The Gay Scene in Bristol

Bristol, not the first place that many think of going to on a gay vacation, represents the largest gay village in southwest England. The gay stripe is located on Old Market street just a walk away from the City Center. The stripe contains several pubs and small clubs for a variety of taste or fetishes.The best way to check out the status of a gay village in comparison to others is to see it on a Saturday in the day and in the evening time.

Despite the repetition of Bristol gay village in this region, the stripe lacks any real vibe in the day time. No patios to mingle and eye watch at brunch and most places are close. The ones that are open have little to offer and you are left with a feeling that the town is still in the closet. This is a pity as Bristol in this area has a high tourist attraction and a university near by with lots of summer students. When the weather is nice, which is a luxury in England, having some great patios to go to would be a great way to pass the day.

The nightlife is full of places to go to and meet new and interesting people. The clubs are full of people of all ages, background, body shape etc. It seems to lack the snobbiness that you would find in a lot of gay clubs in Toronto. There is the Flamingo, which is major dance club there, the Lounge which is a nice semi-leather pub. There also the Palaces, which is a club that is attended primarily by the 30 something and above crowd.

Dubai- Not So Gay Friendly

Dubai, Dubai, Dubai. Well it may be the land to get rich quickly. It may be the place with the man made Palm island. It may be the 'IT' place of the global partier. But don't you dare cross dress or appear too flamboyant. You may get arrested!

Read this article below from News.com. au
DUBAI -- 17 foreign men were detained Wednesday in this gulf tourist for allegedly being gay and wearing women's clothes in public, News.com.au reports.

The arrests are part of a months-long campaign that police said is aimed at "protecting and preserving the country's social values and traditions," Khaleej Times reports.

Colonel Khalil Al Mansouri, Deputy Director of General Department of Criminal Investigation in Dubai Police, told Khaleej Times that those arrested have been referred to Public Prosecution on charges of cross-dressing and indulging in immoral acts.

As many as 41 men and women have been arrested since May and charged with cross-dressing according to Khaleej Times. A senior police official told Dubai's Gulf News say that the arrested foreigners would be deported soon.

Among those arrested are Asians and some Europeans. Most of the arrests were made at shopping malls and public places.

The visitors were arrested after police launched a campaign against transvestites last May. Lieutenant General Dahi Khalfan Tamim, Dubai Police Chief, had said then that transvestites were frequently being spotted in public places. "This is against the UAE's traditions and social values," he had warned.

The campaign was launched jointly by Tamim, and several government departments following what local papers say is "a visible trend of men dressing as women and vice versa."

Col. Al Mansouri said the campaign will continue until after Ramadan and warned people that action would be taken against those indulging in cross-dressing.

Violators would be summarily deported and life ban slapped on them, according to Khaleej Times.

Dubai Police have deployed special CID teams, including women personnel, to combat the growing phenomenon.

The trend is also noticeable among men and women working in beauty salons. Sponsors of such commercial establishments have been warned against employing such people.

Police authorities have also urged the Ministry of Social Affairs to conduct a study and identify the reasons behind the emerging trend. The study would focus on psychological, social and educational aspects, Col. Al Mansouri said.

He said that Dubai Police officers have contacted the families of national students who were found involved in such behaviour. A questionnaire has also been distributed in schools to raise awareness against the trend.

Meanwhile, Col. Jasim Khalil Mirza, Director of Security Awareness Department in Dubai Police, said although cross-dressers may be from different countries and cultures, but those who come to the UAE should respect the country's laws and social and religious values.

Time for a Change Jamaica!!

