What are virtual worlds for if not to allow people to live out the fantasies they can’t achieve in real life? And this even applies if the fantasy you harbor is to be a prostitute. It’s not a fantasy I can personally see the appeal of but what the hell, it takes all sorts to make a society.

Palela Alderson (not her real name, duh) is a young Italian woman who lives a very normal life, at least the first one of the two she currently lives. According to Green Pixels, she works in communications, likes sports and shopping, and using Second Life. But it’s what she uses Second Life for that makes this story interesting.

You see, Palela always harbored a secret desire to be a prostitute. Since being a teenager and watching street hookers plying their sleazy trade on Italian street corners, Palela wanted to be an escort. And so when she grew up, she was for a while. Except she didn’t accept any clients, being too scared of getting caught.

Palela is from a middle-class family, and was brought up well by good parents. She also went to university and graduated with a degree. And the thought of her family discovering she was having sex with people for money scared her out of heading down the call girl route of employment.

However, in 2007, Palela discovered there were some sexual elements to the popular virtual world, Second Life, and so investigated the scene. She’s now been a Second Life escort for fourteen months and counting. Her avatar (as seen above) looks like her and she tried to live her Second Life life like she would choose to live her first life.

Palela charges for her services but only Linden dollars, the currency of Second Life. She charges an average of 2000 – 3000 Linden dollars for an evening with a client. To put that in perspective, a pair of thigh high boots costs about 600 Linden dollars while a short dress would set you back about 500 Linden dollars. But excitement rather than money is Palela’s main reason for being a Second Life prostitute.

Some people may pour scorn on this woman but to me it shows yet another way in which technology is enriching our lives and broadening our horizons. Being an escort on Second Life means Palela doesn’t have to face the dangers of the job, or having to have real sex with strangers. And it also means her family are unlikely to ever shun her for being a hooker.

The only negative I can find here is the chance that Palela could actually be a man.

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Entry was posted on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 12:14 am under Adult content, Internet, Opinion, Technology.

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