Blue Lagoon Marina continues to fascinate me in the manner of its development. It is growing in a very organic manner which appears to be encouraging a great level of diversity.

One example is that a section of it is developing in the style of a Dutch village. Called Lemmer, presumably after a real life village of the same name in the Netherlands, the sim has houses in the style of typical Dutch architecture, the gabled houses, and green painted houses typical of a town called Marken, which I’ve visited in RL.

Cherie explores typical Dutch housing in the Lemmer part of the Blue Lagoon Estate

Cherie on board a Dutch barge

Duncan poses beside a windmill

Parts of the Netherlands are very much rural, farming country, and at this time of year I imagine (like my part of the world) the ‘lambing season’ is now underway. Above, Duncan adopts the role of naturist farmer, tending a new born lamb. In the background, you can see a gabled house typical of the Dutch style.

BLM is fast becoming a go-to location for the sort of geographic diversity I recall from my early days in SL, when it was possible to hop from one part of the world to another in seconds, when sims existed for their own sake rather than have to have some commercial value. I welcome the manner in which Blue Lagoon appears to be encouraging this diversity, as well as adopting an exceptionally positive approach to its own infrastructure. I hope this trend continues!

Ella

Spring is coming! And so is the new naturist season (in the northern hemisphere).

As many of you will know, I use images from numerous tumblr sites to illustrate these pages. I’ve got several sites bookmarked as ‘naturist tumblr’ sites, and I’m always amused that some men (always men) will make comments such as ‘I didn’t come here to see dicks’.

If you’re a genuine naturist, you will know that naturism includes both genders, male and female, and cropping photos to remove evidence of men isn’t remotely genuinely naturist. Many tumblr sites present themselves as naturist, but exploration of them reveals that they’re male-free and also include many photos that aren’t naturist, but more sexual in nature.

Fellas, please don’t be afraid of a penis. It’s involved in 50% of naturist activity. If you’re a genuine naturist, you’ll know that penises are ever-present, so don’t try to present yourself as a genuine naturist by displaying some sort of phobia to male genitalia.

Furthermore, some people accept displays of affection between people of different genders, but recoil in horror at displays of affection between same-sex couples, specifically male couples (the whole lesbian display of affection doesn’t have the same anathema to many males).

Naturism is a very inclusive lifestyle. We don’t recoil in horror by larger sized people, older people or people of the same gender involved as a couple. Be reminded that this is naturism, not just naked women of a certain age and size doing things to male genitalia.

Ella

Naturism is inclusive. An LGBT flag proudly flies at the Eden Estate

Leeroy poses by the new fountain at Eden’s central tp point

The long-standing rotunda at the Eden Naturist Estate has been demolished, and replaced with a brand new, and wonderful looking, stone bungalow. It has given Eden’s hub a whole new look and feel, freshening the place up, modernising it and pointing the way forward for a new phase in Eden’s ongoing development.

I’ve no idea who Eden’s gardeners are, but they are doing a fabulous job! The place is pristine, and the small details at Eden are, as usual, spectacular. Beneath the flower beds and fountain, new brick paving. This is key to the Eden ‘style’, which always has a wonderful attention to the small details that make it what it is.

Step inside the building and there’s a cosy inner quadrangle that feels…right! A nice spot to sit and chat, as I did, with avatars teleporting in. Above, Louise and Mark posed for my camera.

Did I mention detailing? 😉 With the daffodils in bloom in my own garden, it’s a delight to see them equally in flower at Eden.

If you haven’t visited Eden’s new central tp point yet, set that right today with a visit! I do enjoy the manner in which Eden maintains a familiarity, yet always manages to subtly change. Not so much that it’s jarring, as happens on so many sims, but with a sense of ‘real time’ development. After several years, the rotunda was simply modernised, just as any naturist location in real life will develop and modernise.

The landscaping is simply astounding!

Jose is asked to pose in a familiar location to us! 😉

On a personal level, a winter of an exceptionally heavy workload ends next weekend! (Hooray!) and I’m planning to be back in SL more regularly, any maybe trying to get a little SLN Saturday Soiree going.

Ella