BootsnAll Travel Community

I was thinking it would be interesting to get perspectives on the "gay life" in the various places everyone has lived/visted. I will start off with the places I've lived as an adult:

Baltimore, MD: Eughh. Not much of a gay scene, aside from a few bars (like the Hippo?). But honestly, I'd just come out, so I didn't hit the gay scene much at all.

New York, NY: The gay night life in NY is simply awesome. You can find a venue to cater to any taste. The variety is enormous, the only downside being the cost. Overall, NYC must be one of the best cities in the world in which to be gay.

Washington, DC: DC has a strong gay scene, but I didn't care for it the few times I went out while visiting. I found the crowds to mostly be VERY snooty and, like many DC venues, obsessed with politics and insiderism. I didn't find it friendly at all.

London, UK: I had a blast in London, thanks to a fairly centralized gay area (SoHo) and the tremendous fun to be had at the Astoria dance club. I liked the bars, although they did close so early (11:30 pm)! And let's face it, cute boys with Brit accents are incredibly adorable.

Paris, France: I had mixed feelings. First of all, the gay bars are all spread out over the city, so there doesn't seem to be a true "gay neighborhood" like in most cities I've been to. Some of the bars and clubs were cool, others rather skeevy. I did get harassed by a guy who claimed to be a speechwriter for the Dept. of the Interior(?) and who was persistent in asking me and my friend to go back to his place with him. Eeeeek!

Portland, OR: My current abode. Maybe I'm being unfair, but after living in NYC for five years, I'm pretty underwhelmed with PDX's gay night life. The bars along Stark St. in SW leave me cold (Silverado, Scandals, etc.). I have been to one bar and one coffee shop in SE, which I liked, but since I live in NW, it's not as convenient (I can walk to Stark). At least PDX crowds seem to be much friendlier than those I've encountered in other cities. I have had one tremendously bizarre night out here, which was good for laughs, and the cheapness compared to other cities is a big plus. The good news is that Portland recently started up a GBLT center, and I hope that will be a great resource.

So share your own experiences!

Amsterdam: I went to school there for a year... its called by many "The Gay Capitol of Europe", it shouldn't be, at least not for the nightlife. They allow gay marriage and two guys kissing on the street is no problem [at least not for the Dutch, tourists and immigrants may stare (or worse)]. However, the nightlife is only "pretty good" at best. The Reguliersdwar Street has some nice options, but for people not into the hardcore leather/bear/darkroom scene, there are really only a few places [Exit, iT, April], at least as far as big clubs go. There are some smaller local bars which may appeal to some and an alternative squat bar called De Trut [The Bitch] every Sunday where they won't let you in UNLESS you are gay!

Los Angeles: You can't get much better than Santa Monica boulevard...options for everybody. Not cheap though and of course most of the bars/clubs close at 2am. On the weekends, there are TONS of guys out and it'll never be the same group of homos like what happens in many cities [albeit usually smaller ones than Los Angeles' population of 10 million]. Lots of tourists too.

Santa Barbara: Recently, the one gay bar in Santa Barbara closed... which was all for the better, it sucked big time. I imagine a new and better one will open in the next couple years. Sunday nights at The Wildcat is gay night and there is usually a pretty big crowd there, but if you live there, its the same 50 people every week... blah.

Budapest: I have only lived here for 6 weeks at the moment, but I am very pleasantly suprised with the scene here. They have two main dance clubs here, Alibi and Capella, which are not top notch, but at least get a decent crowd on what appears to be a nightly basis. The drag shows at both those places are entertaining as well. They also have monthly parties called Candy and Pure at various locations that are excellent! And during the summer, there is a Sunday night party, also called Candy, at a place called Buddha Beach... I was only there once, and it was when the next day was a holiday, so I'm not sure how a typical Sunday is, but it was quite good when I was there. One thing about Hungarians in general: they are very physically affectionate with each other [straight guys, with each other] and thus it may throw your gaydar out of whack... I try and look through it for other signs.