Jamaica is a beautiful country with a wonderful cultural heritage and considered one of the premier Caribbean travel destinations. Tourism is a major foreign exchange earner for the country. If you randomly went around asking people what they thought of Jamaica as a travel destination, they would most likely indicate that they have visit there on vacation or would love to travel there one day. So you would think it would be more tourist friendly, especially for homosexual. Gay and Lesbian love to travel and spend lots of money. But we need to feel comfortable and safe in our surroundings.
Jamaica isn't exactly 'Gay Friendly'. Basically it’s not friendly at all to homosexuals. It's has the worst record on Gay and Lesbian treatment in the New World. Its newly elected Prime Minister has openly expressed his arrogant views in the media. They still have a sodomy law in which the punishment is 10 years in jail. I can't imagine living there and being Gay or Lesbian. So I can't imagine traveling there for a holiday with a partner or other homosexuals.
365gay recently wrote an article on the new Prime Minister. This is very sad. Here is part of the article. Click on the link above to read the full article.

(London) Jamaican Prime Minister Bruce Golding is being blasted at home and in London for remarks he made about gays and lesbians during an interview with the British Broadcasting Corporation.

Golding condemned Britain and other Commonwealth countries for criticizing the treatment of gays in the Caribbean nation.

''Jamaica is not going to allow values to be imposed on it from outside,'' he said during the interview. Golding is in London on an official visit to the UK.

Asked if he would ever appoint an openly gay person to his cabinet the Prime Minister bristled, saying "never". Golding told the BBC that he has the right to make that decision and to form a Cabinet that represents the Jamaican people.

Golding has been a staunch supporter of maintaining Jamaica's sodomy law.

Gay sex is illegal in Jamaica, punishable by ten years in jail, with the possibility of hard labor.

Jason McFarlane, a spokesman for Jamaica Forum for Lesbians, All Sexuals and Gays (J-FLAG), said Golding's remarks were likely to incite more violence against gays in the country.

The situation for gays in the Caribbean nation has been of concern to other Commonwealth countries and international human rights groups for several years following a number of violent attacks.

Here is a wonderful clip from a someone who is giving here view of the issue in Jamaica on homosexuality.

How About a Trip To Egypt- You Better Act Straight

One of the many places as a teenager that I wanted to visit was Egypt. My interest peaked for this country in grade 11 when I was studying the pyramids in my ancient civilization course. I was fascinated by the history and the people. The various pictures of the Nile and the pyramids captivated me. I was determined to visit one day. Now many years later I still think every so often about visiting the country, but with a lot more hesitation. Egypt isn't the safest place for a gay man.

Fundamentalist and their religious views have made it difficult for homosexuals to freely live their life in such a place. Recently 5 gay men were arrested for practicing homosexuality. In Egypt the act of homosexuality isn't outlawed under their Islamic-inspired legislation. But can be prosecuted under other various morality laws. How can this be in 2008 in such a modern country, can such actions still exist. The full story of the arrest has been provided on yahoo. News. See the link below for the entire news.

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/afp/egypt_rights_trial_gay

Winter Wonderland- Cheap Romantic Getaway- Sainte Marguerite-du-lac Masson

Well it will seem the smart option to head south to some warm destination to get away from the chilly winter temperatures. But why not embrace a bit of that cold fresh artic air and head east for another cheap getaway. About 1 1/2 hours from Montreal lays a quaint town called Sainte- Maguerite-du-lac Masson. It offers all the amenities that a tourist will need if they want to get away from the big city and enjoy the variety of winter activities that one may thing of participating in.

In Sainte- Marguerite you will find the typical French mom-pop type restaurant called Grignotine where the locate residents frequent often. The food is good, cheap and the atmosphere is casual. There is a lake that stretches approximately 8km in which you can ice skate. You don't have to worry about bringing skates; you can rent for as little as $5.00. But note the gentleman that runs the rental shop closes at 5pm. So get there early. The door to return the skates is open late. So you can take your time on the ice. There are many trails if you like to track through the snow with you snowshoes. Both the trails and the skating can be a romantic activities. As well if you haven't try it before I highly recommend going dog sledding. It will seem a bit scary once the instructor provides you with some information about how to handle the dogs. But it’s safe and very enjoyable. There is the 20 minutes tour and the hour tour. Take the hour tour. It's worth the $100.00 per person! Fair warning... it's a workout. I found it a bit tiring guiding the dogs and not so easy. My partner had an easier time guiding the dogs. But got a good work out in the process, in which I indicated that, it makes up for the lack of gym exercise! LOL. Another fun activity that I recommend is tubing. It's not just for kids. But it's fun!! Both the dog sledding and tubing can be a great activity for a couple to bring out their inner child and adventurous side in each other.
Last but not least is skiing. For those who would like to hit the slopes Mont Tremblant is about 20 minutes away.

