You have two gmaps. Gmap 1(area 1) and gmap 2(area 2). However, attached to each of the edges of the gmaps is an identical area of the nearby gmap. When the player touches the link it warps them to the next gmap where they were positioned in the old level and pushes them into the gmap. Otherwise these intermediary levels can not be entered and are just for transitional show. If you want I could possibly put something together possibly to show it in action.
It ends up being more work than just cropping stuff into areas, but if you desire the "Zelda effect" this is probably your best route.