As a Virginia, USA native, I whole heartedly agree about Washington, DC...the one saving grace, the super club there, Nation, is being torn down in a week or so...

and, as I now live in London, totally agree with what's been said about London...and fortunately the 11:30 drinking up time is fast becoming a thing of the past as new licensing laws have been brought in, have to love being able to take your pints outside onto the street on a hot summer evening...and with a new clubs/nights starting up constantly, must say it's quite amazing! Although must say that you only brushed the tip of the iceburg that is gay life in London, the debauched drug f**ked clubs of Vauxhall (it really is possible to go out Thursday night and not come home until Monday afternoon), to the achingly hip watering holes and clubs of Shoreditch / Hoxton - whether Bear-aoke (karaoke for bears) is more up your street or gay bingo like you've never seen it before (last time I went, bondage bingo was on, the drag queen/performer ended up getting rubbed down with crisco and pissed on by the dj by the time the night was over, lol) - but that's enough of that!

Salzbury, Austria - There were 2 gay bars that my b/f and I found, one a bit deserted albeit I think we were there a bit too early in the evening (they did have a pole for strippers installed!)...and the other 'Cafe Diva' was a total laugh, not a big place by any strech of imagination, but with REALLY friendly bar staff, free shots, etc...and with all of the Sound of Music gayiety to see, and the random fit guys walking around in lederhosen...it made for a really fun trip

Strasbourg, France - 2 gay restaurants that we went to there were GREAT, really really friendly service, excellent food, etc. totally disproving the hyperbole that you hear about the French looking down their nose at you...we found a gay bar as well, nothing special, quiet place for drinks

Getting ready to fling open the closet doors has to be Moscow. The scene is quite difficult to define and you tend to get hit on more often than not just hanging out in the Arabat or in the park than in a club, which although aspiring to achieve to Western standards still retain a faint whiff of Central European human trafficing. If you want an idea checkout the film 'Mandragora'; not a nice film but a good representation of the seedier side of town.

Certainly more upmarket clubs and bars are much better and there is a good mix of hets and homos that seem to get on well.

Malaysia. I grew up in this country but I didn't come out until I moved to the US. Society is very conservative in general. Gay people are ostracised and persecuted. Most people equate gay to being effeminate and/or transgendered. There is vitually no awareness that there are non-effeminate gay men in existance. There is virtually no gay scene to speak of. Kuala Lumpur seems to be the only exception. It's still a hush-hush thing, but there are a few gay clubs. I've been to Liquid which was quite lively and crowded.

Michigan, USA. I lived for 12 years in West Michigan which tends to be on the conservative side. Gay people are tolerated in general and most cities have at least 1 or 2 gay clubs. Grand Rapids has several in the downtown area. Diversions is probably the most well known. It can be clique-ish at times. The East side of the state seems to have a better gay scene. Ann Arbor and Detroit each have several gay clubs.

Chicago, Illinois, USA. Boystown is centered around North Halsted Street and there are many clubs in this neighborhood. This is probably the most "happening" place for gay culture in the Midwest United States. It's a fun atmosphere. Many different types of bars for different tastes.

Toronto, Canada. Awesome gay scene centered around Church Street. I've been to Gay Pride here once and it was lots of fun. Many different styles of bars and even a few strip clubs. Definitely a gay-friendly city.

Quebec City, Canada. Very gay friendly. We stayed at a gay-friendly B&B for a long weekend. The name of the place escapes me at the moment. We didn't go to any clubs, but from what I've read there are quite a few.

Siem Reap, Cambodia. What gay scene?

Tokyo, Japan. Shinjuku ni-chome is the place to be. Lots of tiny clubs clustered around this part of the city. Clubs are crowded. I only went out 1 night, but I found it hard to get into the scene as a gaijin who spoke only a few phrases of Japanese.

I agree with the previous posters regarding New York and London. Not much more I can add there.

Galveston, Texas, USA
This is where we "escaped" to following hurricane Katrina. There IS a gay-scene here; but golly-Wally, this is where homosexuals come to retire! I'm 56 years old and I was the youngest one in the bar! LOTS of drag, too. Not "pretty drag" I'm talking... well... not pretty. One of the BEST drag-queens (she knows all her words and lip-stinks better than most) is -- MON - FRI -- a tug-boat captain. On Friday and Saturday nights she HEADLINES the show... looking like a tug-boat captain in a dress. She's actually a VERY nice, intelligent person with a splendid personality; but... LORDY... she's just not pretty! The rest of the performers appear to have studied at the Mad Cow School of Dance.

