Piwnica pod Aniolami w Skiroławkach

In real life, I've only visited the Polish countrywide in the depths of winter, with bitterly cold winds sweeping over snow-covered fields. If, the rest of the year, it's anything like the scenic landscape at Piwnica pod Aniolami w Skiroławkach, I'll want to return soon. Created by Gocha Merlin, the sim is a picturesque rural setting, with rolling hills on which small homes are connected by winding walkways. A waterway flows roughly south to north, broadening into a small harbor in the northwest corner of the region.

Setting out on foot is easy enough, but you can also rez a bicycle near the water mill, just over the wooden bridge. Meadows of flowers provide some beautiful settings for photography: bright yellow rapeseed blossoms near Gocha's preferred landing point and wild poppies growing in multiple fields of wheat. And toward the north lies a thick forested grove with a couple of spooky apparitions. Overall, the design imparts a great sense of depth, and we do feel as if we're looking out over a landscape that recedes into the far distance.

Gocha, along with three of the sim's residents—Katia Millet, Dedal Chrome and Pepe (Pepeb)—quite patiently answered my questions, explaining, as I suspected from some quick research, that Skiroławkach is a reference to a 1983 novel by Zbigniewa Nienackiego, Raz w roku w Skiroławkach, and is an imagined town located somewhere in northern Poland, while Piwnica pod Aniolami could be best translated as "cellar under angels." (The region was previously home to a club by this same name, now long gone.) A few of the homes on the sim are indeed rented out, so please respect privacy as you explore, and Katia added that Skiroławkach is also home to themed events.

Aside from the homes and nearby barns, you'll find other structures. An old stone church gazes down on the village from Skiroławkach's highest point, an ancient cemetery in partial ruins at its side. Shown here (and click on any image to zoom in) is the sim's preferred Windlight setting, [NB] Sepia 1700, but others will work admirably. A tipjar is located near the church.