The link between
the two sims, Sparquerry and ACC Alpha, has always been a bit unresolved. Sim
crossings just aren’t easy to address. A string-like sand bank was one of the
first attempts to join the islands, but the sight lines didn’t encourage people
to risk the crossing. The later strategy of building a high suspension bridge connecting a cliff face in
Sparquerry (now eroded away below the sea) to the upper stories of high
structures in ACC Alpha was long lasting, but impractical. At least 50 percent
of the time, a traveler would plunge into the sea below at the sim border.
At the end of
2011, the great earthquake shook most of the terrain of Sparquerry into the
ocean, destroying over 90% of the city. The sim was rebuilt over a mostly fresh
terrain. The oldest surviving structures from pre-earthquake times are entombed
in cells of the Sparcurious Gallery. The new city was built for the exhibit
“Second Libations”, and was then recently altered for the current exhibit “Stirring the
Dreams”. When I noticed that not many people visiting ACC Alpha travelled to
Sparquerry to see the exhibit, it occurred to me that I needed some kind of
intriguing link, a bridge that would offer an interesting sight line, and be
wholly evident that the two sims are meant to be seen together.
The Rusted Arc seen from the House of Curiosities
On September 17,
right after returning from a trip in RL, I was anxious to start building again and knew just
what to do. A low lying bridge would be supported by land underneath the planks
near the sim crossing, so that the usual token bits of lag avatars experience at borders wouldn’t sink them through prim structures.
For the sight line onto the jungle, I lead the wooden bridge through the base
of a large arc standing proud in the shallow sea. As you walk across the
bridge, the arc frames the view of Sparquerry. The arc itself is from “A Rusted
Development”, the exhibit I built on LEA1, but which will soon be dismantled there.
To preserve parts of that Development, I have copied some of the builds. Under the sea, the multi-columned entry is a pavilion from the Development, now home to an octopus
and fields of seaweed. The façade to my main build at Development now completes
the East wall of the House of Curiosities on ACC Alpha, which also serves as a
border post between the two sims. The access to the sim crossing is now very
simple and plain to see, with an inviting view onto the next sim.
XXX
I still have many pictures of old bridge, from when it first opened. It will, I think, be great to have a clearly visible connection between the two sims again, to help entice those few who do not realize that there is more they should be exploring.
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