So here is the deal maker that makes this trip on the cheap getaway list. Home exchange!! You exchange homes for the duration of your stay and save a lot of money on hotel cost and food, as you can buy food from the locate grocers that are reasonably price. Here is a website in which you can get more information on home exchange www.1sthomexchange.com

The website below will provide you with more information on Sainte Marguerite-du-lac Masson

http://www.ste-marguerite.qc.ca

Bon Voyage- Off to Italy

There are only a few times that I choose to write about myself in this blog and this is one of those times. Next week I will be off to Rome, Italy for a long over due vacation. My last visit to Italy was in July 2000 on a Contiki Tour in which I was among 29 other companions from different countries around the world. This time around I will be spending my time with someone special and will be able to experience the city and other areas in Italy in a different way. Over the next two weeks I will try to provide some comments about the gay life in Italy and other off the beat stuff.

Here are some basic facts about the city: courtesy of AOL Travel Info.

Of all Italy’s historic cities, it’s perhaps Rome which exerts the most compelling fascination. There’s more to see here than in any other city in the world, with the relics of over two thousand years of inhabitation packed into its sprawling urban area. You could spend a month here and still only scratch the surface. As a historic place, it is special enough; as a contemporary European capital, it is utterly unique.
Placed between Italy’s North and South, and heartily despised by both, Rome is perhaps the perfect capital for a country like Italy. Once the seat of a great empire, and later the home of the papacy, which ruled its dominions from here with a distant and autocratic hand, it’s still seen as a place somewhat apart from the rest of Italy, spending money made elsewhere on the corrupt and bloated government machine that runs the country. Romans, the thinking seems to go, are a lazy lot, not to be trusted and living very nicely off the fat of the rest of the land. Even Romans find it hard to disagree with this analysis: in a city of around four million, there are around 600,000 office-workers, compared to an industrial workforce of one sixth of that.

Cheap Weekend Getaways Can Be Romantic

A weekend getaway doesn't necessarily have to be expensive or at some unique vacation resort with luxurious accommodations, first-class entertainment, etc, to be romantic. It can simple be a nice road trip to a small town, or city that you haven't visited before. The point of the trip is to have the opportunity to spend some quality time with your partner. An inexpensive trip were you can enjoy each others company can be surprisingly more romantic, without the worries of going over budget. Cheaper trips can allow for more spontaneous getaways and provide a sense of adventure with a looser schedule. This itself can be more stimulating and spark a lot of chemistry between couple. The point of the trips is to have fun, to have fun with each other and to better get to know one another.

Simple walks around the town discover unique places, such as a cute shop or a nice quiet bench in a park, can be very romantic without trying to be. One recommendation of a nice getaway would be to visit a city called Ann Arbor. Located in Michigan State, USA. This small university type town composes of 114,024 inhabitants were 32% are University students. Named apparently after the founder's spouse, the city is known for its political liberalism, the large number of restaurants and many performance venues. Walking through the neighbours will remained you of a postcard picture or a screen shot from Desperate Housewives showing the street called Mysterious Lane, big trees, large homes and white picket fences.The charm of the city is the people. Friendly, courteous and always with a smile on their face will make you feel at ease regardless of your sexual orientation, ethnic background or general appearance. This city that seems to be surrounded by a bubble as it is more politically progressive then the state in which it recite in, makes it a large welcome mate for all.

For more information on Ann Arbor please visit http://www.ci.ann-arbor.mi.us/

and if you would like to plan a weekend get away try searching the information on http://honeymoons.about.com/od/weekendgetaways/a/Romance_Weekend.htm