A Red Safari

 Our first stop on this week's trip was to Red Square, in Moscow, on the russian language grid Spacegrid -  our first ever trip there, and since opensim is all about bumpy rides to exotic places, surprises were in store. The HG Address is of course, at the end of the post.

Prodyck is dressed for anything - including tourism!

The grid regularly hosts big dance events not only for locals but with many hypergrid residents, but this time, about half of our group couldn't make it due to that 'Unable to Verify ' message - probably some incompatibility somewhere in the system, though to be fair, opensim has been kind of weird for some days, especially with textures. 

Still, about 8 of us managed to get over there, to meet up with about a dozen locals who all came out to make us feel at home. The choice of Moscow, among all the sims the grid has to offer, was a no-brainer - the architecture is iconic !
Our guide was Igor Nygma and he did a great job considering that this was our fist ever Safari here, and there is a little bit of a language gap that gets even wider when you throw in the difference between the Cyrillic alphabet and the Western that can really make one feel far from home. The spirit of this grid is welcoming, the idea is to create a warm atmosphere, where people chat about life, but avoid getting into issues like politics and religion, which is the best way avoid drama these days - and probably has been, since the dawn of time.

Thirza Ember: hello - wow lots of people
Thirza Ember [en→ru]: привет - вау много людей
Lady Capone: ★☺ Привет ☺ ★
Artem Djindjik: привет
Alex Salamander: Hello
Forest Azure: hello :)
Igor Nygma [ru→en]: Welcome to everyone
Lark Fast: Hello all))) Welcome!
Lenny Love: Hello and welcome :)
Lu Leya: Hello
Orli Liori: hello
Igor Nygma [ru→en]: Alas, we have some problems with attendance
Thirza Ember: some are having difficulties getting here, it seems like this day is not a very good one for opensim internet connections
Our hosts were really funny cracking jokes about translations, but soon Igor got the event going with a few words of history.
Igor Nygma [ru→en]: And so start... you are welcomed by the largest Russian -speaking grid. You can see our board with TP. Over 200 regions are on our grid. Your attention is offered shops, clubs, places for relaxation.

Igor stands by the big TP board

James Atlloud: oh wow
Igor Nygma [ru→en]: All our public places are open to visits, we have a beautiful and modern grid. Great team of builders and creators.
Thirza Ember: how many residents?
Igor Nygma[ru→en]: Almost 600 users are registered with us
Thirza Ember: that's impressive!
Igor Nygma [ru→en]: Moscow is not the only real city on the grid. You can also walk in Astana Baku and Minsk as well as other real countries
Thirza Ember: it's a nice way to explore the world without leaving home
Erica Eisenberg: and you don't need your American Express Card
Igor Nygma [ru→en]: You can remember this place, we have everything for free, and there is no attached virtual currency
Forest Azure: ah, good!
Thirza Ember: is it true there are many dance events here?
Lenny Love: sometimes we have amazing evening, when ppl just sing, so if you have mood to sing - you are really very welcome :)
Igor Nygma [ru→en]: Yes, we are often held by karaoke and concerts. We also hold dance shows. There are several dance groups on the grid
Thirza Ember: I want to hear you all singing!
Lenny Love: something like that, but ppl just sing what they wish.. and their voices are really good... not everyone lol ... I'm just listening...
Prodyck Theas: :-)
Thirza Ember: that must be fun! how did you all meet? did you come here from Second Life?
Lenny Love: yes, we are from SecondLife :)
Igor Nygma [ru→en]: Regions are located not only on one server. We have the main server and approximately 10 joined serversPetlove Petshop: what a terrific translator!
Erica Eisenberg: why is Surik holding a gun and wearing a gas mask?
Lenny Love: I have the same question.. but nobody knows xD
Igor Nygma [ru→en]: Surerik quite an original personality
Orli Liori: he's sick. that's why he's wearing a mask))))

James Atlloud: lol.

Igor Nygma [ru→en]: And so we start a story about this location. It is already more than a year old. Historical buildings were made in a blender
Mario150 Xamerstva[ru→en]: Awesome work
Igor Nygma[ru→en]: The most difficult building was the cathedral in front of which we are standing. It took 2 weeks to make it. Creating the model itself and texturing
Thirza Ember: the colors, are those just like the real place?
Igor Nygma [ru→en]: Everything is original
Petlove Petshop: it's huge!
Sergei Uzdemir: [ru→en] Hello everyone

Igor Nygma [ru→en]: Fragment of the Kremlin wall with three towers and the most famous Spasskaya tower with a clock
Thirza Ember: are the residents on this grid mostly people from Moscow, or do they live all over Russia, in real life?
Lenny Love: nope. They live almost everywhere.
Yana Vega [ru→en]: All players from different cities
Igor Nygma [ru→en]: And not everyone lives in Russia... we are foster by a common language
Forest Azure: how is internet in Russia?
Igor Nygma [ru→en]: It works. There are problems with connecting with other grids.

