Second Life : Kowloon

First off, let me say, I really like this place a lot. It really felt as if I was touring another location away from home, when in reality I was sitting at the same seat as I am typing on the blog at the moment. This is how a virtual tour should look and feel like.

The main street of Kowloon, laden with signboards. I like the 'No Guns' sign particularly.

The first things that I noticed right after I rezzed was the sound of lapping waves and as far as I could tell, Chinese music. Sound plays a big part in making things realistic, and Kowloon has it pat down.

Residents of Kowloon, these guys got the clothes and pose to boot.

Those guys are real people, living it out at Kowloon. They were speaking in Japanese though.. I would have thought they would speak Mandarin here. Nevertheless, they added to the realism of the place.

The bazaar at Kowloon. They sell all sorts of things here.

The streets in Kowloon are very narrow, and look very worn out. I wonder if this is the case in real life Kowloon? The place also looks kind of neglected and derelict, no offense to the residents there, and it felt as if I was going to get robbed at every corner of the streets.

Trying to look the part. At least I got the pose right.

I also did something I really wanted to do in real life, but I had no guts to do so. I rode a robot panda.

Ever wondered how a grown man would look like riding this? Well there you go.

The panda even came up with a nice tune while you are riding it.

To top it all off.. I even got to take a picture with the owner of Kowloon. I have to thank her for the panda ride.

She looks adorable, ain't she? And the skirt looks hip, gotta get myself one of those.

All in all, Kowloon is a nice place to explore around. The visuals and aural felt authentic, though I have not the real life experience to compare.

On a heavier note, I realized how I had no qualms about doing something I thought as embarrassing in real life in Second Life. That is, riding the robot panda is something I would never attempt to do outside of the game. The fear of being ridiculed and criticized by others is too great. In the virtual world, where I am mostly anonymous to others, I felt a sort of freedom greater than in the real world. Little by little I could understand why some people are attached to this game.