I first arrived at Pottery Pavilion at http://slurl.com/secondlife/Bietschhorn/208/232/36. My first action was to await the popping of several dozens sculpted prims, thanks to my low-grade eMachine. I first thought I was in the middle of some sort of pod invasion, but everything shaped up beautifully. Two tiers of color-sorted pottery presented themselves nicely, but the show-stealer here was not the pottery but the stunning water temple, lavishly and perfectly decorated with Egyptian textures. Many times I've seen people come close to realistic texturing in SL, but I can definitely say that this place is a triumph and a marvel.
Pottery Pavilion also sells a neat 39-prim Mushroom/palette-swap Tree House for L$300, a 157-prim giant birdhouse for 450L, and a 92-prim tree stump home for L$350. Unfortunately, it's a case of too little, too late; with an impressive 9088m and a traffic of just 8, and the owner not online since July 31 and a L$100000 price tag hovering over the property, the Pavilion's glory days are coming to an end.
For a Mexican flair, El Refugio (http://slurl.com/secondlife/Kochoomo/137/105/58) is where it's at. Located both in Kochomoo and JC Anvil's Bungalow Zone, El Refugio features vibrant designs with many sun and moon motifs, flowers, birds, fish, and Mexican abstracts. Pinatas, plaques, wall art, fountains, wrought iron lamps, and many kinds of bistro chairs and tables round out the satisfying selection you will find here. And if that is not enough to quench your thirst for fine culture, ladies may still browse the new clothing store and anyone can browse the dedicated furniture store.
For anyone seeking the exotic SL store, Absinthe Minded Pottery and Pation in Skyridge (http://slurl.com/secondlife/Skyridge/179/113/301) offers a largely sign-free, text-free shopping environment that soothes anyone used to rows of laggy overlapping white text. Potted plants, birdbaths, and urns are the order of the day at 300m (kudos for not having the awful X-shaped flowers you see everywhere else in SL!) and at ground level there is a homey tiki shop with plenty of variety (they even have a stove for those chilly nights)! In all it's very well arranged, and a pleasure to see a place that isn't jammed with numbers and letters, for once.
