Winter Fun in Second Life, 9th Annual SL Christmas Expo

The annual SL Christmas Expo has arrived, in partnership with the American Cancer Society.
From 5th of December you can shop and find Christmas merriment at the Expo which covers a number of regions, all decked out in winter season landscaping and hosting live music performances, DJ's, skating, dance parties, a bazaar, raffle, shopping and more.

The event is put together by Linden Lab and the American Cancer Society. Proceeds from the Expo go to research, support and palliative help for children with cancer.   You can read more about this on the official Christmas Expo page.

A good place to start is the welcome region

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Christmas%20Expo/204/51/23

where you can see all the sponsors, find out about the raffle, join the Expo group, do a little ice skating, and as you are there take a vote by donation in the Lights of Hope home decorating competition. There are teleporters dotted around the regions if you get tired of walking or flying.

The American Cancer Society has a dedicated region at the Expo. I was quite impressed by the build as it has some really interesting architecture.

There is a memorial garden dedicated to the memory of those passed which is very beautifully and tastefully presented. Images of loved ones that have passed have been placed here, and by clicking on the image of the person you can receive a notecard about them and their passing.  This area really got me choked up, having suffered losses in the past few years also.  It's a vivid reminder of the main purpose of the Expo.

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/American%20Cancer%20Society/64/21/34

However, the Expo isn't meant to be about sadness but coming together to do some good. There are information hubs for various related groups such as Relay for Life and Hope Haven, and a central hub for events:

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/American%20Cancer%20Society/172/74/23

I loved the wintery Christmas feel of the various regions, which all had seasonally appropriate Christmas names such as Christmas Candy Canes, and Christmas Morning, and of course I'm a sucker for cute decorations so I enjoyed looking around and taking some snapshots. It's nice to know also that every purchase made at the Expo will be going to a good cause.

Also featured as part of the event is the reveal of the next Linden Home theme. Find out more in my blog post here.

The Expo is on until 15th December, so get your ice skates on and check it out!