have a wonderful ride ahead of you here.
There are residents here as well, so heavy emphasis on respecting their areas is a must and is also home to 2 larger events, The Secret Affair and Enchantment.

**I went to visit the last of the 4 sims and was going to do a post on it as well, but realized after I landed, it is even more residential than any of the other sims.  I am uncertain on how open it really is so I will not be doing a post on that one, due to privacy concerns.**

The Ippos Collective: Ippos

This is the 2nd sim, in the Ippos Collective, the Ippos sim itself.  Filled with idyllic views of amazing forests, beautiful paths to follow, and plenty of open spaces to enjoy, it's home to quite a few SL photographers, according to the Ippos website. 
The whole sim is in full autumn bloom, with falls palette painting your view with vibrant colors and amazing opportunities for photos.  Each area is filled with wonderful discoveries, each one was done with a very critical eye for the most minute detail. 
As mentioned, there are residents on this sim, so respect to the residents is emphasized, which is understandable.

The Ippos Collective: Pegasoi

While looking through lm's and different links from friends, I came across a link called the Ippos Collective.  I had not heard of it before so I popped over to see for myself what I would find.

At this time of the year, I am normally looking for fall/Halloween style sims and on Pegasoi, which is where I landed, I found a small section with some fall, with the remaining portion of the sim in an amazing fantasy landscape style.  Impressive is a good word to describe Pegasoi, since it is done in a manner that gives you a visual feel of being somewhere quite ethereal.

Normally, before I start clicking photos, I do research on the sims.  I find out what inspired them, how things are set up and basically get a general feel for the sim.  I'll be honest, Pegasoi was so pretty, I just started clicking away happily and found out later that there is not 1, but 4 sims to enjoy, hence the "Collective" part of their name.

Due to the fact that each sim is amazing in its own right, I will be doing 4 separate posts for the Ippos Collective.  Pegasoi is the first of the series.

As you can see, there are areas where the season is reflected on this sim.