"Red Hot Mama, You're The One I Need"

In the center of the Volcanic Island Sims of Sansara sits the towering peak of Mt. G'al, the largest of the many volcanos in the area, and the one I've often heard referred to as the "fickle, palindromic goddess of Second Life". Before visiting, know that this volcano is deadly, and jumping into it will "kill" you and send you home. The landmark I've provided places you high on the outer cone (you can see me standing there in the photo below) but be careful not to lose your footing after you land!

However, for those adventurous sorts among you, there is a way to enter the volcano and not die. Scan down into the lava until you spot the white platform and clear tube pictured below, and port onto the platform. Walk through the tube, and into the opening in the rock wall. Take a deep breath, be brave, and step into the large hole in front of you.

After falling, you will land in a cave filled with curious machinery (see photo below). Are the moles of the Linden Department of Public Works (LDPW) using the volcano as a hidden power source? Crazy Mole seems to have left a few clues behind...

The area surrounding the volcano contains a number of strange and interesting builds, including three iconic floating islands tethered by great chains to the earth, an ancient infohub, a giant Atlas-like figure holding up a palace, a large fairy forest surrounded by waterfalls, a space shuttle crashed into the mountainside, lava goddesses (see photo below), an extremely fun UFO rezzing platform, and the Temple of L'ag ("FOR it is written in the lava, "Lag is Life" and so lag shall we"). Unsurprisingly, the region is very laggy, but still well worth a visit.

Historically, it appears, avatars have been sacrificed to this volcano goddess in order to reduce lag and other grid-wide issues. Some have even taken to sacrificing themselves! So, what do you think? Will you do your part for the health of the Grid? Of course you will. Be brave, stand strong, then take a flying leap into Mt. G'al!

"I've got a girl, a wonderful girl
She's the sweetest one in town
You can search for miles around
But no one can be found like this one

Red Hot Mama, you're the one I need!" 

"Red Hot Mama" by the Brox Sisters, 1924

The Moth Temple of Iris

At the center of the Inner Delta of Heterocera sits the impressive Moth Temple of Iris. The first telehub on that continent (and still an incredibly busy place today!) the Temple (pictured below) is a delicate but towering wooden structure designed by Xenon Linden. Almost all of the sims in Heterocera are named after species of moths; the continent itself is named for the sub-species of insect by which moths are categorized. You can find these lovely little creatures all over the Moth Temple, including fluttering around the lamps that line the boardwalk surrounding it at dusk.

The area surrounding the temple is owned by Prokofy Neva's Second Life Public Land Preserve, and is a resident-designed infohub modeled on a fishing village, created by builder Jessica Ornitz. The boardwalks of the infohub are lined by charming huts, which, according to Prokofy, contain "freebies, dollarbies, things to explore, meditation, games, etc. There is also a little tutorial about how to start a business in SL. I try to have my sims being sort of 'second tier' tutorials after the basic newbie stuff that they have on Caledon." Wandering around, visitors can find a great deal of information which will be especially helpful to new residents: hints on reducing lag, tips on how to stop animations, even some very cool random LM generators to help you find new places to explore. There is a set of free moth wings hanging from a lamppost (the ones which were used in Osprey Therian's memorial), and if you look for the red moth lanterns hanging from the lampposts near the wings, they are also free.

Build is on in part of the infohub, so I capitalized on the moth theme and rezzed one of my very favorite vehicles, the Lepidoptera, pictured above and below.This fabulous flying machine, modeled after a James Gurney illustration and created by resident bunnys Fride, is free on the marketplace here. It can handle a pilot and 11 passengers, and is incredibly easy to fly. A wonderful way to take in the sights around the Moth Temple...and on the Moth Continent of Heterocera!

The Great City of Nautilus

Between Corsica to the North and Satori to the South lies the Mainland continent of Nautilus. Directly to the East of Nautilus is the Blake Sea, a continent of private sims. Travel between all four of these continents is possible by sea, which makes both Nautilus and the Blake Sea prime sailing destinations. Today, let's grab a free sailboat from Barbarossa Island in the Blake Sea (one which also happens to have an airport arrow and beacon on it!) and sail due West towards the entrance to Nautilus City.

Moving towards the shore, you will spot a great channel leading inland (photo above). To the left of the channel is a large structure called The Pharos, a temple decorated with dolphins and guarded by a statue of Hydraea, Goddess of the Sea. Immediately off the shoreline is a small statue of a dolphin. You used to be able to rez a rideable dolphin here. Now, if you click on the statue, you'll receive a folder containing a dolphin, a sailing chart for the Blake Sea, and some old maps of Nautilus.

Sailing in towards the City, you can stop at several interesting points along the way. To your left, you'll spot a large park that takes up two entire sims and includes a pond, a pool and a giant chess set. To your right, you can explore the crash site of Magellan Linden's "atomic boring machine" (photo below). If you walk up the hill behind the crash site, you'll find a small bench with one of the loveliest views on the Mainland. 

Like Bay City (my home away from home on the Grid, about which I'll write soon!), Nautilus properties are double prim. If you can afford the prices and decide to build here, make sure to visit The Market (photo below), where you can pick up textures and entire houses to fit in with the theme. Step inside the large, open air building to find these free items, tucked into crates and large jars.

Next to the market you can wander through a lovely old shipyard, and traveling further inland, you might come across a strange, maze-like palace, empty but for a round tub on the second floor, and a temple (photo below) which sits perched on the edge of the central pool in the Citadel. Inside the temple sits a glowing crystal, and other large crystals can be found throughout Nautilus City. The temple site itself is damage-enabled, although I've not yet discovered any dangers inside. However, explorers with keen eyes might discover an escape route leading back down into the central pool, just in case those dangers ever do appear.

Small details are often the most interesting part of investigating new places. The photo below highlights some details of Nautilus City - the bright blue wall covering in one room of the empty palace, a face that looks out over the great chamber in the temple of the Citadel, and bright red jars decorated with a familiar figure, complete with proudly-displayed prim and bejeweled codpiece. A few of those red jars contain free houses, but some are simply the jars themselves, in case one wants a souvenir of Philip to take home. 

Sometimes, don'tcha know, a jar is just a jar.