We had been standing still in the middle of Red Square for a while, which is always good for the lag, but it felt like the right time to get some exercise.
Igor Nygma[ru→en]: Come
James Atlloud: yes please - James loves to walk.
Forest Azure: he has his walking shoes on :) green ones

Igor Nygma [ru→en]: who wants to climb the tower itself... We have a platform there, there will be a great view
Petlove Petshop: sure!
Thirza Ember: i wonder what is the maximum people it can contain... oh there is room for everyone!
Igor Nygma [ru→en]: Yes, the site is large

On the Kremlin viewing platform

James Atlloud: The model of St. Basil's Cathedral is wonderful. As a child, I always thought IT was the Kremlin! lol
Igor Nygma [ru→en]: Thank you
Thirza Ember: I love exploring RL places in opensim
Forest Azure: ooh.. too bad there is nothing inside.. i was so curious about the secrets of the Kremlin!
Thirza Ember: the grid is only one year old, maybe in the future they will expand it
Igor Nygma [ru→en]: Spacegrid for almost 2 years... next month we will celebrate the birthday
James Atlloud: Happy Birthday - for all of spacegrid?
Thirza Ember: oh my mistake 2 years
Petlove Petshop: there are a lot of regions on the map - this is all truly amazing
Igor Nygma [ru→en]: yes we have a fast -growing grid
Mario150 Xamerstva [ru→en]: Cool
Thirza Ember: who are the principal builders?
Igor Nygma [ru→en]: We have many developers. We tried to attract the best, and we also attract creators for our stores
Thirza Ember: building and singing - those are 2 important skills
James Atlloud: and singing WHILE building is the best.
Forest Azure: not always, James :)

Igor Nygma [ru→en]: Yes
Thirza Ember: can anyone join the grid or is residency limited to your group of friends
Igor Nygma [ru→en]: Yes, everyone can join us. But the administration is needed
Forest Azure: are the stores here in Moscow?
Igor Nygma [ru→en]: yes there are two buildings for stores. But they are not almost filled so far. The mausoleum is located nearby

Lenin Mausoleum

James Atlloud: Do we dress special for the mausoleum?
Forest Azure: yes, crocs are not allowed in a mausoleum, james
James Atlloud: Forest, that was my worry!!
Petlove Petshop: they're wild crocs - better behaved than the tame ones! I know it makes no sense but there it is
Forest Azure: i can totally understand :)
Igor Nygma [ru→en]: Special clothes are not needed
Thirza Ember: ok, let's go! LOL

Igor Nygma [ru→en]: Until Lenin was buried, the mausoleum remains a local attraction
Thirza Ember: it is always fascinating to see other cultures represented in opensim, by the people who really know about it
Igor Nygma [ru→en]: Yes, and we can get acquainted on our grid not only with Russian culture. We can get acquainted with Kazakh culture, Armenian, Moldavian, Chinese... And there is even ancient Greece

Some of our very gracious hosts

Forest Azure: and Bali, i saw
Igor Nygma [ru→en]: All places can be found on our board
Yana Vega [ru→en]: There are many beautiful and cozy locations in our Grid.
Thirza Ember: I'm curious, do the residents of this grid enjoy visiting other Hypergrid places? or do you generally just stay on your own grid
Igor Nygma [ru→en]: Yes, of course we travel. We are interested in many places

Thirza Ember: there is one more place I would like to get a fun group photograph - the McDonald's - would that be possible?
James Atlloud: Oh MickyDee's!!

Fast food is available on the sim

In the end, however, Igor had a better suggestion, the Luzhniki stadium, which we reached by walking across town...

... and then through the VDNK park with its giant bunny and ferris wheel. You had to watch your step, for there were plenty of coaches and cars around...
James Atlloud: Oh, safaristas and busses, oh my!
Igor Nygma [ru→en]: This stadium is also handmade
Forest Azure: that is a huge goal!

We had reached the end of our time, but it was a real learning curve and a great opportunity to make some new friends. Hopefully this first tour will be the beginning of many more opportunities to visit.
Igor Nygma [ru→en]: Of course we are always happy to see with us. If you want to see some other location, I am happy to conduct an excursion
Yana Vega [ru→en]: We will be very happy to see you again with us! come to visit anytime
Mario150 Xamerstva [ru→en]: And we are happy to be friends with you.
Petlove Petshop: thank you!
Thirza Ember: this was a real 'foreign excursion'... applause for Igor - you were a super guide
eva Nowicka: thank you.. a very interesting grid
Alex Salamander: Thanks for showing us this big city
Forest Azure: thank you for the tour!

HG Address: spacegrid.online:6002:Moscow_Land_1