Safari goes from Expo to Arthur

In 1889, Mark Twain wrote a novel about a Connecticut Yankee who falls asleep and wakes up to find himself transported back through history to a time where the clothes, the rules, and the technology are all vastly different from what he is used to. A great adventure, new friendships and challenges ensue... much like opensim, then. This week we went to two places where big plans for the future are coming to fruition, you should definitely visit and get involved... HG Addresses at the end of the post as always.

           First up, we went over to HIE grid, with a presentation and a concert by Whirli Placebo. Whirli is a talented musician... but what is HIE?

           HIE stands for Hypergrid International Expo,  a multi language opensim conference which will be held on the weekend of December 16 and 17 this year. Here is HIE's website.

            The idea for this expo came out of the Opensim Community Conference, which is held December 9 and 10 this year. The OSCC has for several year been a great way for the community to tell its story, for individuals and grids to gain more visibility, and for the technical future of opensim to be discussed, explained, and explored.
           The OSCC sessions are all in English, and while many inhabitants of opensim can more or less understand the language, English is not their first language. So where can these creative and imaginative people make a presentation in their own language? At the HIE, a unique opportunity for German, Spanish, French and Italian speakers to come forward and tell us about their ideas.

The great Whirli Placebo

           The Safari met on HIE grid's Welcome region, and Whirli gave us a great set of covers and original songs, magical stuff that warms your bones and dances lightly across your heart with just a touch of melancholy.

            On this region, there are 5 trees and 5 signs, in the 5 languages of the event. You can join the group for your Language. Each talk will have 'subtitles' - so if you don't speak German for example, you'll be able to follow the gist of the talk in English, Italian etc.

Expo Booth. Add your artwork, web page, and some free gifts

       You will find Notecards here with information about the Expo, also how to get an Expo Booth (available to both Speakers and audience members) and of course the gates to the auditorium...

Auditorium

 .... which is 4 regions, with the stage and the chairs positioned at the intersection, allowing for a goodly number of attendees, so tell your friends!
        The Auditorium build is by Mal Burns and Arielle Delamerlibre. Chairs around tables gives the build an 'Award Night' look.
          I made the HIE tree. It's meant to be symbolic, the trunk represents t=where most of us came from, SL, while the branches represent the many grids of opensim, each going their own way, and the cloud of foliage is where we all come together as a community.
          Sunday is the deadline for applying to be a presenter at the HIE. If you haven't already done so, please read the information on this page of the website, presentations in German Italian, SPanish and French only will be accepted, you can also apply to be a translator, and your participation is very welcome!

          Our second destination was at the Seanchai Library (also on Facebook!)on Kitely, to meet the lovely Caledonia Skytower. Seanchai is present in SL, where it started, and also in Inworldz and of course the Kitely outpost is accessible via hypergridding from the hundreds of opensim grids.
          Caledonia had invited us over to hear a reading from A Connecticut Yankee at King Arthur's Court, on the new build 'The Citadel' a great build, based on a Cuteulala Artis'  .oar (I think you can find it free on outworldz.com) and then enriched by Shandon Loring, who is also the resident Wizard of Tech at the Seanchai.

          The reading was from the opening chapter of the book, where Hank Morgan finds himself inexplicably having travelled in time, and obliged to try to make sense of his new surroundings and the people who both challenge and befriend him, was perfect for the setting and as always Caledonia brought the words to life even for those of us who struggle to understand spoken English. 

           After exploring The Citadel, we had the opportunity to go see a little more this wonderful set of regions. Westworld,  Winterworld, Spaceworld, Arabianworld, Celticworld, Octoberworld,  (I feel a theme coming on) Medievalworld, Vikingworld, Swampworld, Christmas Island, and Explore Seanchai, a region we've often visited on Safari to see the literary builds there. The Seanchai regions have enough beautiful landscapes and atmospheric gems to keep you entertained for a week or more, so make sure you landmark the arrival region Seanchai so that you can keep portal-hopping. But don't neglect the main region's attractions.
       The sim boasts an exciting volcano (try not to fall in), and Fallingwater, a wonderfully photogenic recreation of Frank Lloyd Wright's iconic piece of architecture.  

            These regions would be in my top 10 places to bring anyone who tells you 'there's not much going on in opensim', for they are not only fascinating 3d environments, but also part of a wider purpose and a multi-faceted fund of talent. make sure you bookmark the Seanchai Library Blog, it shows all the ongoing and upcoming events, including Dickens and Macbeth, to name just two...

HG Safari

HIE grid                             hie.ddnss.org:8006
Seanchai Library in Kitely     grid.kitely.com:8002:seanchai