cost 35,000 Linden dollars (about $100 at the time), which Farrant paid with direct transfers from his bank account to the suppliers.

Joyce Bettencourt owns a virtual cathedral in Second life for such momentous occasions and her avatar, Rhiannon Chatnoir, acts as a wedding impresario. “Some people have weddings in Second Life because they were unable to have the pomp and circumstance wedding in real life,” Bettencourt said. She makes about 1,000 Linden dollars per wedding, or $3.

Farrant said he and his virtual bride had “all the bits and pieces as a real wedding.” Ruby wore a wedding dress and had her hair done. Ravan picked out a new outfit and had a best man. Nearly a dozen guests attended the wedding in the gothic cathedral.

Not long after this virtual celebration, Farrant made the trip to meet Roden in person at her real home in Wales. He ended up staying for nearly two weeks. Then he returned to Essex, sorted out the details of his life, and drove right back to Roden with a van packed with his belongings.

Ten months have passed since they moved in together, and they’re still going strong as a couple in both the real and virtual worlds. They still log into Second Life, but with much less frequency than when their courtship began. Together they’ve purchased a virtual island, Utopia, where Ravan’s building a nightclub and Ruby’s building another house.

“We’re in love more now than when we first met,” Farrant said, “and I thought that’s as good as it got.” 

Soon, Farrant plans to ask Roden to marry him. For them fantasy and reality have become one and the same.

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