Eureka Springs, Arkansas, USA
This little bitty city in the Ozark Mountains will fool you! There's a HUGE gay scene happening! They have TWO special "gay weekends" every year -- they call them Diversity Weekends -- that attract throngs of gays and lesbians from a four state area! Great fun and the locals are just the friendliest people you'd ever want to sleep with!

New Orleans, Louisiana, USA
My "significant udder" and I are moving back at the end of November 2006 and we can't wait! We took a quick -- four day -- trip back there to look at a house and it's quickly recovering! In fact the French Quarter never really stopped partying! Several of the gay bars became "shelters" for their regular patrons following Katrina and they literally SAVED lives! The best people you'd ever want to be stranded with, too! The one thing about New Orleans is so many of the bars are open 24 hours... more than once I walked out of a bar with the SUN blazing away and thought, "My God, that moon's bright!" Now, the drag shows here are fun, girl! If drag is your thing. But -- unlike Galveston -- it's not the ONLY kind of entertainment! They have "special nights" at most of the bars with all kinds of delectible and degenerate themes to capture your personal fetish. There are bars with "boys" dancing on the bar NIGHTLY! (Check out the Corner Pocket and let me smell your fingers when you leave!) There are some bars that offer the BEST in gay theatre! I know it's the best, 'cause I wrote plays and performed there! I even got reviewed in the "straight press" and they LOVED me! New Orleans is a happening place, day and night, but don't think it's all about the bars either! Girl, EAT! This city has the BEST FOOD anywhere... and for any pocket-book, too! I love Petunia's (breakfast, lunch, brunch, and dinner, too!) Be prepared to stand in line if you go at "normal" eating times. I try to time it so I'm in-between those BUSY regular eating times. The service is wonderful and the food is to die for! Try the Shrimp Barataria, it's their own recipie and it's great! AmbushMag.com can be a great source of information on what's going on in New Orleans whenever you're planning to arrive! Mardi Gras, French Quarter Fest, Jazz Fest, Southern Decadence require pre-planning and EARLY RESERVATIONS at all hotels, B&B's, etc! We stayed at the Lion's Inn B&B (www.lionsinn.com) and their place is so beautiful and VERY affordable! Hosts Stuart and Floyd are so wonderful -- tell e'm, "LewLew sent me!"

I've been to NYC when I was much younger (1969 - 1971) being younger probably made ME more popular and I had so much fun!

San Francisco was one of the most memorable cities I've EVER been to. My lover and I went there 30 years ago on our "honeymoon" and -- okay maybe we were in love -- but it sure seemed to be the most romantic place in the world! The whole CITY is gay when you're in love!

LA -- ugh! Everybody there... and I was young then, too... just wanted to insert inanimate objects into my body, or pee on my leg! I was offended and couldn't understand all the "attitudes" as if they were too good for anybody. I hated LA-LA LAND.

London -- one of the BEST cities I've ever had the pleasure of visiting. Yes, when I was there the bars closed early; but I was young then, too and I never had trouble "getting around." Some of the BEST theatre there, too! I adore this city and want to return, now that I'm an old married woman.

Orlando, Florida -- ugh. The most unfriendly place I've ever endured. Lived there for 13 years and when I left I had one person to say "goodbye" to. Tacky, unfriendly bars, and LOTS of excellent theatre! If it hadn't been for the theatre, I'd-a left years before! Snooty gay-scene and ugly rumor mongering gays who thrive on bad-mouthing each other.

All in all, I'd say New Orleans scores the best in my book! There's something for everyone... no matter how degenerate you think you are, there's something just a bit more around the corner!

My area is very gay.

People here are quite happy and bubbling with joy, always looking on the bright side. It's fun to live in Optimism, USA.



Seriously, someone ought to reclaim the word 'Gay' to its original meaning, and stick to Same-Same, or something like that.

Same-same. yeah, I like that. Philly is very same-same in a few very important blocks, so much so that it has a Same-Same street patrol to keep the streets safe from those that do not enjoy the same pleasures, and would seek to deny them(homophobes and criminals)

I beleive its the fourth largest Sam-same community in the country, or was a few years ago.